Associate Director, Category Strategy & InsightsMCCS

Overview

Associate Director, Customer Category Strategy serves as a strategic leader connecting customer teams, category insights, retailer intelligence, and the broader commercial organization. Reporting to the Vice President of Customer Strategy & Retail Intelligence, this leader is responsible for transforming data, shopper insights, omnichannel trends, retailer feedback, and market intelligence into actionable category roadmaps that support category performance across physical and digital retail environments.

The role combines local-level space analytics, category performance data, consumer and shopper insights, retailer information, and macro and micro market trends to identify opportunities and develop compelling customer‑specific stories. As a leader of a team of subject matter experts aligned to a business unit, the Associate Director will help shape category roadmaps, influence retailer decision‑making, and uncover opportunities through innovation, collaboration, and disciplined execution.

This individual serves as a strategic category expert both internally and externally, partnering closely with Business Unit Sales & Strategy (BUSS) teams to provide retailer, category, and space insights that inform commercial decision‑making. The role ensures category recommendations are grounded in retailer realities, future retail trends, and evolving shopper behaviors while advancing long‑term category leadership.

The Associate Director will lead efforts to identify emerging retail opportunities, drive space and merchandising strategies, evaluate evolving omnichannel retail models, and develop recommendations that position the organization and its customers for success in the future retail environment.

• Develop and deliver customer‑specific category roadmaps that support category performance and long‑term retailer and business objectives.
• Integrate multiple data sources—including space analytics, syndicated data, retailer data, shopper insights, consumer research, and market trends—to identify opportunities and develop actionable recommendations.
• Translate complex analyses into compelling customer‑facing stories that influence retailer decisions and strengthen category leadership.
• Build strategic recommendations focused on assortment, shelving, merchandising, space productivity, omnichannel execution, and the future evolution of the retail environment.
• Identify category opportunities at national, regional, and local market levels through advanced analytics, retailer insights, and changing consumer behaviors.
• Leverage retailer strategies, category trends, and market intelligence to develop forward‑looking category roadmaps aligned to customer and business priorities.

• Lead the development of omnichannel category roadmaps that connect physical retail, e‑commerce, click‑and‑collect, digital merchandising, and emerging retail formats.
• Evaluate changing shopper behaviors, channel dynamics, and retailer strategies to ensure category recommendations remain relevant across all points of purchase.
• Partner with customer teams to identify opportunities that improve category performance through optimized space, merchandising, and omnichannel execution.
• Assess the impact of evolving retail models, store formats, digital capabilities, and emerging technologies to identify opportunities for category leadership and future store development.
• Champion thought leadership around the future of retail, helping customers and internal teams understand how category strategies must evolve across physical and digital environments.
• Incorporate emerging retail trends, technology, and shopper behaviors into category roadmaps and strategic recommendations.

• Partner closely with Customer Teams and Business Unit Sales & Strategy (BUSS) teams to develop retailer‑specific category strategies aligned with customer objectives.
• Serve as the category, retailer, and space strategy subject‑matter expert for assigned business units and customer teams.
• Provide category, retailer, and space insights that support…