Vice President Transformation

Company: American Chemical Society

American Chemical Society (ACS) is the world’s largest scientific membership association. Its mission is to “advance the broader chemistry enterprise and its practitioners for the benefit of Earth and its people”. ACS Publications is a Division of ACS and has all the characteristics of a medium-large scientific and technical publishing organization. It is one of two Divisions charged with serving the dual function of generating a reliable annual surplus to support the Society’s programmatic activities, while also fulfilling a core goal of the Society in advancing knowledge in the field of chemistry and the chemical industry.

The Division

The Publications Division of the American Chemical Society (ACS Publications) publishes over 80+ high-quality scholarly journals, numerous eBooks, and the weekly periodical Chemical & Engineering News focused on chemistry and chemistry-related topics. It provides its customers and the worldwide scientific community with a comprehensive collection of high-quality information products and services for the practice and advancement of the chemical sciences.

More information can be found at https://pubs.acs.org/.

The Role

The Vice President of Transformation plays a pivotal leadership role at ACS Publications. In this position, the individual will support multiple transformative activities by identifying, prioritizing, and implementing or supporting the implementation of strategic business initiatives.

The remit extends beyond isolated changes, fostering collaboration between relevant teams across the Division. Examples of transformation activities will include strategic technology developments, process improvements, and various other transformations across all groups within ACS Publications. The individual will adjust strategies as needed, considering market dynamics, technological shifts, and evolving business needs. The incumbent will be responsible for development and maintaining a transformation risk management and governance framework.

The VP of Transformation will effectively communicate the vision, goals, and rationale behind transformation initiatives to all relevant stakeholders, articulating how each initiative contributes to the overall organizational goals, today and in the future.

The position reports directly to the President of ACS Publications.

The VP, Transformation will lead a staff of 5 direct reports: two in program management, two in change management, and one in data governance. Each of these will be a newly created position.

Responsibilities

Transformation Strategy and Execution:

• Lead a comprehensive business transformation planning process in collaboration with business leaders throughout the Division.
• Create a robust framework to support the successful launch and execution of each transformation initiative.
• Design processes to ensure visibility and engagement with senior executives across the Division
• Ensure resourcing, priorities and challenges are managed and shared across relevant leadership groups.

Governance and Risk Management:

• Develop and implement governance and risk management structure to guide transformation efforts.
• Ensure agreed-upon transformation goals are effectively measured, tracked, and reported.
• Develop, implement, and oversee an issue escalation process, ensuring timely and effective resolution.
• Foster a culture of transparency and accountability.

Program Management:

• Establish and provide strategic oversight for the Division’s major programs.
• Define clear processes, templates and tools for individuals and teams to adopt.
• Drive adherence to timelines, project milestones, budgets, and resourcing against established business cases.
• Work in close collaboration with all key stakeholders

Change Management:

• Establish and oversee the Division’s change management function coordinating with the ACS enterprise Office of Change Management on common methodologies and practices.
• Deliver full change management support for the Division. Examples include impact assessments, develop change strategies, and effective communication plans.
• Lead the roll out of change management methodology, training, and awareness to all relevant staff in the Division.
• Drive organizational alignment and adoption of transformation initiatives.

Data Governance:

• Establish the Division’s data governance function and structure.
• Define division-wide data strategy, data governance and data architecture standards.
• Align resources and data utilization for effective, accurate and reliable use by the different business functions.

Culture Transformation:

• Lead initiatives aimed at transforming the culture at ACS Publications, working closely with the Publications Leadership Team (PLT) and Senior Leadership Team (SLT).
• Measure success through employee engagement surveys and delivery against Divisional objectives.

Candidate Qualifications and Attributes

We are seeking a dynamic, experienced leader who can drive transformational change for ACS Publications. The ideal candidate possesses the following qualifications and attributes:

Education and Experience:

• Fifteen (15) years of relevant professional experience, including managing and leading transformational change initiatives, program management, organizational development, and successful change management.
• At least eight (8) years of management experience.
• While no specific education is required, a master’s degree in business administration, management, organizational development, or a related area is preferred.

Transformation Expertise:

• Demonstrable success in executing transformation strategies and achieving operational excellence.
• Experience establishing and/or running an organizational capability such as a Program Management Office or Change Management Office.

Methodologies and Data Strategy:

• Proficiency in applying project management and change management methodologies to strategic initiatives.
• Strong knowledge of data strategy, enabling data quality, and driving business value through data analytics and governance.

Leadership Skills:

• Proven visionary leadership, aligning transformation efforts with organization goals.
• Exceptional leadership, team management, and coaching abilities; espousing a high degree of integrity at all times.
• Excellent communication, collaboration, and interpersonal skills.
• Skillful application of thoughtful influence when required.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.

Adaptability and Resilience:

• Demonstrated ability to navigate change with adaptability and resilience.
• Self-motivated and committed to maintaining a positive impact.

This position will be primarily based in the Washington, D.C. office or Columbus, OH office. Publications Division employees work a hybrid schedule, consisting of working onsite two days per work, as decided by functional area. The balance of the week is open to working remotely, though employees are always welcome onsite each day if they choose.

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