Location

US-IL-Cicero

ID

2023-23832

Type

Regular Full-Time

Category

Corporate- Other

The role of Director, Category Development will be responsible for overseeing a team of category management employees in multiple markets. This position will play a leading role in providing services to these states with a focus on driving collaboration across state lines, training & development, best practices sharing, and assessment of ongoing projects and opportunities.

1. Lead the region’s Category Development teams
   • Share leading category development practices both locally and nationally
   • Identify areas where best practices are needed and help to develop solutions
   • Assist with assessment of development opportunities for members of the category teams
   • Support and drive key projects, deliverables, and activities in the region
   • Take the lead on initiatives that cross state lines and support periodic national account needs
2. Communication
   • Maintain ongoing communication cadence with key stakeholder groups, including BBG houses, suppliers, and retailers
   • Build engagement through regular travel, meetings, and progress updates
   • Gather key resources and information from stakeholder groups and ensure flow of communication back to category teams
3. Reporting and Training
   • Collaborate on the creation of national category reports, tools, and standards to promote common ways of working
   • Facilitate category management training and development for assigned geography
   • Lead the coordination and delivery of training, including; third party training solution providers and internal training sessions from subject matter experts
4. Manage Projects and Processes - Nationally
   • Conduct ongoing assessment of category development projects and processes
   • Lead standardized recaps, analyses, and performance measures for category work
   • Make strategic recommendations to improve impact and efficiency
   • Support complex cross functional projects by scoping and phasing work to meet project
   • Collaborate on multi-market retail projects to consult and leverage standardized ways of working
   • Develop benchmark sets to support key retail concepts and maintain supplier shelf standards
5. Space Planning Strategy, Management and Development
   • Develop a long-term vision & strategy for space planning, gathering input from key stakeholders by creating a roadmap to advance space planning capabilities
   • Evaluate current software, tools, and ways of working to identify opportunities, develop solutions and build enhancements
   • Act as team lead and technical expert on software, aligning technical requirements to business needs and staying up to date on technology and market trends
   • Management of space planning database, including documentation, training, optimizing functionality and establishing consistent practices
6. Other duties, as assigned by the jobholder’s supervisor, may also be required.

#LI-Hybrid

-Hybrid

• Bachelor’s degree in business administration, economics, statistics, computer science, data science, and/or equivalent training and work experience
• Minimum of 10 years of experience in beverage alcohol and/or CPG industry
• Minimum of 5 years’ experience in a Category Management role in the CPG industry Experience using Syndicated and Retail POS (i.e. Nielsen, IRI, Target Partners Online, IRI/Kroger Retail Execution, Walmart Retail Link, etc.), and Depletion data
• Experience in space planning with strong technical Blue Yonder (JDA) software experience
• Significant experience building relationships with retail business
• Expert PC skills using MS Office and other various computer programs to handle large data sets from data acquisition, data modeling, analysis, and validation to deliver actionable insights. Also, to generate high quality marketing, sales, and/or financial analysis and presentations
• Must be a results-oriented professional with verbal/written communication skills using diplomacy and discretion as well as customer service skills
• Ability to multi-task, work independently and/or within a team, pay attention to detail and meet deadlines
• Analytic and Reporting skills
• Utilize sound judgement and problem-solving skills
• Ability to work in fast-paced, high-volume, team environment

Preferred Qualifications:

• Systems expertise in: Excel, Power Query, Power Pivot, and PowerBI

Physical Requirements:

• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to, stand, sit; talk, hear, and use hands and fingers to operate a computer and telephone

Competencies:

• People management responsibility for pay reviews, performance management, training, and resource planning.
• Requires conceptual thinking to understand complex issues and their implications, where sufficient information may not be available.

This job description is only a summary of the typical functions of this position, not an exhaustive or comprehensive list of all possible job responsibilities, tasks and duties. Responsibilities, tasks, and duties of individual jobholders may vary from the above description.