Senior Category Insights Analyst

Advantage Sales & Marketing dba Advantage Solutions•Chicago, IL

1d•Remote

About The Position

The Senior Category Insights Analyst serves as a strategic business partner to national clients generating $20M+ in retail sales within a designated regional market. The role delivers actionable consumer, category, and marketplace insights to diagnose business challenges, identify growth opportunities, and improve sales performance. Working with Sales and Category Analytics & Insights teams, the analyst evaluates multiple data sources, develops reporting solutions, and translates complex information into business recommendations. The analyst is a subject matter expert in syndicated consumption data and supports internal and external stakeholders in data-driven decision-making. The position may also provide project guidance and mentorship to junior analysts and contribute to process improvements, reporting enhancements, and data quality initiatives. The position involves analyzing business performance and market data, evaluating trade and promotional pricing, preparing business reviews and customer-specific presentations, and developing standardized and ad hoc reports. It also includes managing multiple projects, building client and stakeholder relationships, supporting analytical processes and data integrity, and communicating insight-driven recommendations. No regular travel is required. The role is identified as remote in the posting.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree required; a degree in business, marketing, analytics, or a related field is specified in the additional qualifications section.
3 to 5 years of experience in CPG, retail analytics, category management, or related fields.
Experience working with syndicated data and retail performance metrics.
Expertise in transforming data into actionable business insights.
Strong experience with syndicated data platforms, including NIQ and Circana.
Proficiency with data visualization and reporting tools such as Power BI, Tableau, or Looker.
Advanced Microsoft Excel skills, including pivot tables, lookups, and data analysis.
Strong analytical, critical-thinking, and problem-solving capabilities.
Excellent communication and presentation skills, including the ability to simplify complex analyses.
Strong storytelling and influence skills to make recommendations that drive business results.
Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.
Ability to collaborate with clients, customers, and internal sales partners and influence decisions with fact-based insights.
Understanding and application of category leadership principles, including assortment, pricing, promotion, shelving, and shopper considerations.
Strong leadership and team-management skills, including the ability to lead, coach, mentor, and develop people.
Additional qualifications text states 5–8+ years of experience in category management, shopper insights, business intelligence, strategy, or a combination within CPG, FMCG, retail, and/or consulting, and 3+ years of people-management experience leading teams of five or more members.
Must be able to perform essential functions in an office/sedentary environment, including sitting for extended periods (66%+ of each day), hearing a telephone, and entering data on a computer; may need to lift up to 10 pounds.

Nice To Haves

Category Management certification is preferred; examples listed include CMA, CKMG, TPG, and Delta Associates.
Experience with database and analytics tools such as Alteryx or MS Access.

Responsibilities

Monitor business performance and identify opportunities, risks, and trends.
Deliver actionable insights that support sales strategies and improve market execution.
Partner with Sales and Category Analytics & Insights teams to optimize business performance.
Support the development of retail trade and promotional pricing recommendations.
Conduct pre- and post-promotion analysis to evaluate effectiveness and return on investment.
Analyze syndicated, customer, shipment, and market data for business reviews and category recommendations.
Develop customer-specific selling stories and strategic presentations.
Design, develop, and maintain standardized and ad hoc reports, and conduct analyses using multiple data sources.
Translate complex data into clear business implications and recommendations.
Manage multiple projects and priorities, coordinate timelines, monitor progress, and resolve issues.
Build relationships with clients, customers, and internal teams; present insights and recommendations to support decisions and strategic initiatives.
Serve as a trusted advisor on category, consumer, and market trends.
Support the development and implementation of reporting tools and analytical processes.
Maintain data integrity and promote best practices in reporting and analytics.
Provide project guidance, mentorship, and analytical support to junior analysts and other team members as needed.
Provide coaching, training, and direction to associates and ensure project deliverables meet partner quality standards.
Use syndicated, panel, client, and geodemographic data and market research to identify actionable, quantifiable solutions.
Develop and present insight-driven thought leadership integrating category, consumer, and shopper insights with quantifiable action plans.
Analyze category, macro-trends, competitive landscape, pricing, promotion, assortment, space management, and shopper trends to drive insights into action.
Consult and collaborate with cross-functional teams and internal and external partners to develop business-building strategies and accomplish business objectives.