Global Specifications Transformation Lead

​

Position Title: Global Specifications Transformation Lead

Position Type: Regular - Full-Time ​

Grade: Grade 06

Requisition ID: 45409

​

​

In every role, McCainers are ambitious, curious, and passionate about creating exceptional work experiences - together. With a customer-first mindset, we make doing business with McCain easy.

About the role.

The Interim Global Specifications Transformation Lead provides senior leadership capacity to McCain’s Global Specifications organization during a critical period of transformation. This six-month assignment combines hands-on operational leadership with organizational improvement, ensuring continuity of key specification activities while strengthening governance, processes, capabilities, and the operating model needed to support future growth.

Working closely with the Senior Director, R&D Operations and global stakeholders, this role balances immediate delivery needs with future-state design, helping create a more resilient, effective, and transformation-ready Specifications organization.

What you’ll be doing.

• Provide day-to-day leadership, prioritization, and coordination across the Global Specifications organization.
• Drive visibility and management of key priorities, milestones, risks, resource constraints, and cross-functional dependencies.
• Support delivery of specification, PLM, product data, integration, systems, and data-quality initiatives.
• Facilitate issue resolution and escalation related to specification delivery, business continuity, data governance, and systems activities.
• Coordinate efforts across global and regional specification teams and key business partners.
• Assess organizational capacity, capability, and critical knowledge dependencies.
• Clarify accountabilities, decision rights, ownership models, and escalation pathways across the organization.
• Strengthen the Global Specifications Centre of Excellence through standards, best practices, knowledge sharing, and continuous improvement.
• Develop and implement documentation, knowledge transfer, backup coverage, and operational governance processes.
• Partner with R&D leadership to define and recommend a future-state operating model, transformation roadmap, and transition plan.

What you’ll need to be successful.

• Significant leadership experience in specification management, product data, PLM, technical information management, or a related discipline.
• Experience leading teams and initiatives within complex global or multi-regional organizations.
• Strong knowledge of specification lifecycle management, data governance, and system-enabled business processes.
• Demonstrated ability to influence and align stakeholders across functions, geographies, and organizational levels.
• Experience balancing strategic planning, operating model design, and hands-on execution.
• Strong change leadership, facilitation, problem-solving, and organizational development capabilities.
• Proven ability to establish priorities quickly and create clarity in ambiguous or rapidly changing environments.
• Executive-level communication skills with the ability to present risks, trade-offs, recommendations, and decision frameworks.
• Experience coaching, developing, and strengthening team capability while reducing dependency on key individuals.
• Preferred experience within food, consumer packaged goods, ingredients, packaging, or other regulated industries.
• Preferred experience with SAP PLM, ProductVision, specification management platforms, PIM solutions, or comparable product information systems.
• Experience with global process standardization, governance programs, operating model transformation, digital transformation, master data initiatives, or large-scale system implementations.
• Experience in interim leadership, consulting, or transformation assignments requiring rapid impact and measurable outcomes.

About the team.

The Interim Global Specifications Transformation Lead will work closely with the Global Specifications organization, Senior Director, R&D Operations, regional specification leaders, and cross-functional partners across Digital Technology, Quality, Regulatory, Packaging, Procurement, and Manufacturing. The role serves as a key leadership partner focused on stabilizing delivery, building organizational resilience, and defining the future of McCain’s global specifications capability.

About McCain.

Click Here to learn more about McCain and how we provide opportunities to make an impact that matters.

Leadership principles.

At McCain, our leadership principles guide how we engage with customers, collaborate as a team, and achieve success. We focus on understanding customer needs, driving innovation, empowering people, and taking ownership to clear obstacles and deliver results.

AI & Digital Capabilities.

At McCain, AI and digital capabilities are part of how we work and innovate. We value curiosity toward emerging technologies and the thoughtful, responsible use of AI-enabled tools to improve outcomes as part of our future-ready culture.

The McCain experience.

We are McCain. This statement is a testament to our collective strength and our individual value. Your contributions play a vital role in our success. Our winning culture is rooted in authenticity and trust, empowering us to bring out the best in one another. Here, you’ll find opportunities to learn, grow, and thrive. Join us and experience why we’re better together.

Our purpose is grounded in building meaningful relationships. We’re big believers in the power of working together in person. It helps us stay connected, collaborate more effectively, and grow as a team. At the same time, we recognize the importance of flexibility. Most office-based roles follow a hybrid model, with the option to work remotely two days a week. There may be exceptions depending on the role and location, so we encourage you to speak with your recruiter for more details.

Compensation Package: $102,700.00 - $137,000.00 . CAD annual base salary equivalency, paid in alignment to contract term

The above reflects the target compensation range for the position at the time of posting. Hiring compensation will be determined based on experience, skill set, education and training, and other organizational needs. This posting is for an existing vacancy.

Benefits: At McCain, we’re on a mission to create a winning culture that puts employee safety and well-being at the heart of what we do, every day. We understand and appreciate that each person’s needs are unique and ensure our benefits & well-being programs reflect that. Should this role hold a duration 12 months or longer, you will be eligible for our full benefits suite. This includes the following benefits: health coverage (medical, dental, vision, prescription drug), retirement savings benefits, and leave support including medical, family and bereavement. Well-being programs include vacation and holidays, company-supported volunteering time, and mental health resources. Coverages are aligned with applicable law and can vary by work level, location, and nature of the role. Additional benefit detail available during the application process.

Your well-being matters to us, and we’re here to provide you with the necessary resources to support you in being your best self at work — and at home.

McCain Foods is an equal opportunity employer. As a global family-owned company, we strive to be the employer of choice in the diverse communities around the world in which we live and work. We recognize that inclusion drives our creativity, resilience, and success and makes our business stronger. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, sex, age, veteran status, disability, or any other protected characteristic under applicable law.

McCain is an accessible employer. If you require an accommodation throughout the recruitment process (including alternate formats of materials or accessible meeting rooms), please let us know, and we will work with you to find appropriate solutions.

Your privacy is important to us. By submitting personal data or information to us, you agree this will be handled in accordance with McCain’s Global Privacy Policy and Global Employee Privacy Policy, as applicable. McCain leverages AI in the hiring process, though all final decisions are made by humans. You can understand our approach to AI and how your personal information is being handled here.

Job Family: Research & Development
Location(s): CA - Canada : Ontario : Toronto || CA - Canada : New Brunswick : Florenceville-Bristol

Company: McCain Foods (Canada)