Portfolio Director - Breakfast

• Segment: Snacking Australia
• Location: Melbourne
• Reports To: Growth and Marketing Director
• Direct Reports: 6

About the role

An exciting opportunity has become available for a senior, commercial leader to join the Snacking Marketing Leadership Team as Portfolio Director - Breakfast.

This is a highly visible role that will see you lead a passionate team of 6 marketing professionals and take end-to-end accountability for a highly complex, multi-million-dollar brand-building investment. If you are a collaborative leader with strong commercial maturity who thrives on navigating complex stakeholder networks and driving genuine strategic change, this is your next milestone role.

As the Portfolio Director, your mission over the next 3 to 5 years is to reset the category’s foundation and build a sustainable pathway to growth. This role is ideal for a senior marketing leader who is energized by complex structural and commercial challenges, capital investment alignment, and high-level regional and global collaboration.

What will you do?

• Strategic Portfolio Reset: Lead the 3-5 year strategic view to reset, stabilise, and sustainably grow the Breakfast portfolio through penetration, market share, and value accretion
• Team Leadership & Development: Inspire and coach a team of marketing professionals. Establish a high-performance, inclusive marketing culture focused on world-class talent management and capability building.
• Commercial & Brand Excellence: Oversee the innovation pipeline, portfolio architecture, consumer insights, brand equity, and media/ROI efficiency for advertising and capital spend.
• High-Level Stakeholder Management: Act as a key advisor to local senior leadership and successfully navigate and align regional, global, and cross-functional teams (including Sales, Finance, Supply Chain, and R&D).
• Agency Partnership: Lead strategic brand execution and collaboration with our key creative, media, and research partners.

What will you bring?

To be successful in this highly strategic and collaborative role, you will bring:

• Proven FMCG Marketing Leadership: 10+ years of successful experience in senior marketing and/or commercial leadership roles, ideally within a multinational FMCG environment
• Strategic Maturity: Proven ability to navigate complex organizational dynamics, build credibility quickly, and manage senior, opinionated stakeholder networks with political savvy and diplomacy.
• Commercial Acumen: A strong analytical mindset with a track record of managing substantial P&L budgets, identifying commercial risks, and turning shopper and consumer insights into bottom-line growth.
• People First Leadership: A passionate developer of talent with proven experience leading and coaching teams of 5 or more people.
• Planned Category Experience: Deep understanding of planned-purchase categories (experience in planned food or petcare is highly regarded).

Why you’ll love working for Mars:

• Purpose: Help craft beloved brands with a legacy of over 100 years of local manufacturing making products that people and pets will love all while helping to build a more sustainable future.
• People: A culture that values your contributions, fosters leadership, and recognises the impact you make. Your work truly matters here.
• Development: Shape your career with personalised development and real opportunities to grow from day one.
• Enjoy a team and business environment that is invested in helping you manage and grow your energy for work and life.