Chief Information Officer

Acme Smoked Fish•New York, NY

1d•$340,000 - $3,550,000

About The Position

The Chief Digital and Information Officer (CDIO) is a member of the executive leadership team responsible for the company’s entire technology vision, strategy, and execution. This role combines strategic leadership with hands-on technical capability. The CDIO will personally architect and deliver enterprise systems while building and leading a technology organization across infrastructure, service delivery, program management, and engineering. The CDIO owns a 5-year technology roadmap spanning enterprise AI, ERP operations, data warehouse analytics, e-commerce platforms, cybersecurity, manufacturing systems, and financial reporting with the mandate to transform Acme into the most digitally-enabled specialty seafood company in North America.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Engineering, or a related field required; Master’s degree preferred.
15+ years of progressive technology experience within manufacturing, CPG, or similar industries, including enterprise architecture and hands-on development, along with 10+ years in a leadership capacity managing technology teams and cross-functional initiatives.
Experience leading large-scale, multi-year, multi-facility ERP transformation or consolidation programs preferred.
Proven ability to build and deploy production-grade AI/ML solutions, including LLM-powered applications, retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), document intelligence, and autonomous agents leveraging live enterprise data.
Deep expertise in enterprise ERP systems, including implementation, consolidation, optimization, and API integration across Tier 1 platforms (Infor M3, SAP, Oracle, or equivalent).
Strong background in data architecture, including designing, optimizing, and operating scalable data warehouses and analytical platforms that support cross-functional business intelligence.
Hands-on full-stack development experience, with the ability to architect, build, and deliver modern web applications using technologies such as .NET, Node.js, Python, or similar frameworks.
Demonstrated success leading Scaled Agile (SAFe) environments, including Agile Release Trains, PI Planning, and cross-functional team leadership.
Industry experience within food & beverage or CPG, with working knowledge of manufacturing operations, cold chain logistics, demand forecasting, and regulatory compliance (FSMA/FDA).
Strong understanding of financial systems and processes, including multi-entity consolidations, general ledger reporting, AP/AR automation, and compliance requirements.
Expertise in database architecture and administration, including performance tuning, indexing strategies, execution plan analysis, and scalable data modeling.
Experience designing and implementing cloud-based solutions, particularly within Azure (SQL Managed Instance, AI Services, Blob Storage, Entra ID, Microsoft Fabric).
Familiarity with e-commerce and systems integration, including Shopify B2B, EDI, or similar platforms.
Knowledge of cybersecurity best practices, including vCISO collaboration, MDR deployment, and OT/IT network segmentation. Strong communication and leadership skills, with executive presence and the ability to influence stakeholders at all levels of the organization.
Demonstrated commitment to continuous learning and compliance, including completion of required training and adherence to organizational standards.

Nice To Haves

Industrial engineering background with a focus on process optimization and operations research
experience building or scaling real-time or high-performance data platforms
entrepreneurial experience, including building and scaling organizations, raising capital, and achieving successful exits.

Responsibilities

Strategic Technology Leadership
Define and execute a 5-year technology roadmap aligned with Acme’s growth strategy across retail, food service, DTC, and international expansion.
Serve on the executive leadership team, translating business objectives into technology investments with quantified ROI.
Manage IT steering committee governance, quarterly strategic reviews, and an annual IT operating budget of approximately $5 million.
Drive digital maturity improvement across the organization as measured by industry digital maturity benchmarks.
Evaluate build-vs-buy decisions across the portfolio — acquiring best-in-class vendor solutions (QMS, WMS) where regulatory or domain expertise warrants it, while building differentiated capabilities in-house where speed, data depth, and institutional knowledge create competitive advantage.
Own the enterprise architecture spanning ERP, data warehouse, cloud infrastructure, AI platforms, and e-commerce systems.
Manage strategic vendor partnerships and licensing negotiations across ERP, cloud, cybersecurity, and manufacturing technology providers.
AI & Data Platform
Lead the company’s applied AI strategy — building and deploying production AI systems operating on live enterprise data.
Design, build, and operate the enterprise data warehouse and data platform — 40+ analytical views spanning sales, inventory, production, purchasing, finance, and gross margin, with data lakehouse architecture, ETL pipeline orchestration, and data governance frameworks.
Deliver conversational AI interfaces that give managers and executives natural-language access to ERP data, document search, and operational intelligence.
Build AI-powered automation for accounts payable invoice processing, accounts receivable check processing, email order parsing, and demand forecasting.
Implement hybrid AI search (vector, keyword, and semantic reranking) over business documents including contracts and product spec sheets.
Develop predictive analytics across operations — demand sensing, dynamic pricing intelligence, and anomaly detection in financial and operational data.
Establish enterprise generative AI governance including tool selection, usage policies, data security protocols, and organization-wide adoption strategy.
Drive adoption of AI-assisted development practices as a force multiplier for a lean engineering team.
Enterprise Applications & ERP
Own the Infor M3 ERP platform across all US facilities — master data governance, API integrations, module optimization, and MRP implementation.
Manage a portfolio of 10+ production applications spanning conversational AI, operational analytics, demand forecasting, manufacturing tracking, route optimization, and e-commerce integration.
Provide the technology platform enabling e-commerce operations — bidirectional ERP synchronization, DTC storefronts, and WCAG accessibility compliance.
Plan and execute manufacturing application modernization — consolidating legacy shop floor systems into a unified modern platform while preserving 10+ years of historical production data.
Evaluate and optimize Infor Factory Track utilization across all facilities.
Develop customer intelligence and CRM capabilities — customer health scoring, churn prediction, next-best-action recommendations, and account segmentation — leveraging existing data warehouse assets.
Execute strategic pricing initiatives end-to-end — from market analysis through ERP implementation, customer-specific activation scheduling, and automated customer notification generation.
Partner with Sales and Finance leadership on pricing strategy, margin analysis, and competitive positioning.
Deliver operational tools that enable business leaders to act on data independently, reducing reliance on ad-hoc report requests.
Manufacturing & Operations Technology
Deliver manufacturing intelligence across multiple facilities — production dashboards, batch tracking, yield analytics, raw material consumption, and species-level performance analysis.
Drive FSMA 204 regulatory traceability from single-record lookup to bulk analytical lot trace capability (target: any query scope in under 5 minutes).
Manage shop floor data collection systems and their integration with ERP manufacturing orders.
Support supply chain visibility through fulfillment analytics, OTIF measurement, inventory accuracy programs, short shipment analysis, and route planning.
Evaluate and deploy computer vision for manufacturing quality inspection, package verification, and production line monitoring.
Implement predictive maintenance capabilities across manufacturing equipment to reduce unplanned downtime.
Lead inventory accuracy improvement to enable MRP implementation — cycle counting programs, root cause analysis, and M3 configuration.
Financial Systems & Reporting
Deliver consolidated financial reporting across seven US operating divisions and international entities — P&L, balance sheet, GL income statement, and gross margin analysis with intercompany elimination.
Ensure compliance across automated financial workflows with complete audit trails Implement the company’s 4-4-5 accounting calendar across all reporting, analytics, and forecasting systems.
Provide KPI scorecards and executive dashboards spanning operations, finance, growth, and customer service perspectives.
Infrastructure, Networking & Cybersecurity
Manage wide-area network (WAN) connectivity and network infrastructure across four manufacturing facilities and a distribution center — switches, firewalls, Wi-Fi, and OT/IT network segmentation.
Oversee manufacturing floor technology including production scales (CAT2), label printers, barcode scanners, and their integration with M3 ERP — including modernization of the CAT2-to-M3 data pipeline from XML/FTP to message queuing.
Manage Azure cloud infrastructure including SQL Managed Instance, AI Services, storage, and application hosting.
Manage telecommunications infrastructure across all facilities.
Own information security strategy — engage virtual CISO, deploy managed detection and response (MDR), and establish incident response plans.
Administer identity management (Microsoft Entra ID), endpoint protection (CheckPoint Harmony, InTune), and access controls (role-based access, row-level data security).
Ensure business continuity and disaster recovery acroanage vendor security relationships and cyber insurance coverage.
Supervisory Responsibilities:
Lead a technology organization spanning infrastructure, service delivery, program management, and engineering across multiple facilities.
Recruit, develop, and retain technical talent to build the team’s capacity and depth as the organization’s technology ambitions grow.
Mentor and coach team members at all levels — conduct skills assessments, identify growth opportunities, and pair domain experts with technical specialists.
Build a collaborative team culture that values working software, performance-first development, and pragmatic architecture.
Apply Scaled Agile (SAFe) practices including PI Planning, agile release trains, and continuous delivery.
Develop succession depth across the technology organization — ensuring no critical capability depends on a single person. Manage contractor relationships, technology vendor partnerships, and licensing negotiations.
Foster cross-functional collaboration between IT and business units — embed technology leadership within operations, sales, finance, and manufacturing rather than operating as a siloed function.