Sr Category Analyst

Summary

Sr. Category Analyst, Target (JLB)

 

About JLB

 

JLB is an award-winning retail consulting firm that is passionate about helping brands succeed at Target and Target win in the Marketplace. More than a traditional broker, we offer tailored solutions across Sales, Strategy, Category Management, Insights, Digital, Shopper Marketing, and more — helping brands thrive at one of the world’s most innovative retailers.

 

The Team

Our Category Management Service at Target serves as a pivotal resource for the Target buying team, offering flawless day-to-day support and is entrusted with direct access to Target’s internal systems. This role is exclusively dedicated to Target, representing a collaborative and strategic partnership that seamlessly integrates with the Target buying team. The Senior Category Analyst plays a key role in providing enhanced analytical findings paired with actionable insights that drive category growth and executional excellence.

 

The Role

The Senior Category Analyst will own a designated category(ies) with Target buyer(s). They own core reporting and analytics, translating data into actionable insights to support strategic decision-making. This role contributes to in-depth category reviews, delivering clear findings and recommendations. As the primary point of contact for Target and client partners, they manage key business relationships with support from senior team members. They lead portions of internal and external projects, manage the category transition and revision process with strong attention to detail, and begin creating custom reporting tools while deepening their expertise in business metrics and platforms.

 

Essential Responsibilities

· Client & Cross-Functional Relationships: Actively participates in client meetings and strategic discussions with guidance from senior leadership. Build relationships across merchants, inventory, and planning teams, ensuring clear communication and alignment.

· Reporting & Insights: Produces weekly reports with moderate customization. Begins identifying trends and business drivers, contributing to more strategic, insight-driven discussions.

· Competitive & Market Insights: Leads retail audits and marketplace assessments, integrating findings into category recommendations. Collaborates with cross-functional teams to inform strategy.

· Category & Seasonal Reviews: Executes data-driven reviews using established templates with some customization. Highlights key metrics, identifies assortment gaps, and presents findings with Associate Director support.

· Planogram Management: Supports end-to-end transition and revision planning, from confirming item details to writing planograms. Manages timelines and partners with mentors to ensure accuracy.

· Digital Analysis: Analyzes digital performance using prebuilt templates and tools. Assesses channel behavior and site experience, supporting the digital strategy with actionable insights.

· Trend Research: Assists in identifying macro and micro trends and applies insights to category planning with support from internal resources.

 

Skills, Knowledge, and Abilities

· Excel & PowerPoint Proficiency: Comfortable working in Excel to analyze data, build and modify spreadsheets, use formulas, and explore pivot tables. Able to follow and adapt PowerPoint templates, incorporating visuals like charts and graphs to communicate insights effectively.

· Business Math Acumen: Understands key performance indicators and can interpret numerical data to evaluate business performance and inform decisions.

· Project Prioritization: Capable of managing multiple tasks simultaneously, assessing urgency, and organizing work to meet deadlines.

· Customer-Centric Mindset: Approaches work with a service orientation, focused on building trust, fostering positive relationships, and delivering high-quality support.

· Organizational Strength: Demonstrates strong planning and follow-through to manage complex responsibilities and anticipate business needs proactively.

· Attention to Detail: Maintains accuracy when working with large data sets, ensuring insights are built on reliable and clean data.

· Learning Agility: Eager to learn new tools, technologies, and processes to improve performance and efficiency.

· Communication & Collaboration: Confidently leading or contributing to meetings, listening actively, and identifying opportunities to support the team and business goals.

 

Travel and/or Driving Requirements

· Travel and Driving are not essential duties or functions of this job

 

Job Will Remain Open Until Filled

Responsibilities

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