Head of Commercial Capability

We’ve been proudly serving Australian communities since 1914 and have grown to become a top 30-listed company on the ASX with a portfolio of iconic homegrown brands. At the heart of our continued success is over 115,000 team members working across the country, all contributing to bringing our customers smiles. You’ll not only get to see your work make a difference, you’ll be part of a team working together to help Australians eat and live better every day.

About the team

Our Commercial team is a large, but a close-knit group of trading experts, who are ready to shape the future of Coles. We pride ourselves on the long-lasting supplier relationships we build, the new ideas we develop and how passionately we work to help Australian eat and live better every day. And the best part? We’re all so different. We bring diversity of thought, backgrounds, and experience to every Business Unit across Coles Supermarkets and Liquor.

About the role

We are seeking an exceptional Head of Commercial Capability to lead the design and delivery of a future-fit commercial capability strategy that enables transformational change across our Commercial function.

Reporting to the General Manager, Store Development & Commercial Transformation, this highly visible leadership role will be responsible for building the capabilities, skills, behaviours and ways of working needed to support our commercial strategy and transformation agenda. You will partner with senior leaders across the business to uplift capability, embed new systems and processes, drive adoption of innovative ways of working, and create lasting organisational impact.

This is a unique opportunity to influence how our Commercial teams work, learn and perform while helping shape the future of retail through capability, transformation and change leadership.

You’ll also:

• Develop and lead the Commercial Capability Strategy and roadmap aligned to transformation priorities and business objectives.
• Design and deliver Commercial learning and capability programs, and commercial education initiatives.
• Build future-ready capability across Commercial teams, including AI-enabled ways of working and emerging technical skills.
• Lead change management, stakeholder engagement and adoption activities associated with major transformation programs.
• Partner with senior Commercial, People & Culture and functional leaders to identify capability priorities and drive business outcomes.
• Establish capability frameworks, governance and success measures to monitor adoption, proficiency and business impact.
• Drive organisational readiness and change capability through coaching, communication and targeted interventions.
• Identify organisational design opportunities that maximise the value of new tools, systems and processes.
• Lead strategic partnerships with external providers, consultants and delivery partners.
• Build and lead a high-performing team while fostering a culture of learning, innovation and continuous improvement.

About you and your skills

You're a commercially savvy transformation leader with a passion for developing people, capability and organisational performance. You bring a strong understanding of retail or FMCG environments and know how to translate business strategy into practical, scalable capability solutions that drive measurable outcomes.

You thrive in complex environments, are highly influential with senior stakeholders, and have a proven ability to lead large-scale transformation initiatives from strategy through to successful adoption. Equally comfortable thinking strategically and rolling up your sleeves, you're energised by creating innovative solutions that improve ways of working and deliver lasting impact.

You will also ideally have:

• Proven leadership experience within Retail, FMCG or a similarly complex commercial environment.
• Relevant tertiary qualifications in Business, Commerce, Finance, Economics or a related discipline.
• Deep understanding of commercial functions including buying, sourcing, merchandising and category management.
• Demonstrated success leading large-scale transformation, capability or change programs.
• Strong stakeholder management and influencing skills, with experience partnering with executive and senior leadership teams.
• Expertise in change management methodologies and organisational adoption practices.
• Experience designing and delivering capability, learning or leadership development programs.
• Strong commercial acumen with the ability to connect capability investments to business outcomes.
• Exceptional strategic thinking, problem-solving and program leadership capabilities.
• Experience leading and developing high-performing teams.
• A growth mindset, adaptability and passion for innovation, learning and continuous improvement.

What’s in it for you?

• Flexible working options: We know that work is only one part of your life, so we actively encourage a positive work-life balance and provide hybrid working options to help you achieve it.
• Office perks: Take advantage of our gym facility and fitness classes, free parking, BBQ area, mini-Coles supermarket, fooderie hub where you can sample new products before they hit the shelves, school holiday program and so much more when you come in.
• Discounts: Eligible team members receive 5% discount all year round on your Supermarket and Liquor online and in-store purchases. We also offer additional periods of double discount (10%) at various times throughout the year. As well as hotdeals exclusive to team members that translate into additional savings.
• Reward through recognition: Give and receive recognition, linked to our Coles values, through our digital recognition platform ‘mythanks’. You can accumulate points to redeem in the online shop for exciting gifts and electronic gift cards from an extensive range of retailers.
• Opportunities for learning and development: No matter where you start within our diverse business, you’ll have experiences, exposure, and education to satisfy you. Discover and explore a variety of career development programs and job-specific training.
• Paid parental leave: We understand how important your life outside work is and offer permanent team members paid parental leave to support you in balancing work and family.
• Investment in your future: Our annual team member share plan offer allows eligible team members to make regular pre-tax salary sacrifice deductions to purchase Coles Group shares.

About the recruitment process

We’re continuing to build a gender equitable team, and a culture that is just as diverse, inclusive and welcoming as the communities we serve. We are committed to creating a workplace that is safe and respectful for our team. We encourage applications from people of all ages, cultures (including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples), abilities, sexual orientation and gender identities.

We’re happy to adjust our recruitment process to support candidates with disability. For further information and additional contact details visit the ‘Our Recruitment Process’ section of our careers site or email ••••@coles.com.au

Job ID: 175097

Employment Type: Full time