Retail Strategy Manager Jobs in Chicago, IL (NOW HIRING)

• Become part of a unique entrepreneurial team. Think independently, use your initiative, and take some risks. Entrepreneurship is a powerful force that drives the growth not only of our firm but our clients and people.
• Unlock the power of opportunity. Advance your career in a thriving company with a startup feel. We invest in your professional development every step of the way.
• Work in a values-driven culture. At Simon-Kucher, our vision is to become the world's leading growth specialist. Our values guide the way we do business and communicate our distinctiveness. They sum up what we stand for, influence our culture, and drive how and why we do things.
• Invest in your future. All US and Canadian employees enjoy 401(k) & RRSP benefits with company matching.
• Prioritize your health and well-being. No matter where you live, we offer a competitive suite of health benefits to help keep you and your loved ones safe.
• Enjoy balance and flexible working. Be empowered to do your best work - whether it's from home or in the office.

As a Senior Manager, you will be a vital member of our Consumer consulting team focused on Retail strategy, driving value-based outcomes while contributing to Simon-Kucher's culture and success.

• Lead and manage the delivery of client engagements while elevating the analysis and insights, and infusing client-centric depth for content, expertise, and knowledge to project deliverables.
• Bring knowledge across commercial and go-to-market topics within retail including but not limited to pricing strategy and setting, promotion effectiveness, markdowns and clearance optimization, assortment optimization and white space identification, merchandising and value proposition, consumer segmentation, loyalty program design, and omnichannel strategies.
• Drive project planning and execution by ensuring alignment of project delivery to client needs and objectives, as well as managing project cost structure and margin.
• Lead and guide a large and incredibly talented team of junior consultants to develop innovative and actionable insights and recommendations using data, analytics, and research that deliver impactful recommendations for clients.
• Develop trusted and credible senior-level advisory relationships by delivering high-quality and tailored recommendations that our clients can execute to realize benefits.
• Effectively engage senior client audience at all stages of their commercial growth strategy, including understanding client needs and objectives, and obtaining buy-in for the recommendations, deliverables, and solutions.
• Expand and develop relevant new capabilities, tactics, and tools that our clients need to advance their business goals.
• Identify and engage with prospective clients to understand their needs, priorities, and challenges and in turn expand and grow our commercial growth strategy footprint, offerings, and client base.
• Provide exceptional client service and client-focused communication, even during challenging and unexpected situations.
• Prepare client-ready deliverables and independently present relevant project work-stream findings and recommendation to senior client audience, while proactively responding to and incorporating client feedback.
• Effectively manage multiple engagements and project teams concurrently, including development of project team members by providing coaching, training, and feedback.
• Lead project teams to desired end-goal by defining clear roles and responsibilities, demonstrating strong project management approach and execution cadence, and being the primary point of contact for client teams.
• Create engagement workplans and guide the team through the project activities, including oversight of primary/secondary research, and qualitative plus quantitative analysis to obtain key insights, findings, and takeaways for clients.
• Oversee the work and outputs of fellow team members across multiple engagements of various scales and scopes and provide timely feedback to ensure both project timeline and deliverable quality are getting equally balanced.
• Proactively steer the continued growth and development of Simon-Kucher's Consumer sector, specializing in Retail practice by contributing to priorities (e.g., developing new capabilities, supporting thought leadership articles/research relevant for clients), by identifying and pursuing new business opportunities (e.g., lead generation, new content creation, supporting end-to-end proposal development, and participating in client pitches), and proactively pursuing follow-on opportunities with existing clients.
• Stay abreast of current business and industry trends relevant to our clients' businesses.
• Analyze existing processes and tools and recommend opportunities for continued improvement.
• Coach and develop consultants staffed on projects and be an objective Career Development Advisor (CDA) to junior team members.
• Demonstrate an elevated level of empathy and emotional intelligence when managing conflict and/or communicating change.
• Play an integral role in the recruitment and integration of new consultants with a focus on the Retail industry.
• Be a leader in the firm and contribute to Simon-Kucher's culture and success.

Outstanding drive, determination, and desire to be part of a growing, top tier consulting firm.

• Strong knowledge of and passion for the Retail industry across but not limited to big box retailers, department stores, specialty retail, vertically integrated retail, on-site retail services, at home services, direct-to-consumer ecommerce, and quick serve restaurants.
• Experience with either value creation for private equity clients, franchisee management, or retail operations is a plus.
• An undergraduate degree is required; MS, MA, MBA, or other advanced degree is preferred.
• Minimum 5+ years of experience in a professional services environment, ideally in management consulting, serving the Consumer sector, specifically the Retail industry.
• Proven business consulting expertise in disciplines such as growth strategies, go-to-market strategy, consumer and store segmentation (advanced analytical), assortment optimization (product lifecycle, markdowns and clearance, SKU rationalization), pricing and promotions, value proposition development and marketing strategies, omnichannel management, merchandising effectiveness, loyalty programs, franchisee management (if applicable), and target operating models.
• Strong analytical skills with ability to distill insights/takeaways from large sets of data.
• Effective presentation and communication abilities to succinctly present findings, takeaways, and key recommendations to a senior audience.
• Demonstrated record of solving complex problems, directing teams, managing individuals, and completing challenging projects activities within tight project timelines.
• Record of accomplishment of managing multiple workstreams within an engagement, including work plans, deliverables, budgets and schedules.
• Strong work ethic, highly collaborative, great team-player, and having an exceptional entrepreneurial mindset.
• Highly inclusive and empathetic approach to leadership and team management.
• Strong interpersonal skills with ability to work seamlessly and collaboratively with various internal and external colleagues and stakeholders.
• Demonstrated ability to develop and maintain deep relationships with senior clients.
• Demonstrated record of achievement in managing new and follow-on engagements
• Proven ability to grow and maintain a high-performing consulting team.
• Access to an existing network within the Retail industry in North America, preferably with senior executives within Retail organizations.
• Ability to travel at least 40% of the time.