Sr Mgr, Category Merchant Snacks & Beverage, Whole Foods Market Grocery Team

Provides leadership and oversight to the Category Management / Merchandising function, including strategy development, innovation, definition and execution of marketplace differentiators, key supplier partnerships and team development. Responsible for the financial performance of the Category management / Merchandising function. Accountable for all Category Management / Merchandising strategic and operational decisions, including category management, purchasing, and procurement and retail operations. Oversees team efforts to develop category goals & strategies and product assortments through the lens of our core customer, ensuring a strong mix of national brand product relevance, best-in-class local product relevance, and best-in-class private label product relevance - distinguishing Whole Foods Market from our competition. Responsible for business financial performance. Key job responsibilities o Provides leadership and oversight to Category Management and Merchandising leaders and teams. o Sets the strategic direction of a master category, serving as foundation for all work merchants perform. o Contributes to, oversees and/or leads the design of category layout, category adjacencies and space allocation for both ongoing and new retail operations. o Contributes to financial performance forecasting and overall Category Management / Merchandising strategic planning and priority setting. o Contributes to strategic alignment between category merchants and/or buyers across regions and retail operations. o Owns relationship management and strategic alignment with key supplier partners. o Serves as a driving force for Merchandising evolution, incorporating multiple and diverse stakeholder needs into plans for continued progress. o Drives strategically-focused and data-driven process improvement recommendations to leadership. o Engages with customers, partners and other key external stakeholders to ensure mutual understanding of WFM principles, values, strategies and priorities. o Aligns resources according to strategic objectives. o Actively monitors and manages Merchandising in-season performance, driving issue resolution through team and elevating performance issues as required. o Engages with senior internal stakeholders, including Marketing, Finance and Procurement, to ensure an integrated approach to ongoing operations. o Addresses and resolves critical and/or sensitive customer, operational and other issues. o Ensures ongoing open and informative communication across all Merchandising stakeholders. o Coaches and develops their team. o Builds a pipeline of talent, hires for all roles, develops those in role, and supports Team Member career progression.