Hybrid Ethical Sourcing Executive

at Twinings

• Job title: Ethical Sourcing Executive
• Job type: Full Time
• Experience level: Mid level, Senior
• Salary: Not specified
• Degree requirement: Bachelor's Degree
• Location requirements: Hybrid, Kolkata, India

About the role

• Ethical Sourcing Executive responsible for assessing supply chain conditions and driving sustainable practices in the agriculture sector. Engaging with local communities and reporting on ethical sourcing standards.

Responsibilities

• Engage with producers, farmers and factories in the agriculture supply chain and acting as first point of contact in the assigned region (s).
• Organise and conduct risk assessments in sourcing communities in the regions against the social and environmental criteria defined in the assessment tools (TCNA) by engaging with local communities and relevant stakeholders to identify their needs and priorities in a participatory manner.
• Conduct regular assessments to ensure compliance with ethical standards to identify and monitor potential risks within the supply chains.
• Prepare succinct assessment reports, including scoring based on criteria and substantiated with evidence to provide clear information to Twinings and Producers.
• Evaluate supplier practices related to workers, agriculture and environmental impact, and ethical sourcing.
• Follow up on the progress of suppliers’ improvements against the action plan in a timely manner. Collect evidence of progress from the sourcing sites on priority areas identified during TCNAs for internal reporting.
• Work with Twinings Senior Social Impact Manager, other team members and producer companies to agree improvement plan, next actions and keep the internal stakeholders updated.
• Design, develop, implement and monitor development and remediation projects or programmes and relevant risk mitigation strategies aligned with assessment findings to address identified issues/risks in coordination with internal and external stakeholders.
• Assist with global projects & programme and provide advisory support on issues across the supply chain, including regenerative agriculture and climate-related initiatives, GBVH, grievance mechanisms, WaSH, health and wellbeing, living conditions, and livelihoods.
• Provide advice and onsite or online training relevant for climate smart agriculture supply chain, as and when required, to support producers and farmers in improving social and environmental performances.
• Stay updated on industry trends and best practices in ethical sourcing and sustainability.
• Identify training needs on ethical sourcing practices, good agriculture practices, and other relevant topics.
• Support in developing training materials, ToR and rollout of training programmes for sites/producers directly or in collaboration with expert agencies.
• Support the day-to-day implementation and monitoring of development/remediation projects in the region and other regular jobs assigned by the business unit.
• Work with the Senior SI&S Manager and the procurement team to develop networks with key stakeholders inside and outside the industry and engage in constructive dialogue, to progress the SI&S agenda and drive change in the supply chain.
• Participate as required, in relevant industry bodies, acting as Twinings representative.
• Keep up to date on current industry, ESG initiatives and best practices.
• Work closely with internal teams/business units, suppliers, and external stakeholders to promote responsible sourcing and sustainable supply chain.
• Communicate the company's responsible / ethical sourcing policies and expectations to suppliers.
• Identify all key potential social and environmental risks and ensure that their magnitude and significance are well understood by internal stakeholders.
• Prepare and present reports on supply chain assessments, risks, and improvement initiatives.
• Regularly update supply chain maps, SI & S database and software to track and analyse records of conditions on tea estates and agreed KPIs.
• Working with partners and producers to track SwC and ESG KPIs in a timely, effective, and accurate manner, and help measure impact of the interventions.
• Reporting on sites ethical performances to internal stakeholders including Senior SI Manager (s), Global Director of SI & S, Senior leadership, procurement teams.
• Develop project Logical Framework for project monitoring, contribute to good quality content gathering and comms activities (case studies, pictures, videos, articles, etc).
• Provide additional support to the SI & S team as needed for M & E and reporting activities.
• Liaise with Ethical Sourcing Executives in other regions, to learn from each other about conducting TCNA and create a support network.
• Support with general administrative tasks as well as team systems and processes as assigned time to time. **Support employee engagement initiatives, as needed (internal presentation, newsletter articles, employees field visit, etc).

Requirements

• A formal bachelor’s or master’s degree in Agricultural Science, Environmental Sciences, Botany, Tea Technology, Sustainable Supply Chain Management, or a related field.
• Minimum 3–5 years of experience in relevant fields, with a strong understanding of global agricultural supply chain dynamics (preferably tea and herbs).
• Prior experience of working with international suppliers or within supply chain operations is essential.
• In-depth knowledge of ESG principles, regenerative and/or climate‑smart agriculture practices, and human rights and environmental due diligence in agricultural supply chains.
• Previous experience of conducting community-based participatory research or needs assessments on relevant sector (s) is essential.
• Experienced in designing and developing remedial project proposals, log frame or results framework for designing M & E plans for new and ongoing projects.
• Understanding of topics related to human rights, gender, good agricultural practices (GAP), integrated water and soil management, and ethical/responsible sourcing practices.
• Passion for engaging with local communities and driving social and environmental change in the agriculture supply chain.
• Strong interpersonal skills and strong communication skills – verbal and written (in English and other relevant languages mentioned below).
• Ability to establish and manage effective relationships with internal and external industry stakeholders.
• Up‑to‑date knowledge and proficiency in MS Office (Word, Excel, and PowerPoint are essential), Power BI, and other ESG reporting or supply chain software.
• Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Enthusiastic, self‑motivated individual with the ability to work independently, manage their own schedule, and collaborate effectively as part of a team.
• Ability to travel up to 60% of the time (domestic and international), sometimes with basic facilities.
• Proficiency in languages such as Bahasa Indonesia and/or Assamese an added advantage. Knowledge of other languages—such as Hindi, Nepali or Sadri - is preferred (one or more).

Benefits

• Monthly phone bill maximum reimbursement limit is Rs.3000.
• Annual check-up for employee and spouse including Doctor consultation - reimbursement up to INR 15,000.**Medical Insurance 5 lakhs Flat Coverage.
• PF and Gratuity.
• Long Service Policy.
• Life Term Policy.