Category Manager JLB

Advantage Sales & Marketing dba Advantage Solutions•Minneapolis, MN

4d•Onsite

About The Position

The Category Manager leads complex category work, expertly analyzing data from multiple sources, synthesized to deliver clear, tailored presentations to the Target buying team. This role combines analytics, presentation, and leadership skills to guide both short and long-term initiatives. They anticipate business needs and proactively identify challenges and opportunities. Strong project management, problem-solving, and communication skills are essential. The Category Management Service at Target serves as a pivotal resource for the Target buying team, offering flawless day-to-day support and are entrusted with direct access to Target’s internal systems. This role is exclusively dedicated to Target, representing a collaborative and strategic partnership that seamlessly integrates with the Target buying team. The Category Manager is an experienced trusted advisor providing thought leadership and strategy direction with analytically based actionable insights addressing business goals and challenges.

Requirements

Bachelor's Degree or equivalent experience in a relevant field such as Business, Finance, Economics, Statistics, Mathematics, Data Science, or a related discipline.
6+ years of experience in retail or brand background is a must.
Proficient in diverse tasks including reporting & analytics, setting planograms, planogram writing, creating presentations, and adept presentation delivery.
Skilled in synthesizing multiple/extensive resources to craft compelling narratives and actionable insights, with a deep understanding of merchandising strategies and the ability to leverage and apply substantial datasets effectively.
Deep understanding of business strategy with the ability to synthesize data, trends, and insights into actionable recommendations aligned with long-term growth.
Proven ability to manage multiple priorities, meet deadlines, and coordinate across teams with precision and efficiency.
Expert in evaluating complex data sets and using tools to generate clear, actionable insights.
Strong attention to data accuracy and integrity, especially in tools like JDA and other planning systems.
Skilled in Excel, PowerPoint, JDA, POS systems, and market insights platforms (e.g., Kantar, Mintel, Numerator), as well as Target-specific tools.
Prioritizes clear communication and responsiveness to drive customer satisfaction.
Proactive, results-driven, and solutions-oriented with a strong commitment to continuous improvement.

Nice To Haves

3+ years of relatable Category Advisor or Captainship is preferred but not required.
Target specific Category Management experience is a plus.

Responsibilities

Independently manages day-to-day relationships with Target and cross-functional teams: including merchant, business analyst, inventory analyst, space & transition planning & pricing promo team, and developing relationships with Director merchant.
Leads preparation and execution of client meetings, including weekly updates and ad hoc sessions, while driving collaborative problem-solving discussions.
Provides strategic recommendations grounded in a deep understanding of category trends and client needs.
Owns the end-to-end reporting process, combining advanced data analytics with a deep understanding of business drivers.
Integrates multiple data sources to deliver detailed weekly reports and strategic insights that highlight performance trends, opportunities, and risks.
Incorporates insights on sales, promotions, inventory in multiple roll ups like brand, vendor, subcategory, and item.
Develops and manages custom attributes, enabling deeper analysis and providing valuable insights into business performance.
Supports ad hoc reporting needs, proactively identifying relevant data points to address client questions and guide decisions.
Manages in-depth analyses of competitive marketplace and retailer trends, including merchandising, pricing, brand, and SKU selection.
Produces comprehensive reports on market share, competitive retailer performance, and industry trends.
Identifies and capitalizes on emerging trends, opportunity items, promotional themes, and merchandising strategies.
Provides strategic recommendations to Target merchant team.
Executes category and seasonal review utilizing some pre-established templates and creating custom outputs for their business.
Gains a deep understanding of client strategies and analyzes: sales, space-to-sales, consumer behavior, and basket drivers, segmentation, pricing tiers, assortment gaps, white space, and merchandising.
Provides actionable insights and strategic recommendations to enhance category performance and productivity.
Is successful at synthesizing to create executive summaries and key recommendations summaries independently.
Effectively presents to the client, utilizing advanced presentation techniques to convey complex data and insights, fostering client understanding and buy-in.
Own the transition & revision planogram process from start to finish. This includes managing T&A, confirming item images & attributes, merchandise planning, SVP walk-through support, planogram optimization and writing all planogram versions.
Analyze merchandising and assortment to influence strategy.
Develops strategic planograms that align with business objectives and enhance the customer experience.
Efficiently writes up to 1,000 planograms, store ties, fixture placement, signage, and proofing.
Manages the development of comprehensive digital performance reports and seasonal analyses.
Conducts in-depth analysis of channel sales performance, search behavior, purchasability, and site content and experience.
Collaborates with internal digital category experts to identify correct tools to use for a business question before developing custom outputs.
Develops and presents to Target strategic recommendations based on data analysis to support business objectives and improve digital performance.
Research trends and utilize internal resources to gain comprehensive insights.
Identify emerging trends and apply these to current and forward-thinking category initiatives.
Shares insights and presentations that are applicable to other categories at JLB to create efficiency and knowledge sharing.