Head of Packed Beverages

Head-of Packed Beverages

Proactively leads core category management functions for the United States; oversees core category management functions for Canada. Frames and articulates strategic category priorities, including revenue, unit and gross margin targets, promotional activity sets, promotional mechanics, core/required product assortments and both near and long-term growth ambitions. Creates and delivers an executable category plan, to include merchandising principles, programming, operational processes, KPI’s, and other key metrics relevant to the organization’s broader merchandise ambitions. Leads team of direct report(s).

Essential Functions:

• Defines the role and strategy for an assigned category, within the context of the overall merchandise category plan, organizational objectives, and other related dependencies – namely, the competitive marketplace, external headwinds/tailwinds, and consumer trends.
• Translates category role and strategy into actionable frameworks for B2C pricing architectures: Front-line/EDLP, promotional, and within other key value-enhancing platforms (e.g., Loyalty).
• Leverages a variety of data complex sources, including sales, research, internal/external insights, and current trend analytics to inform and shape optimization efforts across multiple decision sets – namely, price, assortment, promotion, and sales mix.
• Develops promotional plan for nationally executed programs and offers, including price, package and associated merchandising components.
• Sets and owns promotional price architecture on behalf of the Business Units.
• Establishes the category’s core/required product assortment, on behalf of the Business Units.
• Collaborates with Owned Brands team/resources to ensure country-level category plans both reflect and enable the stated ambition for control label products; collaboratively and cross-functionally defines the strategy, role and category-level aspiration for control label products.
• Leads, in concert with internal procurement partners, contract negotiation efforts with national suppliers.
• Leads joint, multi-year business planning activities with suppliers, in partnership with internal procurement resources as well as other key stakeholders; scales and delivers against joint business planning commitments, including product exclusives, external partnerships, and related programming.  
• Establishes COGS and non-COGS value-capture objectives that inform procurement processes and tenders; defines and quantifies success as it relates to supplier investments.
• Provides ongoing support, counsel, and guidance for a variety of stakeholders, including Senior Analyst(s) at the continent level, members of both regional and business unit-level merchandising teams, and other senior leaders. 
• Demonstrates strategic leadership to inspire and mobilize teams to embrace and drive change; effectively engages with a diverse range of stakeholders, both internal and external; contributes to innovation and creativity, with an eye toward differentiation.
• Fosters an environment that welcomes change, promotes high levels of ingenuity and creative thinking, risk tolerance, and collaboration, while also growing revenue and margin.  
• Maintains staff by recruiting, selecting and orienting employees. Maintains staff job results by training coaching, counseling and disciplining employees, planning, monitoring and appraising job results.
• Maintain professional and technical knowledge by attending educational workshops, reading professional publications, establishing personal networks; or participating in professional societies.
• Contributes to team effort by accomplishing determined Financial and Key Result Area targets pursuant to Company Plan guidelines.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in marketing, finance, or business management; MBA preferred. Other combinations of related experience (ex: product development, retail account management) and education may be considered.
•  Ten to fifteen years of experience in category or product management, merchandising, or related B2C disciplines, at a high-growth omni-channel retailer, high-growth brick & mortar retailer competing nationally and/or internationally, or Chain Restaurant operator/franchisor.
• Must have prior P&L ownership of at least $500 million in annual sales or account value. Strong financial acumen and analytical skills required.
•  Must be able to work independently or collaboratively, in a fast paced, frequently changing business environment. Advanced MS Excel & PPT skills required.
•  May require up to 30% travel. Valid driver’s license required.

Physical Requirements:

The physical demands described here are representative of