SR CATEGORY STRATEGY & INNOVATION MANAGER
Kroger Family of Companies, Cincinnati, OH, United States
Lead growth across assigned categories within the Our Brands private label portfolio. Serve as the central business partner for Our Brands category strategy, innovation, and development, driving consumer‑led, breakthrough innovation through a deep understanding of unmet needs and emerging trends. Partner cross‑functionally to guide product development, category strategy, and business planning, ensuring alignment with merchandising priorities and the Customer First Promise. Manage external partners to deliver best‑in‑class results and lead enterprise‑level initiatives spanning multiple categories and brands. Communicate Private Label vision, goals, and budgets, and demonstrate strong expertise in category financials, consumer insights, and the retail marketplace. Demonstrate the company’s core values of respect, honesty, integrity, diversity, inclusion, and safety.
Responsibilities
Drive Our Brands sales, volume and profit by applying knowledge of competitive set, consumer trends, innovation and business needs
Discover new pathways in the form of product ideas that build the Our Brands portfolio with heightened cache, increased perceived value, deepened loyalty and greater advocacy
Partner with Merchandising to build both long- and short-term strategic plans to drive category growth and profitability
Provide input to Our Brands functional teams, such as category strategy managers and branding, to ensure respective plans support business needs
Utilize traditional and non-traditional data sources for competitive and consumer behavior intelligence
Move projects into and through the ideation process to the development process
Shape food knowledge across departments through food, cultural and ethnic, category and product trends; incorporate the information into Our Brands business plans
Supervise and coach direct reports in the performance of their duties; complete performance reviews and provide feedback to direct reports
Provide pre-commercialization assessments to support the further development of incubator ideas and identify critical high pay-off strategies
Must be able to perform the essential functions of this position with or without reasonable accommodation
Qualifications (Minimum)
Bachelors degree in business administration or related field
57 years of related experience
Experience as a category manager, senior category manager, or brand manager
Proven ability to drive sales, volume, and profitability through application of competitive, consumer, innovation, and business insights
Demonstrated experience identifying and developing product concepts that enhance portfolio value, brand equity, loyalty, and advocacy
Strong partnership capability with Merchandising to develop and execute short and longterm category strategies
Experience collaborating with crossfunctional teams (e.g., category strategy, branding, innovation) to ensure alignment with business objectives
Excellent strategic thinking, problemsolving, and decisionmaking skills in fastpaced, ambiguous environments
Strong communication skills, including the ability to present recommendations to leadership
Desired
Advanced degree
Experience leading private label or ownedbrand portfolios within largescale retail or CPG organizations
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Responsibilities
Drive Our Brands sales, volume and profit by applying knowledge of competitive set, consumer trends, innovation and business needs
Discover new pathways in the form of product ideas that build the Our Brands portfolio with heightened cache, increased perceived value, deepened loyalty and greater advocacy
Partner with Merchandising to build both long- and short-term strategic plans to drive category growth and profitability
Provide input to Our Brands functional teams, such as category strategy managers and branding, to ensure respective plans support business needs
Utilize traditional and non-traditional data sources for competitive and consumer behavior intelligence
Move projects into and through the ideation process to the development process
Shape food knowledge across departments through food, cultural and ethnic, category and product trends; incorporate the information into Our Brands business plans
Supervise and coach direct reports in the performance of their duties; complete performance reviews and provide feedback to direct reports
Provide pre-commercialization assessments to support the further development of incubator ideas and identify critical high pay-off strategies
Must be able to perform the essential functions of this position with or without reasonable accommodation
Qualifications (Minimum)
Bachelors degree in business administration or related field
57 years of related experience
Experience as a category manager, senior category manager, or brand manager
Proven ability to drive sales, volume, and profitability through application of competitive, consumer, innovation, and business insights
Demonstrated experience identifying and developing product concepts that enhance portfolio value, brand equity, loyalty, and advocacy
Strong partnership capability with Merchandising to develop and execute short and longterm category strategies
Experience collaborating with crossfunctional teams (e.g., category strategy, branding, innovation) to ensure alignment with business objectives
Excellent strategic thinking, problemsolving, and decisionmaking skills in fastpaced, ambiguous environments
Strong communication skills, including the ability to present recommendations to leadership
Desired
Advanced degree
Experience leading private label or ownedbrand portfolios within largescale retail or CPG organizations
#J-18808-Ljbffr