Head of Quality, Events & 3rd Space, Diageo
Office located in St. James's Gate, Dublin
Alcoholic beverage company
Posted today
Alcoholic beverage company
1001+ employees
Posted today
Office located in St. James's Gate, Dublin
1001+ employees
Company mission
To be one of the best performing, most trusted and respected consumer products companies in the world.
Role
Who you are
- We’re looking for an experienced commercial leader with a passion for execution, quality, and building standout brand experiences in the moments that matter
- You’ll need to be equally comfortable building long-term strategic partnerships, as you are rolling up your sleeves to drive operational performance
- A strong grasp of how to deliver through cross-functional teams and external partners and a real drive to raise standards in how our brands show up on draught, in glass, and on stage
- Alongside being commercial sound, outcomes based attitude , as well as a hunger to thrive in fast-paced, dynamic environments. On top of being passionate about great beer quality and customer satisfaction as you are about delivering commercial value
- Proven experience in a commercial, route-to-market, or channel leadership role (FMCG or alcohol industry preferred)
- Experience managing large-scale partnerships, third-party collaborators, or complex supplier networks
- Understanding of or exposure to draught beer quality, dispense systems, or technical services is a strong advantage
- Strong people leadership – experience coaching and developing teams to deliver against bold outcomes
- Excellent project management, commercial thinking, and cross-functional collaboration skills
- High resilience, strong influencing ability, and a proactive, solution oriented approach
What the job involves
- This is a dynamic and high-impact leadership role at the heart of our On Trade business in Ireland
- As Head of Commercial, Quality & 3rd Space, you will be responsible for the end-to-end commercial delivery of Diageo’s presence in festivals and in-stadia events, across both Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland
- You will own and lead the total event opportunity, covering everything from our in-festival and in-stadia pouring execution, to how we route our brands and experiences into those spaces via the On Trade and Take Home Trade ( THT) channels
- Working closely with cross-functional partners in sales, supply, brand, and customer marketing, you’ll be the commercial engine behind how we show up in high-energy, high-footfall occasions where our brands play a key role in the experience
- You’ll also be responsible for setting and delivering our quality strategy across the On Trade in Ireland—championing quality as a key driver of rate of sale, reputation, and long-term brand equity
- From beer dispense and serve standards to equipment innovation and training, you’ll lead a team of quality experts to set the standard on what “great” looks like at the point of pour!
- Lead the end-to-end commercial strategy and execution for Diageo’s presence in the 3rd space, including all major festivals and stadia across the island of Ireland
- Develop and own the route-to-event plan across On Trade and THT, ensuring seamless integration of product supply, execution, and commercial partnership
- Build and manage relationships with key partners and collaborators, including event owners, festival operators, caterers, and third-party route partners
- Own the commercial performance of our 3rd space strategy—optimising visibility, volume, and profitability across all activations
- Lead the On Trade Quality agenda across the island—positioning perfect serve, exceptional draught standards, and premium experiences as commercial growth levers
- Develop and deliver a pipeline of innovation in quality tools and equipment, partnering with Global teams where needed
- Manage, coach, and develop our Quality team to deliver measurable improvements across priority outlets and touchpoints
- Collaborate with internal functions including Commercial, Customer Marketing, Supply, and Legal to drive performance and manage risk
- Represent Ireland in relevant Global or Europe-wide quality and 3rd space forums, bringing local excellence to the global stage
Our take
Multinational beverage company Diageo was the result of a merger between Guinness and Grand Metropolitan, a leisure and property conglomerate, in 1997. Spearheaded by then-Guiness executives Anthony Greener and Philip Yea, the merger sent stocks skyrocketing and by December of the same year, Diageo was listed on the London Stock Exchange.
As the owner of many of the global leaders in alcoholic beverages (think Ciroc, Smirnoff, and Tanqueray), Diageo has made a number of savvy acquisitions and sell-offs, expanding its portfolio beyond Europe and into the Americas, the Middle East, and Asia.
Over the past decade, however, it has had to face the rise of craft and independent brewing, with companies like Brewdog becoming new competitors. Rather than acquiring these craft beer companies, Diageo has focused on branding Guinness in a way that fits the craft mould. This involved initiatives like The Brewers Project.
During the early 2020s, Diageo also weathered an alcohol sales decline and has bounced back with a renewed focus on cold brew coffee liqueurs and Guinness blends, as well as further acquisitions that have included that of actor Ryan Reynolds’ Aviation Gin.
Kirsty
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Insights
Company
Funding (1 round)
Aug 2023
$8.9m
GRANT
Total funding: $8.9m
Company HQ
Park Royal, London, UK
Leadership
Debra Crew
(CEO)Currently a Board Member at Stanley Black & Decker, Inc. Previously Board Member at Mondelēz International, Newell Brands and previously a Board Member at Diageo before becoming its CEO.
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