Rachel Adam

Major: Marketing

Certificates: Digital Studies

Graduation Date: May 2015

How did you end up working at Target?

I accepted a Business Analyst role with Target for June 2015 after attending the UW-Madison career fair in the fall of 2014! This was a great opportunity to connect with the recruiters on campus and develop strong relationships. I was in that inventory-focused role for about 1.5 years before I moved to an Associate Buyer position. I was able to manage my own business, made assortment decisions, and grew sales and margin.

After 1.5 years in that role, I accepted a Merchandising Financial Planner position on a business that was about 80% private label within the Pet Care department. I was passionate about using data and analytics to inform assortment decisions within our owned brand product development process. I held this role for 3 years, managing a majority-import long lead time private label business through the pandemic and growing sales about +70% during my tenure. This led me to my current position, where I work even closer with the Owned Brand process and influence how current and future launch brands show up on shelves throughout all of Health & Beauty.

What does a typical day in the office look like for you?

In my current merchandising role, I manage how Target’s private label brands show up, innovate, and grow within the Health & Beauty space. I work with a cross-functional team of experts from brand management, product design, scientists, packaging, strategic sourcing, product insights, marketing, etc. to bring these products to life on our shelves!

As the merchandising lead, I own brand positioning, product plan creation, development and design direction, and cost/retail management. I work in lock-step with my Buyers, Financial Planners, and Inventory Analysts to build the total assortment portfolios that you see in stores and online after launch. Every day is different and filled with new challenges, but that’s what I love about this job!

How has Digital Studies influenced your career path?

I believe I was one of the first Business School graduates to complete the Digital Studies Certificate. What I loved about it was that I was able to cater it to my interests and career goals. I wanted to flex my creative side and Digital Studies allowed me to dabble in graphic design without pursuing the major.

As a DoIT Help Desk worker, I was also intrigued by coding and the more technical side of the digital space – I was able to take classes in this sphere as well. These classes were my favorite, and definitely rounded out my experience without overcomplicating my course load.

Did you have a favorite Digital Studies class or professor when you were a student?

One of my favorite classes was Journalism 475: Data Visualization (now it’s Journalism 677!). It was the perfect marriage of my artistic/creative and analytical passions! I’ve always loved taking numbers and making them “pretty.” Making numbers make sense and have context is something I’m really passionate about and have grown to be pretty great at. This class was the perfect synergy of art and science, and it’s my favorite class I have ever taken.

Do you have any advice for current students?

You have your required classes, but seek out classes about things you are passionate about too. You’ll never be in another place where it is so easy to learn – these tools are right at your fingertips. Take advantage of all the opportunities. Make meaningful connections with everyone around you. That friend you make in a design class could go on to make the next biggest brand…maybe with you! Dream big, be eager to learn, and do what brings you joy.

What achievement are you most proud of in your professional career thus far?

This may seem cliché, but I’m really proud that I ended up in a career that I love. If you would have asked me halfway through college where I’d end up, I could not have told you. You don’t need to have it all figured out in college – you likely don’t even know a fraction of the jobs that exist! It’s easy to get caught up in your 5 year or 10 year plan…but a LOT can change in 10 years. That job may not exist yet! Take steps to expand on the skills you already have and see where it takes you.