Purpose

As the primary contact for merchandising systems, the Systems Assistant Manager is responsible for how the systems are utilized and further developed to achieve both tactical and strategic objectives throughout North America. As the functional expert of our systems, it is the responsibility of the Systems Assistant Manager to have a thorough understanding of the merchandising systems, business processes, how the system applies to business milestones, and how to leverage and enhance the systems to meet business requirements.

Key Accountabilities

• Manage systems that enable sell-in processes from ranging to forecasting
  • Act as administrator of specific systems; M-3, Scrappy, PDS/Stibo, RAD, etc.
  • First point of contact to troubleshoot systems and errors for system consumers
  • Collect business needs, submit detailed enhancement specifications, and determine priorities for IT and/or external business partners
  • Create and manage testing plan to incorporate system consumers, timelines, and feedback methodologies
  • Determine best practices and ensure adherence by the system consumers
  • Lead system consumer training sessions both in person and online
  • Primary contact and advocate for system consumers and key stakeholders to IT
  • Create business process documentation for IT and system consumers
  • Utilize both system and external data to develop reporting suite for system consumers
• Manage relationship with external vendors or IT counterparts to deliver system enhancements on time and within budget constraints, and to ensure quality control of releases
• Critical thinking: consider market issues from a business perspective and develop/implement solutions with cross-functional partners
• Analyze the quality of data input and provide coaching to system consumers to improve data accuracy
• Create reports to analyze and share data and assist system consumers in interpreting and utilizing the reports effectively
• Maintain audit policies, perform audits and coordinate across sales orgs and user groups to ensure adherence to policies

Knowledge Skills and Abilities:

• Strong technical mind/skillset with a desire to get closer to the Sporting Goods business
• Excellent interpersonal skills; be able to work successfully both independently and cross-functionally with system consumers and stakeholders and translate their business needs to IT and software developers
• Self-starter: learn new complex tools and processes both quickly and resourcefully
• Problem solver: natural curiosity, desire to define problems, establish facts, analyze root cause(s), draw valid conclusions and propose viable business solutions
• Ability to be detail oriented and manage multiple priorities to accomplish assignments simultaneously under tight timelines with strong attention to detail: ability to multi-task and prioritize in a fast-paced environment
• Team player with an ability to think cross functionally and develop innovative solutions within an entrepreneurial environment
• Excellent working knowledge of Microsoft Office (Access, Excel Word, Outlook, and PowerPoint) and familiarity with data visualization and tools
• Microsoft SQL experience with the ability to review SQL language queries and the ability to generate queries ad-hoc
• Ability to think cross functionally and develop innovative solutions within an entrepreneurial environment
• Understanding in fundamental database design and development, ability to gather data from multiple sources and manipulate the data to develop demand-driven and action-based reporting and analysis
• Ability to effectively present information and respond to questions from Assistant Managers, stakeholders, cross functional business leaders and peers

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s Degree, four-year college or university degree preferred; or relevant work experience (equivalent combination of education and/or experience may be substituted for degree)
• Minimum of 2 years’ experience with merchandising or product management systems
• Previous experience working with an Apparel/Footwear company preferred.
• SQL experience is a plus.