Director of Sustainability

Land O'Lakes•Arden Hills, MN

3d•$163,520 - $245,280•Onsite

About The Position

The Director of Sustainability leads Land O’Lakes’ enterprise sustainability strategy, partnering with business units, corporate functions, and experts across the organization to address customer requirements, regulatory obligations, emerging risks, and opportunities related to natural resources and supply chain resilience. The role oversees complex, multi-state sustainability regulatory reporting, compliance, and internal governance, and represents Land O’Lakes in industry and national sustainability forums. It also collaborates with internal and external partners on measurement, verification, and standard reporting practices. The position is based at Land O’Lakes headquarters in Arden Hills, Minnesota, with in-office work Tuesday through Thursday each week. The Director leads enterprise strategy and governance, regulatory compliance and disclosure, carbon accounting and verified reporting, and customer and member sustainability initiatives. The role directly manages and coaches the Senior Sustainability Manager responsible for EPR, regulatory reporting, and packaging goal measurement.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in business, supply chain, environmental, engineering, or a scientific discipline.
10 or more years of progressive experience in sustainability, regulatory compliance, or a related enterprise function, including leading enterprise-wide initiatives in a matrixed organization.
Proven ability to lead strategic initiatives across an enterprise.
Working knowledge of carbon accounting and environmental reporting standards, including GHG Protocol, SBTi and FLAG, LCA methodology, third-party verification and assurance, and environmental regulation.
Ability to translate technical, regulatory, and data-heavy topics into clear executive recommendations, quantified tradeoffs, and defensible external statements.
Proven ability to influence without authority across business units, Legal, Finance, Government Relations, Supply Chain, Communications, and Data & Analytics.
Credible representation with customers, industry bodies, and members.
Strong governance, facilitation, and program leadership skills, with experience building capability and coaching senior individual contributors.

Nice To Haves

Advanced degree preferred.
Agricultural industry experience highly desired.

Responsibilities

Define the enterprise sustainability strategy, goals, and roadmap to support business growth and align with industry trends.
Define and refine internal governance, and convene groups for education, collaboration, and action planning.
Brief executive leadership with clear options, quantified impacts, and recommendations.
Lead state-by-state sustainability compliance, quantify enterprise cost exposure, and ensure reporting methodology and data are accurate.
Govern public goals, progress statements, and disclosures with business unit, supply chain, legal, and communications teams.
Advance carbon-accounting capability, including system-based emissions accounting, custom Land O’Lakes emission factors, and product carbon footprint and intervention models.
Audit carbon-accounting processes and controls and strengthen the annual emissions verification cycle.
Monitor, interpret, and participate in evolving standards; advise leadership on cost, feasibility, and timing.
Partner with supply chain to integrate business efforts and sustainability goals.
Own enterprise metrics and progress reporting.
Help business units meet customer sustainability requirements, including improved metrics and industry partnership commitments.
Build customer-facing quantification tools and opportunity analyses with third-party partners to support business unit growth.
Represent Land O’Lakes in industry groups, peer networks, and technical working groups to benchmark and shape practical carbon-accounting methods.
Direct and coach the Senior Sustainability Manager accountable for EPR, regulatory reporting, and packaging goal measurement, and secure needed analytics and technical resources.