IKEA Communications AB

What if you could inspire to make everyday life just a little bit better?

The answer is simple: You can. This is what motivates us at IKEA. We’re constantly searching to find new ways to be better. We use insights from real life at home all over the world, learning about the needs and dreams of people. We use our home furnishing knowledge to help inspire people with ideas and solutions that will help them live the life they want.

At IKEA Communications, we’re people-centric, have a passion for making great stuff, and we aim to be the best communication partner for the whole of IKEA. We work closely and together with our colleagues across IKEA, creating state-of-the-art communication at the lowest price. Located in Älmhult, Sweden, we’re a melting pot of many different nationalities and cultures. Because in order to make things better for the many, we want to involve people from all parts of the world. Nonetheless, we never forget our Swedish heritage that forms the backbone of who we are today.

We’re on the lookout for passionate doers, idea makers, creative thinkers - people who want to find answers to everyday problems in people’s lives, for society and the planet.

Do you also believe in celebrating the everyday life? Do you want to be part of making it happen from idea to paper or pixel? Then keep on reading.

Right now we are setting up an Allocation function to support the Assignment and Competence Areas in IKEA Communications, and we are looking for an Allocation Manager.   

The Allocation team is a new setup to support the IKEA Communications projects with efficient ways of making conscious choices of internal and external competences into high performing versatile teams, delivering to all project needs and expectations.

The Allocation manager holds the responsibility to set up new ways of working, collaborations, development of supporting tools and much more to make this function a success. It will be an assignment with big impact on our ability to deliver to high quality at lowest cost..

As an Allocation Manager you will…

• Develop a resource allocation competence base by mapping internal/external capabilities, in alignment with assignment demands and priorities; and in close collaboration with assignment & competence areas.
• Collaborate closely with assignment & competence areas to define and set clear expectations on the level of competence expertise required to meet and deliver to assignment needs.
• Conduct forward-looking competence assessments to identify competence needs in potential new assignment demands currently outside the organization’s scope and competitive offer.
• Explore and evaluate multiple team set-up possibilities/alternatives from the competence base, identifying the best possible outcomes of high performing teams and/or team constellations that are best suited to meet the competence needs of incoming assignments.
• Optimise the utilization of internal and external resources aiming for cost-efficiencies and lowest price impact for the end-consumer.
• Contribute to the development of assignment and competence areas by providing regular data and reports that share insights into competence availability, potential instances of underutilization, capacity forecast and competence gaps for ongoing/upcoming assignments.
• Lead the development and standardization of management tools and best practices that support the optimization of resource allocation activities and monitoring capabilities.
• Collaborate closely with assignment and competence areas to ensure consistent and accurate reporting of billable hours in projects via the established financial reporting tools.
• Secure excellent cross-function collaboration and good relations with assignors, partners and internal/external stakeholders.
• Lead and manage a team of specialist within allocation in order for them to develop and deliver within their assignment as high performing individuals, securing the necessary short/long- term development, recruitment and succession plans.
• Be a change driver for creating an ideas and feedback culture; together with the development of the IKEA Communications Business & People agenda; and in cross collaboration with assignors, internal areas and external partners.
• Create pre-conditions for a healthy, trustful, inclusive, engaging and future-oriented learning environment that supports the co-worker’s continuous competence development, leadership capabilities and entrepreneurial spirit.
• Establish performance indicators that help drive the area’s strategic, creative and/or development goals, as well as provide insights that can contribute to the continuous development of high performing teams and competences.
• Manage closely the budget and connected performance indicators to secure the delivery of assignments and business priorities within the agreed frames (quality, time, costs).
• Challenge current ways of working and take lead in securing a continuous development and innovation of optimal tools, processes and solutions.

An Allocation manager is someone who solve complex problems and oversee multiple moving pieces in a fast-paced and creative client service environment. Someone with who can lead by translating business direction and competence needs into clear actionable development plans. Someone who can lead in the unknown and in ever-changing conditions. Someone with the ability to identify and then contextualise development opportunities and technology to meet the competence needs of today and tomorrow. Someone who can influence others in a multi-layered organisation, to drive decisions and consensus. Someone who simplify complexity, and who drive synergies and collaborations. Someone who can cultivate an innovative and idea-driven culture that enables co-workers to explore and share ideas and reinvent creative production.

You’ll need:

• Experience working in either Retail, Communication, Home Furnishing or Media industries.
• Experience creating and implementing long-term development plans.
• Extensive understanding of the creative & product development process.
• Experience working in a high-volume production environment with tight deadlines.
• Up-to-date knowledge of industry, digital and market trends; new tools and technologies.
• Knowledge of how customers consume and experience communication.
• Experience developing people for a variety of creative, specialist, technical or leadership roles.
• Experience mapping out talent resources, tasks, and dependencies.
• Experience building career paths.
• Experience working in a multicultural, creative and inclusive work environment.
• Fluency in English, spoken and written.

This is a place where you can focus on doing what you love. There are no dress codes or closed offices. No day is ever the same. All ideas are welcome. Everyone tries to pitch in when needed, and failures are seen as a way of learning. When you enter our building, we want you to feel that you can inspire billions of people all over the world. 

Are you ready to make the world a little better, together? We want to hear from you!

We look forward to receiving your application, in English.Please note that this position is in Älmhult, Sweden. (During the summer vacation, our recruitment process will be a little bit longer, thanks for the understanding)

We do not accept applications by e-mail. If you are one of the candidates we think have the required experience we will contact you by email or phone to plan a telephone interview. In some cases recruitment processes may take time, so we kindly ask you to be patient in this regard.