VP, Applications and Data Services

Continental Services•Sterling Heights, MI

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

A Taste of Who We Are: Backed by a tireless commitment to high quality, innovative culinary offerings and unparalleled client and guest services, Continental consistently ranks among the top contract dining and refreshment providers in the nation according to Food Management Magazine, the industry’s source for food service news and trends. Our Mission Delight our guest. Every meal. Every day. Our Core Values Exceptional – We recruit and retain phenomenal people who consistently go the extra mile to deliver results that lead the industry. Hospitality – We are tirelessly committed to providing the highest quality food, beverages, and service by anticipating our guests' needs so they can count on memorable experiences every time. Collaboration – We prioritize working together with a shared vision and effective & transparent communication, we unite as one team to achieve remarkable experiences. Responsibility – we hold ourselves accountable to be there for our team and clients, to deliver what we say we will, when we say we will and check in on progress along the way. Innovation – We are forward-thinkers always looking for new processes, technologies, and techniques to increase efficiencies and scalability to improve our services. The Experience You’ll Create: The Leader of Applications & Data is a senior technology executive responsible for managing all business applications, data engineering, analytics, and system administration across Continental’s divisions. They ensure that systems and data platforms grow and adapt in line with the company’s expansion, M&A activities, and operational goals. The role involves leading a diverse team of developers, engineers, analysts, and administrators. This leader collaborates with executive and functional leaders to deliver modern, reliable, and insight-driven technological solutions. Oversee and manage the enterprise application ecosystem, reporting directly to the CIO. Collaborate with senior leadership to shape IT strategies, governance, and prioritization, translating business objectives into multi-year plans. Oversee the lifecycle of enterprise applications across divisions, leading modernization and consolidation efforts to reduce fragmentation and technical debt. Partner with functional leaders, ensuring robust system administration, release management, vendor relationships, and platform reliability. Lead the development and management of the enterprise data warehouse to enable analytics, AI use cases, and predictive insights, establishing data governance standards and standardized KPIs. Direct cross-functional teams supporting business partnerships, analytics, and system upgrades. Manager applications and data integrations related to mergers and acquisitions, including creating onboarding playbooks. Oversee talent development, managing teams of developers, data engineers, product managers, analysts, and administrators. Foster a culture of accountability and continuous improvement, and they will shift the team from reactive support to strategic enablement. Ensure alignment of IT initiatives with company strategies while driving innovation and operational excellence.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in information systems, Computer Science, Engineering, or related field.
10+ years of experience in enterprise applications, data platforms, software development, or analytics.
5+ years in IT leadership roles managing cross-functional technology teams.
Experience leading enterprise application portfolios (ERP, POS, HRIS, Finance, CRM).
Strong experience with data architecture, ETL/ELT pipelines, modern data lakes/warehouses, and BI/analytics platforms.
Demonstrated ability to partner with operations, finance, HR, merchandising, and supply chain leaders.
Experience in managing technology vendors and third-party partners.
Experience in a multi-location service, hospitality, food service, logistics, vending, or distribution environment.
Familiarity with Azure, SQL, Fabric, Power BI, and modern cloud technologies.
Background in M&A integration or rapid-scaling organizations.
Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer.
Occasional Travel is required for this role to visit customer sites and warehouses

Responsibilities

Oversee and manage the enterprise application ecosystem, reporting directly to the CIO.
Collaborate with senior leadership to shape IT strategies, governance, and prioritization, translating business objectives into multi-year plans.
Oversee the lifecycle of enterprise applications across divisions, leading modernization and consolidation efforts to reduce fragmentation and technical debt.
Partner with functional leaders, ensuring robust system administration, release management, vendor relationships, and platform reliability.
Lead the development and management of the enterprise data warehouse to enable analytics, AI use cases, and predictive insights, establishing data governance standards and standardized KPIs.
Direct cross-functional teams supporting business partnerships, analytics, and system upgrades.
Manager applications and data integrations related to mergers and acquisitions, including creating onboarding playbooks.
Oversee talent development, managing teams of developers, data engineers, product managers, analysts, and administrators.
Foster a culture of accountability and continuous improvement, and they will shift the team from reactive support to strategic enablement.
Ensure alignment of IT initiatives with company strategies while driving innovation and operational excellence.