Starting Date: ASAP

Contract type: Full-time and Permanent

Salary: 36,494 GBP - commensurate with relevant experience and skills

Location: London

Application closing date: 4th June 2025

About the Job 

Join us at Better Cotton as a Senior Traceability Officer and support the growth and development of the Better Cotton Traceability System.

In November 2023, we launched our traceability system to track Better Cotton as it moves through the global supply chain. As of April 2025 - Better Cotton’s traceability system has been implemented in 14 producer countries. Since then, we have been enhancing its integrity, granularity, and scaling use of the platform across our community of producers, suppliers and retailers. We also continue to explore how traceability can bring value to our members and ultimately to the farmer.

This is an innovative role that would suit an organised problem solver with experience across fashion retail, supply chains or technology. Interest in cotton and traceability is essential.

The Challenge

Support the Traceability team in their ongoing development and expansion of the Better Cotton traceability system. This includes:

• Increasing the granularity of our traceability system to provide information on the regions a Better Cotton product has come from.
• Innovating our traceability system to create benefits for farmers and make it easier for the supply chain to source traceable better cotton through our platform.
• Improving the accuracy and integrity of the information that is captured in our traceability system.
• Support projects to align our Better Cotton Platform and traceability solution with upcoming regulations.

Your role and responsibilities

We are seeking a motivated Senior Traceability Officer to join our traceability team. In this role, you will:

• Contribute to defined traceability workstreams, delivering high-quality outputs with increasing autonomy. This includes coordinating specific tasks across teams, managing timelines, and ensuring alignment with Better Cotton’s traceability objectives.

• Support the design and rollout of pilot projects for new innovations relating to chain of custody, traceability and impact. This includes working with colleagues and external partners to gather input, selecting digital tools to support the pilot, and keeping track of what we learn along the way. You'll document key meetings, write clear summaries, and help shape recommendations for our leadership team.

• Contribute to a strategy for connecting Better Cotton’s digital traceability system with other digital system in the cotton sector (also known as interoperability), helping different organisations exchange and use data more effectively. This includes researching best practices, exploring how other systems work, and helping us decide where to focus next.

• Help strengthen the quality and reliability of our data by working with our assurance and certification teams to identify and reduce risks. You’ll also stay informed on new traceability approaches and help bring fresh ideas into our systems.

• Demonstrate adaptability and analytical thinking by responding to shifting priorities, conducting targeted research and synthesising complex information. Apply good judgement to identify risks, opportunities, and areas for improvement in traceability processes.

• Promote collaboration across departments by sharing your ideas and insights in meetings, helping to shape our digital tools and data systems. You’ll represent the traceability team in working groups and contribute to solutions that work for everyone.

• Stay flexible and curious, adjusting to changing priorities, doing targeted research, and thinking critically about how to improve our processes and systems.

• Pitch in where needed to support other projects and initiatives within the Traceability programme, based on the guidance of your line manager.

We are looking for someone who has

the following skills, knowledge, and experience:

Essential:

• University degree or equivalent higher education qualification in a relevant field, with a strong interest in sustainability
• Knowledge of, or strong interest in textile and supply chains, chain of custody, traceability, and related digital solutions such as data exchange or supply chain transparency tools
• Demonstrated ability to manage workstreams independently, and deliver high-quality outputs on time
• Experience working across departments or functions, and engaging with internal and external stakeholders to achieve shared goals
• The ability to work with people from varied cultures and backgrounds
• Demonstrated integrity and business ethics 
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to explain complex topics such as digital supply chain systems clearly and concisely
• Experience or demonstrated interest in stakeholder engagement, research, and project coordination or management
• Well-organised, with excellent attention to detail and strong time management skills
• Highly proficient IT skills, including the MS Office suite (PowerPoint, Word, Excel), and experience with database management
• A self-starter with a proactive attitude and eagerness to learn
• Fluent in English (written and verbal)
• Ability to thrive in a collaborative, team-oriented environment

Desirable:

• Experience working with traceability or digital supply chain management systems, ideally in an agricultural, textile, or sustainability context
• Familiarity with interoperability frameworks or data standardization practices in supply chains.
• Understanding of sustainability standards or certification systems, including traceability risk identification and mitigation
• Knowledge of project management tools and methodologies (e.g. MS Planner  or Project)
• Proficiency in additional languages relevant to Better Cotton’s work: French, Portuguese, Turkish, Russian, Mandarin, Hindi, Urdu.

What we offer

• Competitive salary
• Hybrid working – minimum one day/week in our office at Canary Wharf
• Flexible working, with core hours from 10 am to 4 pm local time
• The opportunity to work abroad for up to one month per year
• Continuous learning and development
• Pension scheme
• 25 days paid annual leave, plus 8-9 Bank Holidays and a further 3 days off over Christmas
• Enhanced parental benefits

Working arrangements

The position is full-time (40 hours per week) and will be based in London. Better Cotton offers flexible working, with core hours being 10 am – 4 pm and a minimum of 1 day per week in the office. The position may require up to 10% travel

Apply now

Send us your CV (2 pages maximum) and a brief cover letter (1-page maximum) by or before 04.06.2025 via the application form.

In your cover letter, please include an explanation of why your experience is specifically relevant to this role at Better Cotton. We want to see your personal style – what makes you tick and why you think your next opportunity is here with us.

We are currently recruiting for two positions within our team: one Officer and one Senior Officer role. Candidates are encouraged to apply to the position that best matches their experience. If you wish to be considered for both, please clearly apply to one role and indicate in your cover letter that you would also be open to being considered for the other, should your experience be a better fit at that level.

Our hiring process

Initial Screening:

If you are selected, you will be contacted for an initial screening, which may involve a brief phone interview or video call. The purpose is to learn more about you, confirm basic qualifications, and discuss the role and organisation.

Interviews:

If you are confirmed after the initial screening, you will be invited for interviews. The interview process at Better Cotton may include one or more rounds of interviews with various stakeholders, such as the hiring manager, team members, and potentially senior management.

Assessment and Testing: 

Depending on the role, you might be required to complete assessments, technical tests, or skills evaluations to gauge your competency and suitability for the position.

Reference Checks: 

Once you progress further in the process, reference checks are conducted to validate your work history, skills, and qualifications, and for some roles, your education and criminal history.

Offer Stage:

After completing interviews, assessments, and reference checks, the hiring team evaluates your performance and fit for the role. If you are selected and your references are relevant and satisfactory, you will receive a formal job offer letter outlining the terms of employment, compensation, benefits, and any other relevant details.

About Better Cotton

Better Cotton is a global not-for-profit organisation supporting the production of more equitable and sustainable cotton at farm level. We exist to catalyse the cotton farming community with partners, governments and others to continuously drive positive impact by setting standards and facilitating the supply and demand of more sustainable cotton from farm to brand. In just 15 years we have aligned more than a fifth of the world’s cotton with our standard and helped farmers and farming communities thrive. Join us in building a better, more sustainable future for cotton worldwide.

About our Values

The post holder will be expected to operate in line with our workplace values which are:  

• Trustworthy (including honest, transparent, credible) 
• As having Integrity (including responsible, authentic) 
• Positive (including problem-solving, pragmatic) 
• Engaging (including adaptable, inclusive, holistic) 
• Daring (including courageous, innovative, game-changing)  

Being you @ Better Cotton

Better Cotton is committed to creating a diverse environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer with a strong commitment to good practice and transparency in the management of natural, human, and financial resources.

We have a zero-tolerance approach to any attitudes or behaviours that put children or adults at risk of harm. Safeguarding incidents are acts of serious misconduct and are grounds for disciplinary action, up to and including, dismissal and referral to relevant authorities for criminal prosecution. Therefore, all offers of employment are subject to satisfactory references and appropriate screening checks.