Barry Callebaut Names Amr Arafa Chief Digital Officer
Chocolate and cocoa manufacturer Barry Callebaut Group is investing in digital innovation, tapping Amr Arafa for a newly created chief digital officer role.
Arafa will be tasked with driving tech-powered growth at Barry Callebaut, focusing on agile strategies. He takes on the new role beginning January 15, reporting directly to CEO Peter Feld and joining the extended leadership team.
Having spent over four years as Ikea's chief data officer, Arafa brings an extensive background in digital transformation, having also led long-term transformation strategies at Mondelēz International.
Feld said that as part of the company’s BC Next Level program, Arafa will be overseeing an agile, tech-enabled organization.
“This will not only benefit us internally at Barry Callebaut, but also will enable a seamless integration across our entire value chain — from our customers all the way to the cocoa farmers,” Feld added. “With Amr, we have the right person on board to help us advance this digital transformation.”
The Zurich-based company runs 66 production facilities across the globe, manufacturing chocolate and cocoa goods for an extensive network of pastry chefs, chocolatiers, bakers, hotels, restaurants, caterers, and more with brands such as Callebaut, Cacao Barry, Carma, and Mona Lisa.
Callebaut had a global workforce of more than 13,000 people and annual sales of about $9.6 billion dollars in fiscal year 2022-2023.
IT Jobs of the Future
Tech-focused leadership roles have transformed over the years. While titles such as chief information officer and chief technology officer continue to hold space at the executive level, other titles such as chief digital officer, chief data officer, and chief transformation officer have grown more widespread in a bid to approach technology transformations in a more focused, strategic way.
Earlier this year, CGT parsed through a wealth of workforce trends and leadership announcements, and spoke with a number of industry experts, to formulate a list of job titles we see emerging as part of a future career in technology.
In the IT space, we see titles such as digital disruptions manager, VP of decision intelligence, and chief experiential and digital innovation officer as potential contenders in the years to come.
