Associate Category Manager

Position Purpose:

The Senior Analyst, Assortment Planning serves as a subject matter expert and strategic advisor to the Merchandising Organization, providing analytical insights, project leadership, and assortment planning expertise to support category decisions. This role is responsible for leading category business reviews, including Rapid Business Reviews, Product Line Reviews (PLRs), Quick Hits, and Post Reset Reviews, for assigned departments and is viewed by merchants as a trusted partner in developing and executing category and assortment strategies. The Senior Analyst champions assortment planning best practices, delivers data-driven recommendations, and drives initiatives that optimize category performance across the portfolio.

Key Responsibilities:

• 90% Work in collaboration with Merchants to determine category review goals and objectives, conduct standard and ad hoc analysis to identify key drivers of performance, recommend assortment decisions that will improve category performance and develop financial plans that reflect category changes. Typical analysis will include: (a) marketplace and macroeconomic trends impacting the category including competitive assessment, (b) vendor portfolio strengths and weaknesses including private brand, (c) line structure, (d) store clustering, (e) customer and store feedback, (f) identifying key product attributes and (g) regional performance. Develop executive-level presentations that summarize analysis including historical category performance, strategic rationale underpinning assortment decisions and expected financial impact. Report out to all levels of management. Accountable for accuracy, thoroughness, thought process, timeliness and viability of recommendations.
• 10% Own Merchant/Associate Merchant relationship for designated department. Special projects. Ad hoc analysis and reporting.

Direct Manager/Direct Reports:

• This position reports to the Senior Manager, Assortment Planning.
• This position has no direct responsibility for supervising others.

Travel Requirements:

• Typically requires overnight travel less than 10% of the time.

Physical Requirements:

• Most of the time is spent sitting in a comfortable position and there is frequent opportunity to move about. On rare occasions there may be a need to move or lift light articles.

Working Conditions:

• Located in a comfortable indoor area. Any unpleasant conditions would be infrequent and not objectionable.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Must be eighteen years of age or older.
• Must be legally permitted to work in the United States.
• Experience communicating to leadership.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience in merchandising, space planning, analytics, or related business functions
• Proficiency in Microsoft Excel and PowerPoint
• Familiarity with GBQ (Google BigQuery)
• Familiarity with AI tools (e.g., Gemini, Copilot, Notebook LM, and similar technologies)
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to interpret large, complex data sets and develop actionable business insights
• Strong communication and presentation skills, including the ability to influence stakeholders and develop executive-level presentations
• Strong project management skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities, deadlines, and cross-functional partners simultaneously

Minimum Education:

• The knowledge, skills and abilities typically acquired through the completion of a bachelor's degree program or equivalent degree in a field of study related to the job.

Preferred Education:

• No additional education

Minimum Years of Work Experience:

• 2

Competencies:

• Ability to partner with cross-functional teams at all levels across a complex organization
• Ability to get results despite a large workload, competing demands and working in a fast paced environment
• Ability to effectively prioritize multiple demands, adjust to change quickly and work constructively under pressure
• Ability to structure nebulous projects and to work constructively under tight deadlines
• Ability to influence peers and business partners without authority