Manager, Category Advisory - Walmart

JM Smucker Company; Bentonville (AR); Hybrid; USD 110,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

JM Smucker Company in Rogers, AR seeks a Manager, Category Advisory - Walmart to partner with Walmart's merchant team. You will drive category growth through data-driven insights, strategic recommendations, and flawless execution, leading a small advisory team.

You will use syndicated data, POS, and internal tools to deliver actionable plans, optimize planograms, and present findings to stakeholders. Hybrid work, travel up to 15%.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree required.
• 6+ years of Consumer-Packaged Goods experience.
• 2+ years of Walmart Category Advisory experience.
• Experience supervising direct reports and fostering collaboration.
• Experience building relationships with customers/retailers.
• Experience analyzing shopper/consumer-based CPG information.
• Strong analytical skills, problem solving, and storytelling.
• Experience with Scintilla Channel Performance and Shopper data.
• JDA ProSpace software experience.
• Ability to lead and motivate direct reports.
• Excellent organization and written/verbal communication.
• Proficient in leveraging syndicated data.
• Ability to translate insights into actions.
• Strategic mindset to build and execute plans.
• Ability to travel up to 15%.

Responsibilities

• Act as point person for Walmart merchants on category and shopper trends.
• Lead modular build process with optimized planograms and assortment strategies.
• Conduct category reviews and scorecard development using data.
• Assess new product introductions and assortment changes to drive growth.
• Integrate data from multiple sources to uncover trends and recommendations.
• Deliver accurate reporting to Walmart with expert commentary.
• Collaborate cross-functionally with Sales, Marketing, Insights, and R&D.
• Present findings and recommendations to Walmart merchants and stakeholders.
• Stay updated on industry developments and pursue continuous improvement.

Skills

Analytical skills

Storytelling

Leadership

Cross-functional collaboration

Relationship building

Shopper analytics

Data analysis

Syndicated data experience

Travel up to 15%

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Tools

JDA ProSpace

Scintilla

Circana

Excel

PowerPoint

Tableau

Job description

Your Opportunity as the Manager, Category Advisory - Walmart

As a Walmart Category Advisor for JM Smucker, you will serve as a trusted partner to Walmart’s merchant team on a dynamic advisor team, driving category growth through data-driven insights, strategic recommendations, and flawless execution. You will leverage deep expertise in category management, shopper and consumer analytics, and modular planning to deliver actionable solutions that enhance sales, market share, and customer satisfaction. You will have up to two direct reports, on a team of six.

Location: Rogers, AR (JMS Regional Walmart Office)

Work Arrangements: Hybrid - onsite a minimum of 2 days per week

In this role you will:

Category Leadership & Advisory

• Act as point person for Walmart merchants on category, shopper, and consumer trends, providing fact-based, insight-led recommendations
• Lead the modular build process, delivering optimized planograms and assortment strategies that align with Walmart’s objectives
• Conduct category reviews, SWOT analyses, and scorecard development using syndicated and POS data (Circana, Scintilla, Primary/Secondary Research)
• Assess new product introductions, market analyses, and assortment changes to drive category and brand growth

Insights & Analytics

• Integrate data from multiple sources (syndicated, panel, POS, customer insights) to uncover compelling trends and develop actionable recommendations
• Utilize tools such as Scintilla, Excel, PowerPoint, Circana, JDA, and Tableau for analysis and reporting
• Deliver accurate, insightful reporting to Walmart with expert commentary on current performance and future trends

Collaboration & Communication

• Work cross-functionally with internal teams (Sales, Marketing, Insights, R&D) to support buyer strategies and category initiatives
• Participate in account strategic planning processes and collaborate on assortment, space, and merchandising solutions
• Present findings and recommendations confidently to Walmart merchants and internal stakeholders at all levels

Continuous Improvement

• Stay abreast of industry developments and best practices in category management, proactively seeking opportunities to strengthen professional competence
• Adopt a continuous improvement mindset to elevate advisory execution and advocate for resources and technology to provide leading category capabilities

What we are looking for:

Minimum Requirements:

• Bachelor’s degree
• 6+ years of Consumer-Packaged Goods experience
• 2+ years of Walmart Category Advisory experience
• Experience supervising direct reports and fostering collaboration across a team
• Experience building relationships within customers / retailers
• Experience in analysis of shopper / consumer-based CPG information
• Strong analytical skills, problem solving, and storytelling experience
• Scintilla Channel Performance and Shopper experience
• JDA ProSpace software experience
• Ability to lead and motivate direct reports
• Excellent organization and written / verbal communication skills
• Proficient in leveraging syndicated data
• Ability to develop and translate insights into actions
• Strategic mindset to help build and execute effective plans
• Ability to travel up to 15%

Additional skills and experience that we think would make someone successful in this role (not required):

• Master’s degree
• ShelfIQ experience

The Right Place for You

We are bold, kind, strive to do the right thing, we play to win, and we believe in a strong community that thrives together. Our culture is rooted in our Basic Beliefs, and we believe in supporting every employee by meeting their physical, emotional, and financial needs.

Stay connected with us on LinkedIn

We're an equal opportunity employer. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, age, national origin, disability status or protected veteran status.