Strategic Growth Manager, Cross Category Programs, North America

ACCO Brands Corporation; Kettering (OH); Hybrid; USD 120,000 - 170,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Comprehensive medical plans

401(k) match

Parental leave

Life and disability benefits

Employee assistance programs

Job summary

ACCO Brands Corporation is seeking a Strategic Growth Manager for cross-category programs in North America. You will lead insights-driven product development, translate shopper insights into differentiated concepts, and partner across functions to drive growth for ACCO Brands and its retail partners.

The role emphasizes product development, commercial acumen, and the ability to manage large cross-functional initiatives in a matrixed organization.

Qualifications

• Experience translating consumer insights into product concepts.
• Ability to develop assortments and roadmaps across categories.

Responsibilities

• Own cross-category product initiatives from opportunity identification to launch and optimization.
• Translate consumer, shopper, and market insights into product strategies and roadmaps.
• Define product proposition, target consumer, features, pricing, and channel mix.
• Collaborate with multiple internal teams to move concepts through development and commercialization.
• Develop program-level business cases with sales, finance, and leadership.
• Establish launch objectives and monitor performance to identify growth opportunities.
• Present strategic recommendations to align stakeholders across levels.

Skills

Product management

Cross-category

Retail strategy

Insights interpretation

Education

Bachelor's degree in Marketing

Job description

Strategic Growth Manager, Cross Category Programs, North America

A company with a pioneering past and a purposeful future.

At ACCO Brands, we are united by a common purpose, to empower our consumers to feel good when they work, learn, and play. For more than a century we have developed and nurtured brands that enable people to work with more productivity, learn with more confidence, and play with more enjoyment. We are passionate about a winning culture where we grow together, driving business, professional growth, and success. We invite you to be part of a team that is grounded in a history of category-leading brands and products and focused on positioning our company for the future.

Job Summary

ACCO Brands is seeking a Strategic Growth Manager to lead insights-driven product development for delivery of large-scale, cross-category retail programs across the North America Consumer and Office Products business. Reporting to the Vice President of Marketing, this role translates consumer and shopper insights, retail trends, customer strategies, and marketplace opportunities, and translates them into differentiated product concepts, assortments and commercially viable growth platforms for ACCO Brands and its retail partners.

This is a product role first. The manager will own opportunities from insights and concept development through product definition, business case, stage-gate decisions and commercialization. The ideal candidate combines strong product-development depth with retail and commercial acumen, effectively bridging unmet consumer needs and category opportunities to programs that win with retail partners and shoppers in-store and online.

Responsibilities

• Own cross-category product initiatives from opportunity identification and concept development through product definition, commercialization, launch, and post-launch optimization.
• Translate consumer, shopper, customer, category, competitive, and trend insights into clear product strategies, innovation briefs, product concepts, and prioritized development roadmaps that support business and brand objectives.
• Define the product proposition, target consumer, use occasion, feature set, design requirements, quality expectations, price architecture, assortment role, and channel strategy for each program.
• Partner with Creative, Engineering, Sourcing, Quality, Finance, Supply Chain, Operations, Sales, Insights, Brand, Creative and Content, and Merchandising to move concepts through the product-development and commercialization process.
• Manage the product-development critical path, including decision gates, specifications, samples, costing, testing, packaging, supply readiness, launch deliverables, risks, dependencies, and issue resolution.
• Develop assortment strategies that connect individual products into cohesive cross-category solutions tailored to priority retailers, channels, shopper missions, price points, and merchandising environments.
• Partner with Brand, Sales, Creative and Content, and Merchandising to convert product platforms into compelling retailer programs, including customer-specific assortments, exclusives, bundles, seasonal or event-based solutions, merchandising concepts, packaging direction, content needs, and in-store and online activation.
• Use syndicated and consumption data, consumer and customer insights, and business performance indicators to develop recommendations and support decisions.
• Build program-level business cases and performance expectations, including sales, margin, share, and profitability with Finance and Sales.
• Establish launch objectives and success measures; monitor sales, margin, share, distribution, inventory, retailer feedback, and consumer response to identify corrective actions and future growth opportunities.
• Present clear, persuasive strategies and recommendations that build alignment and influence decisions at multiple levels.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Marketing, Business, or a related field preferred.
• 8-11 years of experience in product management, product development, innovation, or related consumer products or light durables role; direct ownership of physical product development is strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated experience taking physical consumer products from insights and concept through specifications, costing, development, commercialization, launch and performance management.
• Experience developing consumer-led product strategies, innovation pipelines, product briefs, assortments, and roadmaps across multiple categories, brands, channels, or price tiers.
• Strong understanding of mass retail, ecommerce, omnichannel, and/or specialty retail environments.
• Experience using consumer, shopper, market, competitive, and business performance data to shape recommendations.
• Strong commercial and financial acumen, including experience developing business cases and managing tradeoffs related to cost, margin, investment, volume, timing, and risk.
• Demonstrated success leading large-scale, cross-functional initiatives in a matrixed organization and influencing without direct authority.
• Experience developing point-of-sale concepts, in-store and online communications, and customer-facing program materials.
• Strong commercial acumen, strategic thinking, organization, and ability to turn complexity into executable plans.
• Excellent communication and presentation skills, with the ability to persuade stakeholders and drive decisions.
• Ability to work independently in fast-moving, ambiguous environments and make informed decisions.
• Experience in sourcing, vendor management, sales, channel management, and/or brand management is a strong plus.
• Ability to work a hybrid schedule with two days per week in the office.
• Willingness to travel up to 25%, including domestic and international travel for program needs, customer meetings, trade shows, and other business requirements.

#LI-Hybrid

About Us:

You know our brands. You love our brands. You just may not know they are ours.

If you have touched a PowerA® gaming controller, a Five Star® notebook, a Swingline® stapler, a Quartet® dry erase board, or a Kensington® computer mouse, you have touched part of ACCO Brands Corporation. With annual revenues of more than $1.5 Billion, ACCO Brands (NYSE: ACCO) designs, markets, manufactures, and sells branded academic, consumer, and business products globally. The power of our brands, our unmatched global customer reach, and our strategic market strengths put us in a position to achieve global leadership and growth. We're proud of our long history of industry leadership and innovation and are focused on delivering exceptional value to our customers by providing unique, cutting-edge, branded products.

What we offer:

• Comprehensive medical, prescription, dental, and vision plans
• 4% 401(k) match with immediate eligibility and vesting
• Competitive time off, available from the first day of employment
• Parental leave
• Company-paid life and disability benefits
• Critical illness, accident, and long-term care insurance options
• Employee and family assistance programs

Growing together is how we win.

With trusted brands, strong leadership, and a clear purpose, you’ll find opportunities to grow in your career, contribute to meaningful work, and be a part of a culture that values creativity and putting our consumers and customers first.

ACCO Brands has developed and maintains a written Affitative Action Program (“AAP”) for protected veterans and individuals with disabilities. A copy can be requested from Human Resources. We are committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants.

Equal Opportunity Employer

ACCO Brands is an equal opportunity employer, and all qualified candidates will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, national origin, physical or mental disability, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. The company strives to create a winning culture with a leadership promise to provide equal access and opportunity for all to grow, succeed, and contribute to their full potential.

AODA

Accommodation for applicants with disabilities will be provided in all parts of the recruiting process as required under the ACCO Brands Canada AODA policy. Applicants are asked to make their needs known in advance.