Category Manager

Russell Stover•Chicago, IL

11d

About The Position

At Russell Stover, not only do we love chocolate, but we love our jobs! Every day we go to work exhibiting our values of excellence, innovation, entrepreneurship, responsibility, and collaboration. Working at Russell Stover you’ll be part of the leading manufacturer of boxed, seasonal, and sugar-free chocolates. For over 100 years, our American-made brands – Russell Stover Chocolates, Whitman’s, and Pangburn’s – have been crafted with the finest ingredients to bring happiness to generations. Today, we produce over 55 million pounds of chocolate annually, and our legacy brands can be found in 13 company-owned stores and over 9,000 wholesale accounts. Join our team and let’s continue making chocolate lovers happy! A day in the life… As the Drug Category Manager, you are responsible for providing category analysis, shopper insights, and strategic category vision to deliver best-in-class assortment, distribution, and shelving for Russell Stover and our customers. You will demonstrate industry thought leadership and creativity by developing category-specific stories and strategies that enable share growth. You will also work collaboratively with our customers and other Russell Stover internal departments. In this role, you will report to the Team Leader of Category Management.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience
3+ years of Category Management or analytical experience in a CPG company
Experience using advanced functions within Microsoft Excel, Word and PowerPoint
Experience using syndicated data (Circana, Nielsen, Numerator) and loyalty data
Strong analytical, technical, and interpretation skills
Excellent presentation skills
Ability to work under pressure and meet tight deadlines
Ability to find unique and creative ways to add value through data and insights
Excellent communication skills and the ability to speak, read, and write English fluently, with or without an accommodation.

Nice To Haves

Advanced degree, M.B.A.
5+ years of business analytics experience in Sales and Category Management
Confectionery Industry experience
Solution driven

Responsibilities

Act as a category consultant to our Drug customers and company by providing unbiased recommendations to drive overall category growth and the Russell Stover business.
Synthesize multiple data sources including POS, Panel, Shopper Card, Retailer Store data, and Insights to craft compelling, concise and actionable selling stories.
Contribute to or lead the creation of seasonal and everyday line reviews.
Play a leadership role in conducting category management reviews, analyzing business issues, and providing business insights and recommendations in the areas of assortment, pricing, distribution, and shelving to enable share growth.
Embed yourself within our customers and attend customer meetings to present analysis, trend information, and category opportunities. Attendance may be in conjunction with Sales or one-on-one with the Buyer.
In collaboration with Marketing and Sales Strategy, support the creation of seasonal and key initiative selling presentations with contributions of insights and/or data analysis, along with POG analysis and recommendations.
Influence the development of strategic sales and category action plans through the sharing of knowledge gained from customer specific data.
Help to establish priorities that are consistent with Russell Stover and key account goals and objectives, market share and overall category profitability.
Provide Sales with post event analytics and YOY implementation opportunities to drive the total confection category and Russell Stover.
Serve as the category expert by fully understanding shopper motivations and barriers through available syndicated, shopper card, and panel data.
Adhere to Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) to ensure product quality and maintain compliance with food safety standards.
Complete and follow FSQA training and programs to comply with regulatory requirements, ensure consumer safety, and support the plant’s food safety and quality objectives.
Promptly report and take appropriate action on any observed or potential food safety hazards, process deviations, or non-conformities by notifying the designated plant supervisor, in accordance with your role and responsibilities.
Actively contributes to the continuous improvement of the company’s Food Safety Culture through engagement and actions aligned with your role.