The primary role of the Category manager is to provide the merchant with unbiased strategic and tactical recommendations using relevant shopper insights, assortment & shelving optimization and merchandising best practices to increase penetration, drive sales and gain market share. It will require being proactive with generating actionable insights from Luminate Shopper Behavior, Luminate Channel Performance, and any available public data sources. 

Responsibilities

• Employ critical thinking and proactively derive insights to identify issues & opportunities.
• Leverage available data sources to create impactful stories that identify risks, opportunities, and performance gaps such as assortment, distribution, size, incrementality, placement & shelving.
• Create modulars for assigned categories and work with cross functional partners to assure modulars are submitted within the time frame prescribed.
• Elevated data analysis beyond reporting and translate insights into action.
• Optimize the physical and digital shelf utilizing the latest omni-insights from available data sources.
• Develop strong working relationships with the merchants and cross functional partners.
• Proactively analyze data and create actionable insights for the category, consumer, and shopper.
• Analyze business trends & identify the drivers of those trends on a continual basis while proactively recommending solutions to issues or identify potential opportunities.
• Stay current on shopper trends, assortment opportunities, competitive activity, and promotional trends to contribute to the customer planning process.
• Develop presentations and present to the merchant as required.
• When available, work with additional sporting goods team on action plans, analyze data, provide insights as they become available.

Qualifications

• A minimum of two years of experience, or equivalent education and related experience, in e-commerce or a related field
• Experience with category management principles, syndicated data, shopper/consumer insights, and proficiency in space management principles and software (e.g., Blue Yonder)
• Proven ability to analyze and report data to identify issues, trends, or exceptions, driving improvement and finding effective solutions
• A strong understanding of analytics, including descriptive (the what), diagnostic (the why), predictive (what will happen), and prescriptive (the response)
• Proficiency with the Microsoft suite and Luminate
• Previous experience with Walmart is strongly preferred
• Physical demands primarily involve sitting and using a computer for extended periods
• Occasionally involves walking, bending, reaching, standing, and stooping
• May require lifting, pushing, carrying, or pulling up to 20 lbs