Customer Insights Manager

**The Opportunity**: The Customer Insights Manager is responsible for working with the Walmart and Metro customer business teams to bring CAP (Customer Alignment Plans) and Marketing priorities to fruition, while proactively bringing fact based, market relevant solutions and insights to both the CBT and the customer to drive strategic category solutions.

The key relationship accountabilities are to:

- Walmart and Metro Customer Business Teams (CBTs) as part of the CBT Management Team, and working with the CBDM’s, Director and VP/GM to manage priorities.
- Client Merchandising team, with a key focus to build strategic plans and priorities (a defined work plan).
- The Customer Insights team, sharing best practices and category insights from CIM to CIM and within the Vendor Advisor team.

**Snapshot of a Day-in-the-Life**:

- Retailer driven category reviews, (with alignment from the client merchandising team to what categories will be reviewed) that integrate POS, syndicated market and consumer data, resulting in the establishment of strategies for assortment, pricing, promotion & shelving that reflect the retailer’s and Maple Leaf’s strategies.
- Manage the tracking, communication and follow-up with the CBT of strategic business goals including, Joint Business Planning targets, Renovation Scorecards and innovation.
- Analyzing shopper and consumer data to evaluate the performance of Maple Leaf brands within a category, understanding what elements of the marketing mix (pricing, promotion, assortment, shelving, competition) are driving results, with a perspective provided as to what is working well in the market and represents opportunities for the CBT.
- Creating fact based, comprehensive and compelling stories that provide solutions for opportunities uncovered by their own periodic reviews, or reviews led by Finance or Customer Business Teams.
- As a broader member of the Customer Business Team, this individual will be engaged in building relationships with key customer contacts, where they will be viewed as a category expert.
- Internal best practice sharing from CIM to CIM and within the Vendor Advisor team.
- Monthly, quarterly, and annual analysis of customer specific data to identify performance opportunities, and to recommend solutions to close gaps.
- Prepare a work plan with identified strategic projects that is built with the customer.
- Build category plans for priority categories aligned with the retailer’s strategy and Maple Leaf’s brand strategy, identifying category role, optimal assortment, shelving, pricing and promotion.
- Prepare selling presentations that advance our brand performance with retailers, highlighting opportunities and specific recommendations.
- Deliver category insights that explain current performance or the impact of tactics implemented to deliver targets.
- Ongoing evaluation of the category within the retailer that identifies opportunities for our brands.
- Work collaboratively with Customer Business Team, marketing, customer insights / category development, and shopper marketing to create solutions to solve business issues or realize opportunities.
- Share best practices across BU’s and team.

**What You’ll Bring**:

- Category Management / Vendor Advisor experience with a retailer
- Trade Marketing experience to align customer strategy to future company innovation
- Selling story creation and selling across categories / retailers
- Shopper Research implementation with Agencies to gain retail advantage
- Project management with internal and external resources at multiple levels
- Strong Shelving understanding via Vendor Advisor or Category management background
- Analytical Skills and selling with POS, Shipment, Markettrack, Panel and Qualitative data
- Shopper Research Methodology understanding
- Excellent leadership, collaboration, and communication skills

**What We Offer at Maple Leaf Foods**:

- Being part of a high-performance, people-focused company that has an inspiring and unique vision to become the most sustainable protein company on earth, and a deep commitment to sustainable protein across North America.
- An inclusive company culture and a work environment that keeps our people safe, rewards excellence, and empowers everyone to learn and contribute their best.
- A hybrid work model that embraces remote work for eligible roles, helping team members achieve work-life balance—combining the best of both spending time working remotely, benefitting from focus time, and purposeful collaboration in the office setting.
- Competitive Health and Wellness benefits that offer flexibility to meet your individual or family needs, including programs focused on improving mental health and wellbeing. These benefits start on your first day of employment.
- Defined Contribution Pension Plan with company matching that starts on your first day of employment.
- Learning and development opportunities, including workshops, ‘speaker series’ events, and resource