{"id":4130342,"url":"https://alion.io/job/panera-bread-manager-category-management","title":"Manager, Category Management","company":{"id":1758449,"name":"Panera Bread","domain":"panerabread.com","url":"https://alion.io/company/panerabread-com","size_band":null,"is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"direct","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"Workday","truth_index":null},"role":"Operations","role_family":"Operations","seniority":"middle","employment_type":"full_time","work_mode":"hybrid","remote_scope":null,"remote_scope_basis":null,"remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":["Newton, United States"],"countries":["US"],"hiring_countries":[],"hiring_countries_total":0,"salary":{"min":104942,"max":125930,"currency":"USD","period":"year","gross":null,"usd_annual":125930},"salary_estimate":null,"experience_years_min":3,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":false,"technologies":[],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-11-06T00:00:00Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-11-06","last_verified_at":"2026-11-12T02:15:33Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":6,"trust":{"level":"ok","repost_count":null,"flags":[],"days_open":6},"description":"Manager, Category ManagementJob Purpose\nThe Manager, Category Management is responsible for driving the growth and performance of their assigned menu category. Serving as the primary owner for one category (e.g., Beverage, Bakery, Salads), this role assists in developing strategies that drive guest relevance, transactions, profitability, and growth.\nThe Director partners closely with Culinary, Marketing, Operations, Supply Chain, Consumer Insights, Finance, Digital, and Data & Analytics to ensure strategy translate into business results. This role is accountable for identifying opportunities that improve category performance and strengthen Panera's competitive position.\nLocation: This position is based in Newton, MA and requires in-office presence three days per week, transitioning to four days per week, Monday through Thursday, in Weston, MA beginning in July 2027.\nDuties & Responsibilities\nThe primary responsibilities of this job include, but are not limited to:\nCategory Strategy & Ownership: Define vision, priorities, and innovation for assigned category. Own the profitability and performance of assigned category, ensuring each category contributes to enterprise growth and objectives. \nBusiness Performance: Monitor and drive performance across sales, transactions using data-driven insights for assigned category. \nInnovation Pipeline: Assist in building business cases and growth plans that support enterprise objectives. Contribute to developing 3-year pipeline, identifying white space opportunities and category expansion opportunities by analyzing market trends, consumer needs, and avenues for business growth. \nPricing & Value: Support pricing and promotional recommendations, in partnership with Finance, to balance guest value and profitability. \nConsumer Insights: Translate guest, competitive, and market insights into actionable category strategies and growth opportunities. \nQualifications (Education & Experience)\nQualifications include:\nBachelor's degree in Marketing, Business Administration, or a related field. \n3-5 years proven experience in marketing strategy, product innovation, campaign management, and cross-functional team collaboration. \nPreference for past experience in restaurant/retail and/or consumer goods industries. \nStrong project management skills with the ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously. \nExcellent communication and interpersonal skills. \nAnalytical mindset with the ability to interpret data and make data-driven decisions. \nCreative thinker with a passion for innovation and continuous improvement. \nWorking Conditions\nRequired travel - as needed \nPosition requires in-office presence consistent with Panera’s established hybrid work expectations. \nPhysical Requirements\nWhile performing this job, the incumbent is regularly required to stand, sit, talk hear & use hands and fingers to operate keyboards \nDirect Reports\nN/A \nEqual Opportunity Employer: Disabled/Veterans\nCompetitive Pay $104,942 - $125,930 annually\nThe actual pay offered will be determined by multiple factors, including but not limited to the candidate’s relevant experience, job-related knowledge, skills, and geographical location. Individual compensation decisions are dependent upon the facts and circumstances of each position and candidate.\nNewton Support Center","description_format":"text","description_chars":3320,"description_truncated":false,"requirements":{"experience_years_min":3,"management_years_min":null,"team_size_min":null,"manages_managers":false,"education":{"level":"bachelor","optional":false},"security_clearance":false,"languages":[]},"benefits":["Growth opportunities","Hybrid work"],"hiring_locations":[{"name":"United States","iso":"US","kind":"country"}],"hiring_excludes":[],"relocation_offered":false,"industries":["Bakery & Pastry","Catering & Food Services"],"lifecycle":[{"event":"open","at":"2026-11-12T02:15:33Z"}],"visa":[],"liveness":{"score":86,"band":"hot","label":"Hiring now","p_open":1,"p_active":0.86,"p_room":1,"age_days":6,"expected_fill_days":26,"reasons":["conf:1","win:early"],"computed_at":"2026-11-12T03:37:50Z"},"pay":{"stated_usd_annual":125930,"is_top_pay":true},"html_url":"https://alion.io/job/panera-bread-manager-category-management","json_url":"https://alion.io/job/panera-bread-manager-category-management.json","meta":{"generated_at":"2026-11-12T03:37:50Z","cache_seconds":300,"methodology":"https://alion.io/methodology","terms":"https://alion.io/terms","contact":"https://alion.io/contact","api":"https://alion.io/developers","about":"Alion is a live layer of people, companies and AI agents: who they are, whether they are real and active right now, what they do and how to work with them, readable by people and by agents and paid per call.","catalog":"https://alion.io/catalog.json","usage":{"tier":"crawler_verified","counted_by":"address","units_charged":1,"used_today":7901,"day_limit":null,"remaining_today":null,"minute_limit":300,"resets_at":"2026-11-13T00:00:00Z"}},"offers":[{"id":"company.slices","title":"One company in depth, by slice","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.1,"usd":0.01,"plus_per_slice":{"credits":0.05,"usd":0.005}},"unit":"per company, plus each slice with data","note":"the employer in depth","call":{"mcp_tool":"get_company","arguments":{"id":1758449},"rest":"https://alion.io/mcp/rest/get_company?id=1758449"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.slices&for=job%2Fpanera-bread-manager-category-management"},{"id":"market.stats","title":"A market slice: pay, demand and time to fill","status":"live","price":{"credits":2,"usd":0.2},"unit":"per slice","note":"pay, demand and time to fill for this role and place","call":{"mcp_tool":"market_stats"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=market.stats&for=job%2Fpanera-bread-manager-category-management"},{"id":"job.search","title":"Open jobs by role, technology, place, pay and visa","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.1,"usd":0.01},"unit":"per posting in a list","note":"similar open postings","call":{"mcp_tool":"search_jobs"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=job.search&for=job%2Fpanera-bread-manager-category-management"},{"id":"company.verify","title":"Is this company real and active right now","status":"pilot","price":null,"unit":"per company","request":{"url":"https://alion.io/catalog/request","method":"POST","body":"{\"offer\": \"company.verify\", \"for\": \"job/panera-bread-manager-category-management\", \"note\": \"what you need it for\"}"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.verify&for=job%2Fpanera-bread-manager-category-management"}],"agent":{"mcp":"https://alion.io/mcp/jobs","mcp_open":"https://alion.io/mcp/open","next":[{"tool":"get_job","arguments":{"id":4130342}},{"tool":"search_jobs","arguments":{"company":"panerabread.com","detail":"compact"}},{"tool":"match_people","arguments":{"job_id":4130342},"note":"people open to offers who fit this vacancy"}],"note":"The same data through MCP tools: https://alion.io/mcp/open needs no sign-in (compact searches, postings, people); https://alion.io/mcp with an Alion account has everything. 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