About James Hardie:
James Hardie is a world leader in fiber cement home siding and exterior design solutions. Hardie products offer long-lasting beauty and endless design possibilities with trusted protection and low maintenance. As the world's #1 producer and marketer of high-performance fiber cement and fiber gypsum building solutions, James Hardie offers siding and accessories for every style. Hardie products are non-combustible and stand up to weather and time while empowering homeowners and building professionals to achieve the home of their dreams. The company pioneered the technology of fiber cement building products made from sustainable raw materials and continues to invest in innovation to transform the industry. James Hardie operates with an inclusive company culture and an unwavering commitment to Zero Harm. The company proudly employs a diverse global workforce of over 6,000 employees across operations in North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific.
Position: VP, Corporate Strategy & Business Development
Reports to: CEO
Team Member: Executive Leadership Team (ELT)
Direct Reports: CoE Team
Location: Chicago, IL (Hybrid)
Travel: Approximately 10-25% (Regionally & Globally)
Position Overview:
We are seeking a visionary and experienced VP, Corporate Strategy & Business Development to join our executive team. This role will be pivotal in shaping the future direction of James Hardie by supporting the development and execution of James Hardie's organic & inorganic growth, and performance acceleration strategy. The leader will be a key member responsible for executing on business synergies of highly strategic acquisitions, accelerating and transforming the James Hardie business.
The ideal candidate will have a strong background in corporate strategy & development, M&A, leading a business P&L, exceptional business analytical skills, and a proven record of developing and executing growth strategies as well as successful project execution and stakeholder management at an executive level.
Key Responsibilities:
Leadership:
- Partner with CEO in evaluating strategic opportunities and make recommendations to senior management / board concerning strategies to implement new business growth opportunities.
- Build & lead scalable processes and best practices for our Corporate Development function.
- Develop and maintain a deep understanding of emerging external trends, insights, competitor analysis, including potential targets, serving as an advisor to stakeholders throughout the company.
- Lead the formation of a coherent strategic plan in collaboration with business and functional leaders that clearly conveys a differentiated and defensible position for James Hardie.
- Collaborates cross-functionally with and influences ELT and stakeholders and their support functions to accelerate Global/Regional strategic business swim-lanes.
- Provides regular updates and status to ELT regarding strategy initiatives to drive focus and accountability throughout the organization.
- Translates specific strategic initiatives into project plans; owns development and delivery of project workplan, taking a hypothesis-driven approach to develop, to execute and deliver on multi-year growth and performance improvement strategies.
Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A):
- Leads identification and evaluation of potential acquisition or partnership opportunities that will drive strategic priorities forward. Proactively networks externally to gain market insights and identify opportunities.
- Leads M&A and business integration process, including defining strategic rationale, development of valuation models, presenting findings and recommendations to executive-level stakeholders. Seeks and incorporates input from ELT partners, executive sponsors, and key business owners.
Growth Strategy:
- Maintains comprehensive understanding of the enterprise and functional areas; continually monitors and evaluates competitive landscape to identify innovative opportunities to create new value.
Insights & Analytics:
- Lead complex research and analysis and consolidates all insights into meaningful recommendations that drive inorganic or organic growth, or performance improvement strategy projects forward.
- Create an inclusive environment and utilize diverse talent in market research & insight development to elevate talent & produce higher quality initiatives.
- Utilize data analytics to inform strategic decision-making.
- Develop and maintain dashboards and reports to track key performance indicators (KPIs).
- Present data-driven recommendations to the executive leadership team
Position Requirements:
- Bachelor's degree in business, Finance, Economics, or a related field; MBA preferred.
- 15+ years leading businesses, strategy development, evaluating market attractiveness and strategic fit of new businesses, business transformations and corporate development.
- 5-10 years in a top-tier consulting firm or equivalent experience focused on market analysis and/or growth / strategy commercial projects.
- Proven ability to lead and manage complex M&A and integration projects.
- Strategic thinker with a results-oriented mindset.
- Strong credibility, candor and good ability to speak directly and display James Hardie Values.
- Leadership in a fast-paced environment and manage competing responsibilities and deadlines.
- Strong insights, analytical and financial modeling skills.
- Skilled developing board-level materials.
- Proficiency in data analytics tools and software (e.g., Excel, Tableau, Power BI).
- Excellent communication and presentation abilities.
What You'll Receive:
At James Hardie, we recognize that our success depends on our people. We've worked hard to build a generous and competitive benefits program that demonstrates our commitment to our employees.
Benefits available include:
- Comprehensive low-cost co-pay medical insurance, as well as vision insurance benefits that start on day one.
- Life insurance
- Short-term and long-term disability insurance
- 401(k) Retirement plan that will match 100% of employees saved dollars up to the first 6% of your salary
- Paid Time Off
- 11 paid holidays per year, paid vacation including Jury Duty and bereavement leave
- Paid sick leave
- Wellness Program
- Employee Assistance Program
- Parental Leave
- Tuition reimbursement
- Employee Stock Purchase Program
- Community Involvement & Sustainable Solutions -Fire Resistant Siding to Help Rebuild the Grizzly Flats Community | James Hardie
- To learn more visit JH Benefits At A Glance 2025
Apply now and come "home" to Hardie!
James Hardie Building Products Inc. is an equal opportunity employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, gender, sex, age, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, genetic information, veteran's status, marital status, pregnancy, disability, or any other basis protected by law.