Category Strategist Transaction Zones

Job Title: Category Strategist; Transaction Zones

Job location: Remote, near a major airport.

Travel:  20-30% (lower if located near Hershey, PA)

Summary

As a Category Strategist on the Transaction Zones team, you will be responsible for uncovering the most relevant retailer and shopper challenges and building strategies and holistic solutions to win across every PayPoint. The Strategist will be an expert in the pervasive application of turning insights into action, working closely with our Shopper Insights partners to activate learning plan agendas.

Responsibilities

• Synthesize business data, trends, and insights to identify key business opportunities or challenges, specific to Instant Consumables and Transaction Zones.
• Develop strategic solutions and proactively deploy those solutions to drive Instant Consumable growth for Hershey, the category and our retail partners.
• Leverage Macro Space Planning capabilities to win today and plan for growth tomorrow, enhancing our consultative partnership with retailers, penetrating all silos (store planning, merchants, operators, tech, etc.)
• Consistently update and publish front-end fundamentals, best practices and playbooks, grounded in insights to activation
• Interact on a regular basis with key members of the Holistic Space, Shopper Insights & Category Management teams to enhance ways of working, identify opportunities and develop solutions
• Identify experiential opportunities to unlock next generation Instant Consumable (IC) space acquisition across all Transaction Zones.
• Provide front-end intelligence for Sales & Home Office: Gold Standard Compliance/Opportunities, Market Trends/Risks, Customer Intelligence, Portfolio Optimization etc.
• Actively pursue global trends, expanded knowledge of innovation across retail and develop partnerships with external thought leaders (tech, store planning, etc.)
• Collaborate with internal cross functional partners (Packtype Strategy, Merch COE, Sales, Category Management, Marketing, Strategy etc.)
• Serve as the primary Transaction Zones subject matter expert at GCIC meetings and assist in content development at MCIC meetings (limited)
• Develop strategic partnerships with retailers, as a subject matter expert and retail thought leader (Top to Tops, Joint Business Plans, Customer Meetings, Market Tours, etc.)

Skills/Competencies:

• Ability to collaborate and work well individually and with a team (cross functional partnerships with Holistic Space team, customer teams, pack type strategy team etc.)
• Ability to work well under pressure and be comfortable managing short- and long-term projects.
• Strong business acumen and professional IQ
• Intermediate data-driven story telling experience
• Intermediate technical skills to include experience with syndicated and internal data sources (ie: Circana, Numerator), Microsoft Office/PowerPoint and Planogram software
• Proactive mindset and strong initiative

Qualifications

 Education: Bachelor's Degree Required

 Experience: This position requires previous Category Management and/or CPG Sales experience (approximately 5-7 years), advanced analytical skills, advanced understanding of consumer\shopper behavior and market research strategies, knowledge of consumer sales industry trends and complete working knowledge of the category management process.

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