Manager Business Control IT

Ahold Delhaize is growing, not in the least because of its e-commerce success. With over 50 million customers weekly across 19 international brands, this means the cost of IT is growing as well. The Manager Business Control IT will manage finance, planning & control, while also advising senior management on strategic spending decisions for IT.

About Ahold Delhaize

Ahold Delhaize is one of the world’s largest food retailers. With 19 strong local brands in the Benelux and the US, Ahold Delhaize serves 54 million customers per week from thousands of brick-and-mortar stores. Ordering online for quick in-store pick up, or having groceries delivered, are also an option for customers.

Ahold Delhaize has been experiencing successful years of late. COVID did not negatively impact the groceries space as it did other sectors. Meanwhile, several acquisitions and an increase in online sales also contributed to the company’s growth. In the future, Ahold Delhaize expects to see its revenue from online sales, as part of the total revenue, only grow further.

At the Zaandam headquarters, the GSO Business Planning and Performance team (GSO BPP) is working to consolidate Ahold Delhaize’s success through a continuous effort of centralizing planning, management and support. The Finance Technology team is part of this organization, working directly under the CIO and senior IT leadership, as well as with the Board of Directors. At this moment, the team has two big change mandates. Firstly, to ensure costs are being plotted on the growing body of centralized IT-services in a way that is most useful for spend optimization and strategic decision-making, and secondly, building a knowledge base around IT-finance and -control. Naturally this team is the business partner for the CIO and IT teams to manage the spend.

Job description: Manager Business Control IT

The Manager Business Control IT will become a member of the Finance Technology team, next to two junior controllers and reporting to the Finance Technology Director. The Manager Business Control IT will be the right hand to the Director in all matters.

The Manager Business Control IT will contribute to the IT strategy by developing the year plan and budget for IT. This includes preparing budgets, forecasts and plans, per an effective system to serve as a basis for sound decision making. They will also advise management on an ongoing basis, at request or on their own initiative, issuing insights on financial performance, investments, working capital and profitability, and on financial decisions with strategic implications. Lastly, the Manager Business Control IT makes sure internal controls and compliance are in place, pinpointing risks and drafting proposals for mitigation.

The GSO was created to streamline a growing organisation that requires tight central planning and support. The Manager Business Control IT can expect a daily reality where many structures are already in place, while additional efforts to standardize processes, automate, and de-bug will be required. In a way, this warrants a hands-off attitude: the Manager Business Control IT will, for instance, be expected to point out areas for improvement, but not jump on these tasks themselves if they belong with another team. Instead, convincing and coaching colleagues to do things differently will be an important determinator of success for this role. In addition, collectively identifying saving opportunities and subsequently ensure realization is another big task. Lastly, further enhancing visibility within the Group on IT spend.

“The impact of IT, in all sectors and specifically within Ahold Delhaize, is only growing. For someone who has the ambition to become CFO at some point, it is almost a must to gain experience in this corner.” – Vincent Hagedoorn, Finance Technology Director

The ideal candidate for this role has solid experience in finance, accounting and/or business control. They have the ambition to move toward a leading finance function, whether centrally or within the business. Previous exposure to a tech environment may be a plus. More important, however, is a proven affinity with the subject matter and eagerness to learn. Since this role operates closely to the Senior IT Members including the CIO, exposure to senior management will be a given – creating an interesting opportunity to build a network within a leading retail holding.

Interested?

Ahold Delhaize is working with Top of Minds to fill this vacancy.
To express your interest, please contact Annelijn Nijhuis at annelijn.nijhuis@topofminds.com.