Category Manager (Tempo)

Founded in 2013, Home Chef is the leading meal solutions company with both a retail and online presence. Available online at homechef.com and in retail at more than 2,100 Kroger grocery stores, Home Chef is committed to inspiring and enabling more people to cook simple, delicious meals, no matter how busy they are. In 2023, Home Chef introduced a new brand, Tempo ! Tempo features a rotating selection of ready-to-heat meals delivered directly to your door. These meals are better-for-you versions of familiar favorites, designed to save you time and reduce stress while maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Our Tempo menu includes options that are protein-packed, fiber-rich, calorie and carb conscious, keto-friendly, and dietitian-approved. Similar to our recipes, we recognize that variety is the spice of life, and therefore, our employees also bring their uniqueness and color to our fantastic team. We’re eager to work with humble team players and pragmatic next-level thinkers to innovate on Home Chef’s offerings. The Category Manager will own the end-to-end strategy and execution of the Tempo Protein category, balancing customer experience, supply continuity, product innovation, and financial performance. This role serves as the primary business owner for the category, partnering cross-functionally to identify opportunities, solve complex problems, and deliver results in a fast-paced, highly visible environment. This role is best suited for someone who enjoys building processes where they don't yet exist, thrives in a rapidly changing environment, and views ambiguity as an opportunity rather than an obstacle. Detailed Responsibilities Develop and maintain category strategy, in service of company-wide goals Own the identification, evaluation, and choice of suppliers and SKUs for the category Coordinate, negotiate, and manage RFPs with both new and current suppliers Build strategic supplier partnerships that foster innovation, improve performance, reduce cost, and strengthen long-term supply continuity Conduct supply market analysis and collect supplier intelligence to drive sourcing process Work closely with culinary team to identify new ingredient needs and test new suppliers Coordinate with Cross Functional Partners to ensure all new suppliers meet Home Chef guidelines and expectations Act as point on highly visible new protein A/B and Market tests Partner with legal to negotiate contract terms with key supplier partners and ensure terms + conditions of those contracts are managed and met Work with Procurement Operations, Warehouse and site teams to improve supply chain performance Collaborate with local sites and supplier partners to problem solve regular supply disruptions and secure product in time for weekly meal production Own category performance, proactively monitoring key metrics including cost, quality, supply continuity, customer feedback, inventory health, and supplier performance. Attend industry conferences to identify new trends, suppliers and/or ingredients Identify, prioritize, and commercialize new product opportunities that support customer experience, operational efficiency, and financial goals This position requires 10% travel Qualifications The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability needed for this role. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, ability and/or other characteristics needed for this role. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities. 5+ years of procurement and sourcing experience (food category-related preferred) Background in food and beverage industry highly preferred Executive-level succinct communication, both verbal and written; discernment when delivering updates Strong data and numerical orientation; baseline Excel/GSheet knowledge (index/match, pivot tables, gut-checking data) Strong analytical mindset…