Category Management Analyst

CATEGORY MANAGEMENT ANALYST

Summary:

As a Category Management Analyst at Rust-Oleum, you will play a key role in driving strategic merchandising initiatives with the Home Center accounts - Home Depot, Lowe’s, and Menard’s. Your primary focus will be on optimizing planograms to enhance product visibility, customer experience, and sales performance across Home Depot stores

Key Responsibilities:

• Customer Business Planning:
• Assist in the development and execution of customer business plans
• Integrate data from multiple sources to generate actionable insights and recommendations that support category and team initiatives, including new product introductions, pricing analyses, seasonal reviews and promotional planning.
• Build and maintain planograms using Blue Yonder Space Planning software.
• Align planograms with Home Depot’s merchandising strategy and Rust-Oleum’s product assortment.
• Ensure compliance with visual merchandising standards and safety guidelines.
• Analyze planogram performance using sales, inventory, and profitability metrics.
• Recommend improvements to maximize shelf productivity and customer engagement.
• Collaborate with Home Depot’s merchandising and space planning teams to refine category layouts.
• Partner with Rust-Oleum’s sales, marketing, and supply chain teams to support category initiatives.
• Planogram Development & Execution:
• Category Strategy & Optimization:
• Cross-Functional Collaboration:
• Serve as a liaison between Rust-Oleum and Home Depot to ensure alignment on merchandising goals.
• Participate in line reviews, store walks, and innovation center setups.
• Reporting & Insights:
  • Provide actionable insights through data analysis and visualization.
  • Track planogram execution and performance across store clusters.
  • Support promotional planning and seasonal resets with optimized layout

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Marketing, or a related field.
• 2+ years of experience in category management, space planning, or retail analytics.
• Proficiency in Blue Yonder Space Planning and Microsoft Excel; experience with Power BI or Tableau is a plus.
• Strong analytical, communication, and project management skills.
• Experience working with or supporting Home Depot is highly preferred.

Salary Target Range: $65,000 - $70,000, bonus eligible 

From big benefits to small, we take care of our associates!  After 30 days of employment, you will be eligible for a benefits package that includes medical, dental, life, disability and business travel insurance, flexible spending accounts, EAP, stock purchases and vacation/sick days/parental leave. 

We also offer a 401(k) plan after three months of employment. Associates are vested in the RPM Pension plan after completing five years of service.  Rust-Oleum offers 9 paid holidays and one floating holiday per year.  You are also eligible to earn three weeks of vacation on an annualized basis.

Rust-Oleum is an equal opportunity employer. Employment selection and related decisions are made without regard to sex, race, age, disability, religion, national origin, color, or any other protected class.