Category Manager Senior

Why Work for Park Lawn Corporation?

Service

• At every level, our dedicated team members display a strong work ethic and commitment to our core values, respect for the family, the profession, and the individual.
• Work with leading experts in the funeral and cemetery profession.

Benefits

• Financial assistance programs encouraging employees through education and development in industry related subjects.
• Robust Health and Welfare Plans, and savings account options, designed to support your personal needs, enhance well-being and help navigate life's challenges.
• Rich 401k and Roth Retirement Plan options available for both Full Time and Part Time employees along with a Company Match.
• Variety of Vacation, Personal Days and Sick Days based on your role emphasizing the importance of physical and emotional replenishment for our team.
• Employee Discounts on services, merchandise, and property to help our team members in their time of need.

Culture

• We value honesty, courage, integrity, ethical behavior and the development of personal growth.
• We are rooted in the communities to provide a personal touch to every family we serve.
• We believe in the value of funeral and cemetery service, drawing on decades of experience to create the best experience for our families.

Summary/Objective

This position serves as the strategic leader for a multimillion-dollar portfolio of funeral and cemetery merchandise and services, driving enterprise-wide value creation through category strategy, total cost of ownership (TCO) optimization, strategic sourcing, supplier partnerships, and product innovation.

Essential Functions

• Develops and executes enterprise category strategies that drive sustainable cost savings, revenue growth, margin expansion, and operational efficiencies.
• Partners with executive and cross-functional leadership to shape sourcing strategies, accelerate growth, improve margins and ensure best-in-class supplier performance and product offerings.
• Leads complex strategic sourcing initiatives, supplier selection processes, and high-value contract negotiations to maximize value and mitigate risk.
• Owns category performance by leveraging data-driven insights across sales, margin, spend, inventory, customer demand, and market dynamics.
• Drives product portfolio optimization, assortment strategy, and lifecycle management to enhance customer choice, profitability, and operational effectiveness.
• Builds and manages strategic supplier relationships, establish performance expectations, innovation roadmaps, and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Identifies and executes opportunities for TCO reduction, working capital improvement, revenue generation, and margin enhancement.
• Champions supplier performance management, quality assurance, service excellence, and compliance with contractual obligations.
• Monitors industry trends, emerging technologies, and competitive developments to introduce innovative products and solutions that strengthen market position.
• Ensures adherence to regulatory requirements, quality standards, and corporate governance policies across all assigned categories.
• Influences enterprise decision-making through strategic recommendations, business case development, and executive-level presentations.
• Serves as a key change agent, driving transformation initiatives that improve procurement effectiveness, supplier collaboration, and category performance.
• Performs projects and other duties as assigned.

Competencies

• Financial Management.
• Performance Management.
• Ethical Conduct.
• Communication Proficiency.
• Personal Effectiveness/Credibility.
• Customer Service Orientation.
• Time Management.

Required Education, Experience, Certifications and Licensure

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Supply Chain Management, Procurement, Marketing, Finance, or related field.
• 10+ years of category management, merchandising, procurement, sourcing, or supplier management experience.
• Valid state issued driver's license in good standing and acceptable driving record.

Preferred Education, Experience, Certifications and Licensure

• Funeral/deathcare industry experience preferred.

Additional Eligibility Qualifications

• Experience managing product categories and supplier portfolios.
• Strong commercial negotiation and financial analysis skills.
• Skill to analyze data and provide recommendations.
• Excellent written and oral communication.
• Must be able to work independently, prioritizing and meeting multiple deadlines.
• Operates with the highest ethical standards in full compliance with, internal controls, policies, procedures, regulations, and laws.

Supervisory Responsibility

This position has no direct supervisory responsibilities

Physical Demands and Work Environment

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.

• The duties associated with this position are generally performed in an indoor office setting.
• Equipment used to perform the essential function of this position includes, but is not limited to computer, fax, copier, merchant terminal, multi-line phone system, personal or company owned vehicle.
• Employees in this role are regularly required to climb, sit, stand, bend, kneel, and frequently lift to 25 pounds.
• This position may also require reaching, pushing, and pulling.
• This position may also be exposed to chemicals and/ or blood borne pathogens. Exposure risk is considered: Low
• Overtime is sometimes necessary or required.

Travel

• This position may require up to 20 percent out of area and overnight travel.
• Travel is primarily local occurring during the business day only.

Other Duties

Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities and activities may change at any time with or without notice.