Associate Director, Category Strategy & InsightsMCCS

Location: Chicago, IL — Chicago/Aon Center

Salary: $164,200–$205,200 base salary, plus performance-based bonus

Company

hirify.global is a large food and consumer products corporation supporting commercial, retail, and category leadership operations.

What you will do

• Develop customer-specific category roadmaps using space analytics, syndicated and retailer data, shopper insights, consumer research, and market trends.
• Build strategies for assortment, shelving, merchandising, space productivity, e-commerce, click-and-collect, and other omnichannel retail formats.
• Translate complex analyses and retailer feedback into compelling customer-facing stories and actionable recommendations.
• Partner with sales, business unit strategy, supply chain, marketing, analytics, and revenue growth management teams to influence commercial decisions.
• Lead test-and-learn pilots, establish success metrics, measure results, and scale successful retail solutions.
• Lead, coach, and develop category strategy, insights, analytics, space planning, and retail intelligence experts.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in business, marketing, economics, analytics, statistics, consumer behavior, or a related field.
• 8+ years of experience in category strategy, category management, retail analytics, shopper insights, sales strategy, or related commercial functions.
• 3+ years of experience leading and developing high-performing teams.
• Experience synthesizing multiple data sources into actionable recommendations and category roadmaps.
• Strong knowledge of retail, omnichannel commerce, category management, retailer strategies, shopper behavior, space analytics, and category performance metrics.
• Exceptional communication, storytelling, presentation, relationship-building, and stakeholder-influence skills.

Nice to have

• MBA or another advanced degree.
• Experience with national and regional retail customers, customer pilots, retail innovation, or test-and-learn programs.
• Expertise in space optimization, retail merchandising, future-store concepts, and advanced consumer insights.
• Familiarity with Circana/IRI, NielsenIQ, retailer loyalty data, space planning tools, shopper panel data, and advanced analytics platforms.

Culture & Benefits

• Healthcare, prescription drug, dental, vision, screening, and assessment coverage for employees and eligible dependents.
• Paid time off, company holidays, leave of absence, flexible work arrangements, recognition, and training.
• Employee assistance, wellbeing, family support, and learning programs.
• 401k, life insurance, accidental death and dismemberment, and disability coverage.
• Performance-based bonus eligibility and wellbeing resources covering physical, social, emotional, and financial health.