Category Manager

The Pokémon Company International•Bellevue, WA

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Pokémon Company International manages the Pokémon property outside of Asia and is responsible for brand management, licensing and marketing, the Pokémon Trading Card Game, the animated TV series, home entertainment, and the official Pokémon website. Pokémon was launched in Japan in 1996 and today is one of the most popular children’s entertainment properties in the world. The role is responsible for procurement (e.g., purchasing and supply chain activities), as well as vendor management (e.g., negotiation, purchase, and relationships associated with outsourced services).

Requirements

Five (5) to seven (7) years of relevant professional experience or a demonstrated equivalent level of expertise.
Bachelor's degree in a related field or a demonstrated equivalent level of applicable experience.
Shown track record of procurement success in a retail business.
Experience with change management.
Experience with lean manufacturing.
Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite.

Nice To Haves

Passion for Pokémon: Develops an understanding of the Pokémon brand, the impact it has on our people, culture, business, fans, and communities, and applying that knowledge and passion to everything you do.
Challenging the Expected: Approaches challenges with curiosity and creativity, embracing the possibility of failure as an opportunity to learn something new, develop innovative ideas, solve complex problems and identify unique opportunities.
Integrity and Respect: Demonstrates integrity and respect by leading with empathy, listening to others, seeking out different perspectives, and taking personal responsibility for decisions, actions, and results.
Dedicated to Quality: Takes ownership to maintain and promote high standards, looks for new ways to learn and improve, and embraces a growth mindset to seek and apply feedback from others in an effort to continuously improve.
Building Relationships: Develops and strengthens relationships, adopting a “team first” mentality and working collaboratively to solve problems and meet shared goals.
Delighting Customers: Listens and understands the interests and needs of our customers and stakeholders, making them feel heard and important, and embracing these learnings to continue delivering a unique Pokémon experience.

Responsibilities

Participates in the analysis of current and future business environment projections.
Contributes to the forecast, acquisition, and utilization plans to optimize resources in support of company initiatives and program business plans.
Participates in the development of labor hour estimates for new or revised production and tooling work.
Monitor performance to established labor hour estimates.
Interacts in the development of integrated tool and production master schedules.
Uses process improvement methodologies to maximize the efficiency of equipment and personnel and to support company improvement initiatives.
Negotiates schedule commitments or statement of work impacts with outsourced vendors.
Develops, implements, maintains integrated operating plans to maximize the efficiency of equipment and personnel and to reduce inventory and meet cost and schedule commitments.
Gathers and summarizes performance metrics in order to support a recommend plan of action for production improvements.