Susana Suarez Gonzalez, Ph.D.
Dr. Susana Suarez Gonzalez with over 30 years of experience is the Executive Vice President, Chief Human Resources and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer of International Flavors and Fragrances, Inc. since November 2016. Based in New York at IFF’s headquarters, Ms. Suarez Gonzalez is responsible for championing the growth and development of IFF people. She leads the creation and implementation of the IFF Global Human Capital Strategy across the enterprise and works to build talent and organizational capability through IFF’s established Human Capital platforms. Her modus operandi ‘Results tHRu People’ reflects a Human Resource approach where each IFFer’s uniqueness unleashes their potential. Some have considered Ms. Suarez as one of the first pioneers of what in the past decade has been coined as “HR with an attitude.”
Prior to joining IFF, Ms. Suarez Gonzalez spent 25 years at Fluor Corporation, where she held leadership positions across several business groups and functions including project engineering, marketing, sales, finance, general management and human resources. Immediately before her current role at IFF, Ms. Suarez Gonzalez held the position of Senior Vice President Global Operations, Human Resources with Fluor, and was responsible for the global execution of HR services as well as all corporate HR functions, encompassing total rewards, learning and organizational design, HR technology, talent acquisition and talent analytics.
Recognized as a strategic thinker and results-driven multilingual executive, Ms. Suarez Gonzalez is a proven transformational leader. Her global mindset is a direct result of having lived and worked in over 15 countries and having fulfilled executive, leadership and country management roles.
Having published two books and authored or co-authored numerous industry articles, Ms. Suarez Gonzalez has been recognized throughout her career for her professional achievements. In addition to her work in Human Resources, she serves on special volunteer projects and events that focus on children. Ms. Suarez Gonzalez holds an executive MBA from the IUDE University and a Doctorate in Psychology from the University of Oviedo in Spain where she graduated summa cum laude and is currently attending Harvard pursuing a master’s in International Relations with a focus on Social Justice. She lives between New York City and Madrid with her family.