A mutually rewarding experience.

Work. Realize your ambitions. And realize there’s more to being in business than just making a profit. That’s the Mars philosophy. And the opportunity we offer every one of our Associates. An opportunity to take what you do and make it mean more for you, for those around you and for the planet.  What you get here is challenging, interesting work. You get the tools you need to do a great job and you get to have the best possible people on your side to help you do it. And at the same time as getting to find ways to do business better today than we did it yesterday and driving a great career, you also get to build a more enlightened business and drive sustainability.

Because it’s never just about a single person, a single project or a single brand. It’s about how you can grab everything that’s within your reach here and use it to pursue mutual, long-term gain. It’s about having ideas. And ideals. Being prepared to risk failure because the promise of success means we’ll all be a little better off. It’s that mix of integrity and ambition that makes Mars such a special place to work. And why working here is always about more than just a job.

About Mars, Incorporated 

Mars is a family-owned business with more than a century of history making diverse products and offering services for people and the pets people love. With almost $35 billion in sales, the company is a global business that produces some of the world’s best-loved brands: M&M’s®, SNICKERS®, TWIX®, MILKY WAY®, DOVE®, PEDIGREE®, ROYAL CANIN®, WHISKAS®, EXTRA®, ORBIT®, 5™, SKITTLES®, UNCLE BEN’S®, MARS DRINKS and COCOAVIA®. Mars also provides veterinary health services that include BANFIELD® Pet Hospitals, Blue Pearl®, VCA® and Pet Partners™. Headquartered in McLean, VA, Mars operates in more than 80 countries. The Mars Five Principles – Quality, Responsibility, Mutuality, Efficiency and Freedom – inspire its more than 100,000 Associates to create value for all its partners and deliver growth they are proud of every day.

 

Category Leadership Manager (HEB) – San Antonio, TX** or Austin, TX

**preferred location

The Category Leadership Manager for HEB is responsible for providing fact-based, insight-led, and actionable category solutions in order to drive growth for the category, customer, and company.   This category thought-leader will translate consumer and data trends into value-creating business solutions regarding category assortment, merchandising, shelving, pricing and promotion for HEB's everyday front-end, aisle and digital businesses.  Close collaboration with both internal and external partners will be critical to success within this role.

Reporting to Grocery Category Leadership Director, this role is part of the Category Leadership organization

What are we looking for?

• 5+ years of CPG Account and/or Category Management
• 2 years of business analytics leveraging syndicated data resources (i.e. IRI, AC Nielsen, Scan, Panel, Spectra, etc.)
• Highly proficient in MS Office applications (i.e. Excel & PowerPoint)
• Ability to work from a home office based in San Antonio, TX (preferred) or Austin, TX.
• Willingness to travel (up to 10% of time)
• Bachelor’s degree
• Successful completion of drug screen and background check
• Strong analytical experience from situation assessment through solution with tangible results
• Advanced Microsoft Office skills and experience, including “Storytelling” capability within PowerPoint which has compelled customer decision making and action
• Space management tool experience (i.e. JDA)
• Forward-looking, creative and strategic thinking ability
• Knowledge of emerging retail strategy and technology (Omni-channel)
• Advanced interpersonal skills

Nice to Have:

• 3+ years of experience in Category Management
• Experience managing and visualizing large sets of data using cutting edge tools (Alteryx, Data Lake, MS Power BI, Tableau, Teradata, etc.)
• MBA or Advanced Degree

What would be your key responsibilities?

• Create and plan category leadership solutions which will deliver profitable sales growth at HEB
• Develop the knowledge and skills to consistently provide quality category support including:
  • Category Assortment, Merchandising, Shelving, Pricing and Promotional Performance & Recommendations
  • Planogram Analysis and Development
  • Competitive Market Analysis
  • Project Leadership & Support, Including Test & Learn Analytics
  • Ad Hoc and Ongoing Data Management, Reporting and Presentation Building
• Manage and deliver against the responsibilities of "Category Captaincy" designation
• Develop positive, cross-functional relationships with key customer and internal stakeholders, building the trust and credibility which will earn Mars Wrigley a continuous “seat at the table” for any significant decisions regarding our categories at HEB
• Partner closely with the Mars Wrigley Category Strategy team to leverage and activate agreed upon internal category initiatives, including "Perfect Store" execution and other success measures, with detailed follow-through
• Lead in identifying business growth opportunities, assist with necessary research, lead the test & learn process, analyze results and deliver solutions benefiting both the category and our customer.
• Partner in building creative strategies to mitigate category risk as HEB's category selling spaces continue to evolve and the shoppers continue to migrate to digital purchasing.
• Influence Annual Account Business Planning at the customer, through full partnering with sales team, by providing actionable category insights and solutions that support category leadership objectives for customer, company and category
• Evaluate/ monitor all customer category leadership solutions, turn analysis into recommended action and continually improve to be more effective and efficient for category and customer
• Leverage insights and resources through the utilization of a broad range of data sources, market research findings, tools, analyses, and technology to continually bring 
new shopper ideas to customer and company; incorporate in all category solutions for HEB

What can you expect from Mars?

• The opportunity to learn, develop and take charge of your own career.
• An industry competitive salary and benefits package. 
• To be respected and valued.
• The Five Principles at the center of every decision we make
• The opportunity to work cross functionally, add value and impact a better world for generations to come.

 

Mars is an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. If you need assistance or an accommodation during the application process because of a disability, it is available upon request. The company is pleased to provide such assistance, and no applicant will be penalized as a result of such a request.