William A. Singleton

About William A. Singleton

Hi, I’m William. I set the packaging innovation masterplan at Mars. I’m also responsible for global packaging sustainability, new venture acquisition / identification and business model development for the company. I create a culture where out-of-the box thinking and innovation can thrive among a team of best-in-class engineers, scientists and designers. How do I do it? Simple. I love this job. You see, growing a successful brand like Mars is a carefully calibrated balancing act of weighing needs and opportunities against budgets and commitments – something I’ve always excelled at. Here are some valuable lessons I’ve learned along the way: A successful leader must be able to blend 3 mindsets – HR, tech and business. Only then can you successfully set up teams, monitor project progress, build innovation capabilities and transfer them into the corporate culture. Growth is a marathon, not a sprint. Rather than going all-in and hoping for quick results, have a calculated master plan to break down your goals and attack them individually. When you play the long game, you win. Relationship building is a key pillar of what I do. When your number one mandate is boosting efficiencies, you are going to have to leverage alliances across verticals and industries. Having those diplomatic and collaborative skills streamlines partnerships and allows you to focus on what matters – making money. It pays to learn every part of your business. How can you challenge engineers if you don’t know what they’re trying to accomplish? Take the time to understand everything to make better business decisions. When leading a team that is juggling multiple programs in a matrixed organization, the ability to think on your feet is crucial. You need to be able to draw on past experience and market knowledge - and have the confidence to make split-second decisions. After twenty years in this industry, I realize that my mission is to rise above the administrative bureaucracy inherent in business operations and to set the framework for growth, efficiency, creativity and continuous process improvement. Because in today’s cutthroat environment, that’s just the kind of big-picture mindset that drives success. So, if you’re struggling with a stale operational model that feels stuck in the past and is not delivering the results you expect, get in touch at w••••••••@mac.com, and let’s discuss new ways we can inspire your people. William Singleton Innovation and Transformation Agent “Innovation is seeing what everybody has seen, and thinking what nobody has thought.”

Experience

1. Executive Director, Global Packaging - Innovation & Sustainability

   Mars

   Oct 2020 — Present · Chicago, IL, US

Education

• Clemson University

  Bachelor of Science, Packaging Science

  1997 — 2001

• Vanderbilt University Owen Graduate School of Management

  Master of Business Administration

  2008 — 2010