Director, Merchandising Transformation
ConfidentialOverview This role is 4 days onsite (Monday-Thursday) at one of the below locations: Boca Raton, FL 33496 Austin, TX 78729 Grand Prairie, TX 75050 Houston, TX 77040 Atlanta, GA 30326 Denver, CO 80239 Fremont, CA 94538 Signal Hill, CA 90755 Itasca, IL 60143 The Merchandising Transformation Director leads the redesign of how the merchandising organization plans, buys, prices, and flows product, from category strategy through the distribution center. This role is a true merchant who pairs deep category, vendor, and assortment expertise with hands-on distribution center and supply chain experience. The Director owns organization design and the implementation of new merchandising processes, partnering with Supply Chain, Finance, Marketing, Sales, and IT to improve margin, in-stock, inventory productivity, and speed to market. Primary Responsibilities: Merchandising Strategy & Roadmap: Define and lead the multi-year merchandising transformation roadmap, translating margin, growth, and inventory goals into a prioritized portfolio of category, assortment, pricing, and vendor initiatives. Category & Vendor Leadership: Apply merchant judgment to assortment architecture, pricing and promotion strategy, private brand, and vendor negotiations, setting standards and coaching category teams to deliver profitable growth. Organization Design: Assess and redesign the merchandising organization, including roles, spans and layers, decision rights, and category team structure, and lead the transition, staffing, and capability building required to run it. Process Design & Implementation: Design, pilot, and implement end-to-end merchandising processes (line review, item setup, forecasting, replenishment, markdown, and vendor management) with supporting tools and KPIs, ensuring adoption and measurable results. Distribution Center & Supply Chain Partnership: Partner with DC and supply chain leaders on inventory flow, slotting, allocation, replenishment, and inbound/outbound planning to improve in-stock, turns, and cost to serve. Governance & Change Leadership: Own transformation budgets, timelines, and executive reporting; build change management and communication plans that drive sustained adoption across merchants, planners, and DC operations. Education and Experience: Level of Formal Education: Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience Area of Study: Business, Supply Chain, Finance, or a related field; MBA preferred Minimum Years of Experience: 7 Type of Experience: 7+ years of progressive merchandising experience (category management, buying, planning, or pricing), including a proven record as a merchant owning P&L results. Direct distribution center or supply chain operations experience, plus demonstrated success designing organizations and implementing new processes at scale. Retail, wholesale, or B2B distribution background preferred. Special Certifications: Lean, Six Sigma, PMP, or change management certification preferred but not required. Technical Competencies & Information Systems: Strong proficiency with MS Office (advanced Excel); experience with merchandising, planning, and replenishment systems and ERP platforms (e.g., Oracle). Familiarity with analytics and BI tools. Skills & Abilities: Strong commercial and financial acumen, vendor negotiation, and analytical skills. Proven ability to design organizations, lead change, and influence senior leaders and cross-functional partners. Excellent executive communication and presentation skills. Additional Language Skills: Fluent in English. Personal Attributes & Other/Preferred: Hands-on, credible with merchants and DC operators alike; decisive, results-oriented, and comfortable leading through ambiguity. Experience with merchandising system implementations or ERP transformations a plus. About The ODP Group: The ODP Group, through its business entities ODP Business Solutions and Office Depot, is a leading provider of products, services, and technology solutions through an integrated business…