Overview
Sustainability Lead Jobs in City of Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa at Talent Tapestry
Title: Sustainability Lead
Company: Talent Tapestry
Location: City of Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa
We are looking for a Head of Food Sustainability / Sustainability Lead to drive, integrate and accelerate sustainability across a complex, end‑to‑end Foods value chain.
This role is accountable for ensuring the business delivers on its environmental, social and ethical commitments while strengthening commercial resilience and deepening customer trust. It sits at the intersection of strategy, operations, governance and influence — ideal for a leader who can think systemically and execute pragmatically.
Responsibilities
Strategic Integration: Translate enterprise‑level sustainability commitments into a clear, prioritised Food Sustainability roadmap embedded in business strategy, investment decisions and day‑to‑day operations.
Value Chain Impact: Provide oversight across sourcing, manufacturing, logistics, stores, packaging, waste and circularity — influencing outcomes through cross‑functional ownership.
Governance & Reporting: Own sustainability performance tracking, governance and reporting, ensuring credible, decision‑useful data informs leadership, executive forums and external disclosures.
Supplier & Partner Enablement: Work with suppliers, farmers and strategic partners to raise standards and unlock shared sustainability outcomes across the food system.
Culture & Capability: Build sustainability capability across the organisation by enabling leaders, teams and a network of embedded Sustainability Champions.
External Leadership: Represent the business in selected sustainability forums, translating emerging regulation, risks and trends into practical business implications.
Qualifications
- A relevant 4‑year degree / Postgraduate qualification (Honours, CMA, M Dip Tech, NVQ 5 / NQF 8 or equivalent).
- Up to 12 years of relevant experience in sustainability, food systems, supply chain or related fields.
Advanced proficiency across integrated sustainability capability areas, including:
- Sustainability Strategy & Systems Integration
- Food System & Supply Chain Sustainability
- Governance, Risk & Compliance (ESG-aligned)
- Data, Metrics & Insight for performance and reporting
- Change Leadership & Enablement across diverse teams