Function: Technology
Location:London, GB
Work Arrangement: Hybrid
Job Title: Head of Technology, Finance, Corporate Services & SAP
Department: IT / Technology
Reports To: Chief Digital and Information Officer
Location: London / Leeds

KEY SKILLS & COMPETENCIES:

• Strategic Platform Leadership – Demonstrated success in leading complex ERP, Finance, HR, and Corporate Services platforms at scale, across multiple geographies and business functions.
• Enterprise Architecture Acumen – Strong understanding of structured, scalable enterprise systems architecture, including cloud-readiness and integration across finance and administrative domains.
• Business Partnership & Stakeholder Management – Proven ability to serve as a strategic interface and thought leader to the business, translating platform capabilities into actionable outcomes for Finance, HR, Legal, and Procurement stakeholders.
• Project Delivery Discipline – Experience in structured delivery methodologies (e.g., Waterfall), particularly for Finance, HR, and Procurement systems requiring high stability and regulatory adherence.
• Vendor & Contract Management – Skilled in managing complex vendor ecosystems across ERP (e.g., SAP), Finance automation, HR platforms, and corporate systems, with a focus on optimizing cost and service levels.
• Data-Driven Thinking – Strong alignment of applications with enterprise data strategies and emerging AI capabilities.
• Change Enablement – Experienced in leading large-scale transformation initiatives during structural change (e.g., ITOM transformation), including team redesign, capability insourcing, and cross-functional process alignment.

EDUCATION:

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Information Systems, Computer Science, Engineering, or a related technical/business discipline
• MBA or executive leadership training is a plus.
• Preferred certifications: PMP, TOGAF, SAFe

EXPERIENCE:

• 15+ years of experience in enterprise applications, including 5+ years in a global leadership role overseeing finance, corporate services, or ERP transformation initiatives.
• Strong experience acting as a functional interface with business leaders, particularly in Finance, HR, Legal and Procurement – driving stakeholder alignment and translating business strategy into technology-driven outcomes.
• Proven experience leading transformation programs across ERP, financial planning, workforce administration, and compliance systems.
• Demonstrated experience managing platforms in Finance, HR, and Corporate Services, including systems such as SAP (FI, CO, HCM, Basis), Concur, SuccessFactors, Blackline, Kyriba, and Nakisa.
• Industry experience in Finance- and compliance-intensive sectors such as consumer products, beauty, healthcare, or other highly regulated environments is strongly preferred.
• Familiarity with internal SAP operations and configuration is a plus, particularly in the context of insourcing key capabilities.

ROLE SUMMARY:

The Head of Finance, Corporate Services & SAP Platforms is a strategic and transformative leader responsible for powering Wella’s global operations through innovative, scalable, and business-aligned technology. As a key partner to senior Finance, HR, Legal, Procurement, SAP and ghd (a wholly owned subsidiary with a partially independent application stack) leaders, financial management, corporate services, enterprise platforms and compliance – unlocking end-to-end efficiency, accelerating speed to market, and shaping the future of Wella’s corporate and financial ecosystems.
The Head provides both strategic and operational leadership across the full lifecycle of enterprise applications that support these functions, with ownership of ERP and operational platforms that enable financial management, procurement, HR, legal, and compliance processes. The role ensures these systems are secure, scalable, and aligned to support global process excellence across critical corporate functions.
This role holds overarching accountability for platform operations within the Finance, Corporate Services, and SAP domains, including system stability, service continuity, user satisfaction, and integration of partially independent systems such as those supporting ghd. It plays a central role in reducing complexity, harmonizing global capabilities, and driving standardization across the application landscape. The Head also champions the internalization of SAP capabilities to reduce vendor dependency and accelerate delivery through increased configuration autonomy.
As a senior thought partner, the Head sits on the leadership teams of the CFO and relevant business executives, acting as a “mini CIO” – translating business strategy into technology delivery. The role leads a team of 26+ professionals, including Platform Leads for Finance, Corporate Services, SAP, and ghd, and oversees a global budget of €XXM. A key focus is on building domain-specific IT expertise, strengthening business partnerships, and creating a forward-leaning, outcome-driven technology organization that supports end-to-end processes such as Record to Report, Procure to Pay, Hire to Retire, and Legal.