Brand Manager - Special K, NutriGrain

Mars•Chicago, IL

22d•$134,400 - $184,800•Onsite

About The Position

The Brand Manager, Special K and Nutri-Grain, will lead the strategy and growth agenda for two iconic brands. This role is responsible for holistic strategy and execution across brand stewardship, general management, innovation strategy & execution, and full funnel media. The Brand Manager must be skilled at translating consumer, category, and business insights into integrated plans that build equity, accelerate innovation, and deliver in-market results. The Brand Manager will be responsible for leadership and partnership across cross-functional teams and external agencies as well as for the management and development of their direct team. The right candidate is a proactive, self-starter with a growth mindset, driven to deliver results for the consumer and the business.

Requirements

Undergraduate degree required; MBA is an asset, focus on Marketing/ Business is a plus.
5+ years of CPG brand management, marketing, or other relevant CPG experience.
Demonstrated track record of building, activating, and managing brand strategy to deliver consumer and business growth.
Strong general management, analytical, and financial skills (including budget management)
Demonstrated ability to leverage insights and analytics to inform investment choices, prioritize strategic objectives and maximize results.
Proven ability to lead cross-functional teams and agency partners in a matrixed environment, aligning stakeholders and driving high-quality execution.
Experience developing innovation pipelines and leading initiatives from insight and concept through commercialization and launch.
Expertise with full-funnel media and integrated marketing strategy, including optimizing across channels, guiding creative development, and managing external stakeholders
Bias for ownership and action, with sound judgment, comfort navigating ambiguity, and the ability to move work forward at pace.

Nice To Haves

Passion and experience with people management is a benefit, including coaching and developing direct or indirect team members.

Responsibilities

Set the vision: own annual plan and long range strategy for Special K and Nutri-Grain, using consumer, category, competitive, and financial insights to define priorities and deliver sustainable, profitable growth.
Monitor brand health and business performance, diagnose opportunities and risks, and convert learning into decisive action and continuous improvement
Build and advance a consumer-led innovation and renovation pipeline, develop robust business cases, and lead cross-functional teams through commercialization and launch.
Partner across org to develop and deliver integrated communications and media strategies across platforms (example: paid, owned, earned, social, influencer, shopper, and omni-channel) touchpoints; establish clear objectives and optimize based on results.
Champion, protect and strengthen each brand’s positioning, identity, and distinctive assets while ensuring consistent, relevant execution across consumer and customer experiences.
Manage brand performance, portfolio choices, forecasts, budgets, and investment trade-offs in partnership with Brand leadership, Finance, Sales, Insights, Media, Supply, R&D and other key functions.
Coach and develop team members where applicable and foster a culture of ownership, collaboration, inclusion, and high standards.