Transforming Setbacks into Success at Nestlé

In the ever-evolving consumer products landscape, Nicolas’s career span with Nestlé IT & Digital Americas continues to be impressive. Read on to learn how he harnesses his tech-savvy skills
and is a leader within our organization.

Tell us about your background and initially what motivated you to join our organization?

Before joining Nestlé IT & Digital Americas in 2018, I worked in Marketing & Innovation for over 12 years. In the world of consumer product innovation, we thrive on successes and learn from
failures — what we call "fail-forward". Ten years ago, I faced my biggest failure yet: Despite extensive consumer research on a novel product pointing to a great success, sales after launch were dismal to say the least. I had missed a key insight: consumers would only engage with such products online.
My over-reliance on the traditional brick-and-mortar route to market strategies failed me and made me feel outdated. Determined to learn, I moved to IT two years later to develop my skills in digital marketing and ecommerce, setting and deploying our Nestlé North America's digital shelf technology strategy from scratch.

What specific skills or experiences have you found to be most valuable in advancing your career within the company?

My leadership experience acquired over the years and my business acumen—always connecting the dots between what my teams do every day and their impact on business results measured in terms of growth, sales, profit, and market share.

Can you share your journey at Nestlé and the key milestones and achievements that contributed to your professional growth?

I first joined Purina as a global innovation leader in the GSBU (Global Strategic Business Unit) in 2013 with the responsibility to develop our global innovation strategy to grow Petcare beyond the core, with emerging markets as a key priority. For four years, I was able to push the boundaries of what was deemed possible in delivering nutrition for dogs in context of homemade food.
Next, I was given the opportunity to apply consumer innovation methodologies to identify new customer insights in pet specialty for Purina Latin America. Then, I joined IT, leading a new product information and digital shelf tech team. Two years later, successes with deployments in Canada and cloud conversion for retail sales across the region opened the door to becoming a Business Relationship Manager of Marketing, Sales & eCommerce (MSE) in Canada.

By combining my leadership principles with a product management team structure, I was able to form a strong partnership with our function stakeholders while fostering a positive environment for my team to thrive. It was these achievements that positioned me to take on a new opportunity as the new Regional IT Director of MSE in North America.

How has Nestlé supported your career development, and what are some significant factors that foster a culture of growth and advancement?

Nestlé provides an extensive array of tools to continue to grow oneself and continuously present incredible opportunities to explore new functional areas and learn from the challenges of different markets around the globe.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years with Nestlé?

Having changed roles recently, I inspire my new organization to become a high-performing force that harnesses the power of global solutions to elevate Marketing, Sales, and eCommerce across North America.

What are your hobbies outside of the workplace or what do you think we should know about you?

Outside of work, I’m the digital director of a local racing cycling club and serve on their board of directors. I ride my road bike over 7,000 miles every year, and I occasionally race cyclo-cross and gravel.

What advice would you give to job seekers to grow and advance within the Nestlé organization?

Be open and flexible to accept new opportunities. With this, the prospect of continuous career growth is infinite.

Ready to start your innovative career? Be sure to check our open positions and enroll in our talent community to stay in touch on relevant opportunities with us.