The Sr. Manager of Assortment Capabilities leads the development and execution of a multi-year strategy for advancing Whole Foods Market's (WFM) assortment planning capabilities and drives adoption across end users to deliver exceptional customer experiences. This leader establishes strategic business direction for capability development that enables continuous improvement in assortment relevancy and accuracy.

This role requires balancing near-term execution with long-term strategic planning across a high-profile set of diverse stakeholders, including Merchandising Teams, Merchandising Learning and Change, Merchandising Presentation, Product Management, and Technology. The successful candidate will take a total-store approach that facilitates solutions across all categories within WFM's assortment.

The ideal candidate demonstrates a growth mindset with relentless focus on delivering results in a complex, dynamic landscape, in-depth knowledge of retail merchandising and supply chain planning, and resilient leadership committed to long-term goals.


Key job responsibilities
• Lead development of multi-year capability roadmap strategy while raising the bar on performance and measurement
• Manage implementation and optimization of software solutions for assortment planning
• Recruit and lead a team of highly proficient domain experts
• Own Operational Planning business cases and financial outcomes
• Deliver measurable KPI improvements for assortment planning across multiple time horizons
• Oversee development and implementation of assortment lifecycle strategies
• Establish and maintain strategic partnerships with third-party vendors and internal tech teams
• Create high-quality data integrity mechanisms and measurement for data inputs and outputs
• Establish business review practices for key stakeholders to track performance KPIs
• Model and reinforce Whole Foods Market values and culture, setting a strong example across the organization
• Influence broad organizational strategic direction and planning
• Plan, estimate, staff, organize and monitor significant task and project activity
• Oversee and advise direct leadership team on project-related issues and assist with overcoming barriers

Required Skills and Competencies
• Lead with store-level, customer-centric mindset to support operational excellence
• Demonstrate exceptional team development practices through performance management and succession planning
• Exemplify change management and agility skills to support new process and team adoption
• Engage with leaders to design, maintain and champion organizational mission, vision and strategy
• Develop deep, credible relationships with senior-level executives, both inside and outside current areas of responsibility
• Engage with internal and external stakeholders to define, clarify and resolve issues related to supply management and performance expectations
• Identify gaps in strategic understanding, formulate resolution recommendations and deliver clear, compelling communication
• Demonstrate nuanced understanding of WFM business, food retail industry and business models of key strategic partners and competitors
• Assess how key functions, processes and operating models impact the business; deliver optimization recommendations
• Connect the dots across markets, customers, partners and programs to identify interdependencies and long-term growth opportunities