Category Analyst, Grocery South

Job Description:

This role's primary purpose is to serve as a trusted, category growth-driving partner to Grocery retailers by delivering fact-based insights and category solutions that drive mutually beneficial category growth. The position works closely with customer management to drive alignment and execution against category and brand strategies through the leadership of category management initiatives. This role delivers strategic shopper, category, and market insights relevant to each retailer's unique environment and evolving business conditions, helping customers grow the total category while advancing Mars Snacking’s Category Leadership objectives. Building and maintaining strong internal and external relationships is critical to success in this role.

Key Responsibilities

• Build and maintain strong relationships both internally and externally; internally co-creating and collaborating with Sales to drive growth strategies, externally driving alignment and execution against category growth solutions within the assigned retailers.
• Provide analysis and make decisions on a variety of projects within the Category Leadership team:
• Develop Category Insights Reviews that deliver mutual value and growth
• Shelving excellence strategies that drive total category performance
• Development of JDA POGs, across multiple business segments depending on project scope
• Assortment optimization and incrementality
• Price/Promotion efficiencies
• Merchandising effectiveness
• Develop category recommendations through analysis of syndicated data, shopper insights, retailer POS data, and marketplace trends. 
• Nielsen/IRI/Syndicated Data sources for analyses
• Space management initiatives such as JDA for merchandising visualization and space layout recommendations
• Forecasting tools, both seasonal and everyday based on price/promotion/distribution
• Create and maintain scalable tools, reports, scorecards, and templates that improve decision-making and organizational efficiency. 
• Analyze category, shopper, and competitive trends to identify opportunities that accelerate category growth. 
• Support annual customer planning and strategic initiatives by translating insights into actionable recommendations. 
• Manage multiple projects and priorities while serving as a trusted category expert for assigned customers. 
• Functional and technical expertise and primarily deliver results through themselves.  Achieve goals by applying expert knowledge to make decisions and to influence others.

Context and Scope

• Work collaboratively with external and internal partners to develop and activate growth tactics and strategies for the Confectionery, Salty Snacks, and overall Treats & Snacks categories; develop, communicate, and implement customer penetration plans for all assigned retailers and/or distributors, plus collaborate and support peer development and account coverage.
• Utilize category tools and resources to bring solid category insights to the buyer.  Tools include, but are not limited to the following: IRI, Nielsen Scan and Panel databases, space management software (JDA), market research findings from CMI, Kantar etc.
• Identify creative and improved approaches to category management which will lead to sustainable category growth. Solutions should apply to assortment (everyday/promotional), placement and everyday shelving and merchandising, pricing (everyday/promotional), promotions and seasonal merchandising; macro level store space allocation and designs, channel trends, solutions should rely upon resources such as shopper and category insights, and Category Vision, etc.
• Provide shelf layout and assortment planning insights inclusive of evaluating assortment opportunities within the customer and the general market, perform space to sales analyses, recommend optimized item placement based on shopper purchase learnings, and assist the buyer with all necessary POG tasks as they request and proactively, drive toward Category Captaincy. Develop, maintain, communicate POG scorecard performance on a period basis.
• Apply creativity and project management skills through the concept ideation, development, piloting, test & learn and scaling process.
• Influence Annual Planning process through full partnership with Sales team, providing actionable, insight-based solutions that support category leadership objectives for customer, category and Mars Snacking.
• This role is a technical leader requiring a large amount of time analyzing data and planogramming.
• This role interfaces with customers at the headquarter and requires strong relationship-building skills.
• This role demands creatively representing fact-based selling for internal and external stakeholders.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree required

• Demonstrated analytical skills and capability

• 2+ years of experience within CPG Sales key accounts, retail, and or analyst accountabilities

• Ability to accommodate travel a minimum of 25-40% of time

• A valid driver's license and clean driving record

• Ability to work in a field-sales, home office

• Successful completion of a drug and background screen

• Strong written and verbal communication skills
• Nielsen Scan data experience

• Knowledge of JDA

• Strong Excel and PowerPoint skills

• External selling, negotiation, influencing

The base pay range for this position at commencement of employment is between the below range, however, base pay offered may vary depending on multiple individualized factors, including but not limited to, market location, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience. The total compensation package for this position may also include other elements, if eligible, including variable pay & general allowances (depending on the position and employee’s work schedule).  Subject to the terms and conditions of the applicable policies and plans then in effect, and depending on the position offered and the employee’s work schedule (i.e., part-time schedule), eligible employees are automatically enrolled in a 401(k) plan, as well as participate in Company-sponsored medical, dental, vision, and basic life insurance plans for the employee and the employee’s eligible dependents, and may be eligible to take up to 18 weeks of paid parental leave. Employees will also receive the following paid-time off (which may be prorated based on start date and the employee’s work schedule): 120 hours of vacation per year, paid sick time for eligible Associates of 100% pay continuation for a maximum of 40 hours per calendar year, and 12 paid holidays throughout the calendar year that include both fixed and flexible holidays.