Category Insights and Analytics Lead

Advantage Sales & Marketing dba Advantage Solutions•Chicago, IL

17d

About The Position

Category Insights and Analytics Lead As a strategic advisor, the Category Insights and Analytics Lead will collaborate closely with stakeholders, providing expertise on category, brand, and market trends to identify and exploit growth opportunities. By fully integrating into the client community, the manager will gain a comprehensive understanding of their strategic priorities, channel strategies, and available resources. This role involves democratizing these insights and strategies to internal partners, ensuring alignment, and maximizing the effectiveness of category management initiatives. The Category Insights and Analytics Lead will play a pivotal role in shaping and executing category and brand strategies by thoroughly understanding client goals, capabilities, organizational structures, and their operational channels. This role demands the ability to transform in-depth analytics into actionable insights, focusing on various aspects such as macro-trends, competitive landscapes, pricing, promotions, assortments, space management, and shopper trends. The successful candidate will be adept at leveraging these insights to support and drive strategic decisions that align with both client and company objectives. Take this opportunity to join North America’s leading business solutions provider and build your career working with amazing people in a growing industry! Apply today! What we offer: Full-Time Benefits (Medical, Dental, Vision, Life) 401(k) with company match Training and Career Development Generous Paid Time-Off Responsibilities: Act as lead contact for Advantage with the client’s upper category management leadership. Present insights and strategic initiatives to client directors and Advantage key account managers. Collaborate with Advantage’s syndicated category analysts on impactful retailer presentations with strong storytelling. Ability to provide consumer/shopper insights, not just data processing Responsibilities The Company is one of North America’s leading sales and marketing agencies specializing in outsourced sales, merchandising, category management, and marketing services to manufacturers, suppliers, and producers of food products and consumer packaged goods. The Company services a variety of trade channels including grocery, mass merchandise, specialty, convenience, drug, dollar, club, hardware, consumer electronics, and home centers. We bridge the gap between manufacturers and retailers, providing consumers access to the best products available in the marketplace today. Responsibilities Thought Leadership: Ability to develop and support driving insights into action through the deep analytics of the category, macro-trends, competitive landscape, pricing, promotion, assortment, space management, and shopper trends. Communication: Fully understand client and company go-to-market, deploy national best practices, champion toolsets, and process, collaborate with field category and sales teams. Business Partner: Serve as an extension of client community fully understanding strategic priorities, channel strategy, available resources, processes, tools, and enablers democratizing to internal partners. Profitable Results: Serve as a strategic advisor to our internal stakeholders on category, brand, and customer market performance identifying white space to maximize growth opportunities. Long Range Business Planning: Support category and brand strategy through understanding client goals, capabilities, organizational structure, and the channels in which they operate.

Requirements

5–10 years in retail analytics or category management (not financial/data-only analytics).
Strong presentation skills and comfort with executive-level interactions.
Familiarity with Circana or Nielsen
Bachelor’s degree required; graduate degree preferred
5+ years of category management, analytics, strategy consulting, or CPG industry experience
Strong data storytelling and analytical capabilities
Advanced Excel skills, including pivot tables and v-lookups
Experience with syndicated data tools (e.g., NIQ, Circana) and data visualization tools (Power BI, Tableau, Looker)
Proven ability to influence stakeholders and communicate complex analysis in actionable, clear terms
Comfortable managing multiple priorities in a fast-paced, cross-functional environment

Nice To Haves

Background in meat department analytics (fresh or frozen) preferred.

Responsibilities

Act as lead contact for Advantage with the client’s upper category management leadership.
Present insights and strategic initiatives to client directors and Advantage key account managers.
Collaborate with Advantage’s syndicated category analysts on impactful retailer presentations with strong storytelling.
Ability to provide consumer/shopper insights, not just data processing
Ability to develop and support driving insights into action through the deep analytics of the category, macro-trends, competitive landscape, pricing, promotion, assortment, space management, and shopper trends.
Fully understand client and company go-to-market, deploy national best practices, champion toolsets, and process, collaborate with field category and sales teams.
Serve as an extension of client community fully understanding strategic priorities, channel strategy, available resources, processes, tools, and enablers democratizing to internal partners.
Serve as a strategic advisor to our internal stakeholders on category, brand, and customer market performance identifying white space to maximize growth opportunities.
Support category and brand strategy through understanding client goals, capabilities, organizational structure, and the channels in which they operate.