Manager, Category Management

The Manager, Category Management will drive the business through the lens of our categories and products. This role will evaluate performance and identify opportunities for innovation, renovation, and deletion within current categories/products. In addition, this role will identify white space opportunities for new category and product innovation. This role reports to Sr. Director, Category Management.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Work within the Category Management Team to define and refine short and long-term menu strategies in order to meet brand and business objectives
• Partner with the Consumer Insights and Brand Analytics teams to gather information to understand current customer and growth target needs, market trends, competitive landscape, product screener results, and positioning and product testing to develop recommendations based on prioritized areas of focus
• Analyze ongoing performance of the core menu across channels (at the restaurant and in digital channels) to identify opportunities to optimize
• Partner with the Culinary team to develop, optimize and qualify new core and limited time items ; including cross-functional teams such as Operations, Analytics, Supply Chain, Training, and Insights, and Marketing
• Partner with cross-functional teams, including Brand Experience and Commercial Group, on pricing, promotion, calendar needs, and positioning recommendations across channels
• Evaluate, test, and launch product and category results and develop recommendations on path forward for brand and franchisee alignment

Requirements:

• 4 year degree in business administration, Marketing, Management or another related field
• 5+ Years of Experience working in brand strategy or category management; experience in foodservice a plus
• Ability to think strategically to inform and inspire big ideas
• Innate curiosity to derive consumer and business insights
• Process strong business acumen and leadership skills.
• Excellent communication and presentation skills, especially the ability to explain difficult concepts and insights in applicable business terms. Strong ability to summarize insights into PowerPoint presentations in clear and understandable calls to action.
• Ability to collaborate and motivate across the operations, supply chain, field, and marketing teams.
• Self-starter with the ability to project manage and handle multiple assignments simultaneously and meet all desired deadlines.
• Strong leadership, sales support, project management and training skills.
• Understanding of how to take products or programs through a development and testing process.

• Effective problem-solving skills and ability to listen and translate details attentively.

Inspire Brands is a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 Arby's, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin', Jimmy John's, and SONIC restaurants worldwide.

We're made up of some of the world's most iconic restaurant brands, but we're much more than just a restaurant company. We're a team of hundreds of thousands who individually and collectively are changing the way people eat, drink, and gather around the table. We know that food is much more than a staple-it's an experience. At Inspire, that's our purpose: to ignite and nourish flavorful experiences.