Chief of Staff to Chief Customer Officer

About The Hershey Company

The Hershey Company is driven by a culture steeped in purpose and inspired by Milton Hershey’s lasting vision of leveraging business to create opportunities for others. The company is committed to corporate philanthropy, supporting communities, fostering the success of children, and operating as a responsible business globally. Notably, Hershey maintains a strong partnership with Milton Hershey School to invest in education, workforce readiness, and student engagement beyond the classroom. With strategic grant-making, product donations, cross-brand collaboration, and active employee volunteering, Hershey provides a workplace that emphasizes making a positive impact both locally and worldwide.

Position Overview

Hershey seeks a Chief of Staff to support the Chief Customer Officer (CCO), acting as a strategic partner to enable smooth execution of global brand strategies. This role serves as a multiplier of the CCO’s impact by managing the annual planning process, aligning business unit objectives with overall corporate goals, and ensuring seamless rollout of top-priority initiatives across the U.S. business. The Chief of Staff facilitates coordination among cross-functional teams and business processes, helping the CCO focus on critical decisions while maintaining momentum on key projects. This pivotal role bridges strategy formulation with effective execution and enhances decision-making quality and speed enterprise-wide.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the Customer Officer's annual strategy and planning process, ensuring alignment between business units and enterprise goals while developing actionable roadmaps for the U.S. organization.
• Manage and drive progress of the CCO’s highest-priority programs and strategic projects by establishing project structures, tracking milestones, and addressing obstacles to guarantee timely delivery of results.
• Facilitate operational excellence by streamlining processes and synchronizing operating rhythms across different functions within the company.
• Serve as the CCO’s delegate in leadership forums and decision-making meetings, coordinating stakeholders and enforcing governance protocols to support data-driven growth decisions. Prepare agendas and briefings for executive meetings and oversee follow-ups on action items.
• Act as the communication nexus to maintain alignment between the Customer Office and other business units, relaying the CCO’s vision and updates while gathering feedback to nurture a unified approach in executing growth initiatives.

Qualifications and Skills

• A bachelor’s degree in Business, Marketing, Commercial Management, or a comparable field is required; an MBA or equivalent advanced degree is highly preferred.
• Minimum of 10 years’ experience in strategic planning, business operations, or marketing leadership, including leading cross-functional initiatives and collaborating closely with senior executives in strategic decision-making.
• Experience at leading consulting firms or corporate strategy functions is highly advantageous, along with a history of successfully driving growth initiatives in consumer-centric organizations.
• Demonstrated leadership capabilities, with experience managing teams or leading project groups, plus a proven ability to drive organizational change, optimize processes, and achieve measurable business outcomes.

Equal Opportunity and Accommodation

The Hershey Company ensures equal employment opportunities for all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, gender, age, national origin, religion, citizenship, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, disability status, protected veteran status, genetic information, pregnancy, or any other protected category under applicable laws.

Applicants requiring accommodations during the recruitment process due to disabilities can request assistance via phone at +1 877-804-1794 or by emailing ApplicationHelp@hersheys.com with "Accommodation Needed" in the subject.

Location and Remote Work

This role is based in Hershey, PA, with remote working considered for candidates residing near a major airport.