Sr. Category Manager

Position Summary

Senior Category Managers serve as product experts for School Reading Events (Book Fairs and Book Clubs), leading the strategic development, curation, and merchandising of compelling book assortments across the Scholastic Dollars Catalog and Classroom Collections businesses. This role drives category sales, profitability, inventory productivity, and customer redemption while advancing Scholastic’s mission to encourage children around the world to read and grow.

Senior Category Managers are responsible for developing and executing category strategies, acquiring relevant and engaging titles, managing publisher relationships, and partnering cross-functionally to optimize product performance and customer experience across redemption programs.

The ideal candidate is a strategic, analytically driven category leader with a strong understanding of the book market, a passion for reading and education, and the ability to translate customer insights and business objectives into compelling assortments that drive growth.

Key Responsibilities

Category Strategy & Financial Performance

·         Manage high-volume book categories within the Scholastic Dollars Catalog and Classroom Collections businesses, driving performance against sales, profitability, and inventory productivity goals.

·    Develop and execute strategic category plans aligned with business objectives, identifying opportunities to maximize revenue, improve profitability, and increase customer redemption.

·         Establish category priorities and evaluate performance to inform business decisions, identify growth opportunities, and drive continuous improvement.

Product Assortment & Acquisition

·         Lead the development of compelling, customer-focused product assortments, pricing strategies, and product presentation plans across customer redemption programs.

·         Read, review, evaluate, select, and acquire relevant, high-performing titles and products for redemption programs, balancing customer needs, market trends, and financial objectives.

·         Analyze product sales, market research, and customer insights to inform product selections, identify emerging trends, uncover new categories, and capitalize on opportunities for incremental growth.

·         Partner with Scholastic Trade and Book Fair Category Management teams to maximize title ordering efficiencies and identify opportunities for cross-divisional collaboration.

Vendor & Publisher Relationships

·         Build and maintain strategic relationships with publishers and vendors to support the growth and success of the Scholastic Dollars Catalog and Classroom Collections businesses.

·         Negotiate product costs, vendor terms, and promotional support to improve margins and achieve category financial objectives.

·         Evaluate tariff regulations and assess their impact on product costs, sourcing decisions, and profitability.

Inventory Planning & Financial Optimization

·         Partner with the Inventory Planning team to develop inventory strategies aligned with sales trends, inventory positions, and financial goals.

·         Provide item-level demand forecasts and purchasing recommendations to project, quantify, and procure inventory needed to support sales demand while maintaining alignment with established open-to-buy plans.

·         Monitor inventory productivity and sell-through, identifying opportunities to optimize inventory investment and mitigate excess inventory risk.

Marketing, Merchandising & Sales Enablement

·         Collaborate with Product Marketing and cross-functional partners to develop and execute promotional strategies for the book category that drive customer engagement, redemption, and revenue growth.

·         Lead catalog merchandising strategy for the book category, partnering with Marketing to ensure accurate, compelling, and effective execution.

·         Develop product merchandising plans and provide strategic direction to the E-Commerce team and E-Commerce Specialist to ensure effective online product presentation and alignment with category priorities.

·         Support sales team product training and education to build product knowledge, strengthen assortment understanding, and generate enthusiasm and support for category initiatives.

Cross-Functional Collaboration & Industry Engagement

·         Represent the Scholastic Dollars team at cross-divisional meetings, trade shows, and publishing conferences.

·         Build relationships across Scholastic divisions and industry partners to identify emerging trends, share insights, and support business growth.

·         Collaborate with internal stakeholders to align category strategies, strengthen execution, and maximize business opportunities.

Process Improvement & Team Development

·         Continuously evaluate category management tools, systems, and processes, recommending and implementing improvements that enhance clarity, efficiency, productivity, and decision-making.

·         Manage, mentor, and develop Assistant Category Manager(s), providing coaching, guidance, and professional development opportunities to strengthen team capabilities and support career progression.

 Category Management & Business Acumen

• Minimum of 5 years of experience in category management or a comparable role.
• Demonstrated success identifying, analyzing, and leveraging category trends to inform product procurement and development strategies that drive sales and profitability.
• Proven ability to identify business opportunities, develop and implement strategic initiatives, and evaluate performance against business objectives.

• Experience in publishing, children's toys, children's media, or educational products preferred.

• A genuine love of reading, a passion for education, and a strong commitment to Scholastic’s mission to “Encourage children around the world to read and grow” are essential to success in this role.

Leadership & Project Management

• Demonstrated ability to lead and manage people, projects, and cross-functional initiatives.
• Strong problem-solving skills, sound judgment, and the ability to work independently to drive results.

Communication & Organizational Skills

• Excellent written and verbal communication, organizational, and time management skills.
• Strong attention to detail, with the ability to manage multiple priorities, adapt to changing business needs, and consistently meet deadlines.

Adaptability & Technical Proficiency

• Self-motivated and adaptable, with the ability to thrive in a fast-paced, dynamic environment, whether working remotely or in an office setting.
• High level of proficiency in Microsoft Office applications, including Excel, Word, Outlook, and PowerPoint, as well as Google Workspace applications.

Preferred Skills

• Experience in publishing, children’s toys, children’s media, or educational products preferred.

Success Profile

• Strategic, commercially minded category leader with a strong understanding of product assortment, financial performance, and customer needs.
• Passionate about reading, education, and Scholastic’s mission to “Encourage children around the world to read and grow.”
• Analytical and data-driven, with the ability to translate sales trends, market insights, and customer needs into actionable category strategies.
• Strong relationship builder with the ability to collaborate effectively across internal teams, publishers, vendors, and industry partners.
• Proactive problem solver with a strong sense of ownership and accountability for business results.
• Effective people leader who coaches, mentors, and develops team members while fostering collaboration and continuous improvement.
• Adaptable and results-oriented, with the ability to manage competing priorities and drive execution in a dynamic business environment.

The salary range for this position $100,000 to $112,000 annually.

Scholastic is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Our policy is clear: there shall be no discrimination on the basis of race, religion, color, sex, pregnancy, national origin, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, non-disqualifying physical or mental disability, or status as a disabled veteran or Vietnam veteran. Those factors shall not influence the determination of qualifications for a job or other opportunity within the company. Further, all personnel actions (such as compensation, tuition aid, benefits, transfers, promotions, and dismissals, company-sponsored training, social and recreational programs) shall be administered without discrimination.

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