Director of Optical Strategy

Acuity Eye Group•Santa Ana, CA

just now

About The Position

Position Summary: The Director of Optical Strategy is responsible for leading the enterprise strategy, performance optimization, and growth of Acuity Eye Group’s Optical division across 50+ locations. This role will drive long-term strategic planning, operational excellence, merchandising strategy, and revenue growth across optical retail, OD/MD alignment, and patient experience. This leader will partner closely with Operations, Finance, Regional Directors, Merchandising, and Provider Leadership to deliver a scalable, high-performing optical organization that maximizes patient capture, revenue, profitability, and brand consistency.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree required; Master’s preferred (MBA, MHA, or similar).
7–10+ years in optical retail, ophthalmology/optometry operations, merchandising, or multi-site retail leadership.
Demonstrated success leading multi-site, multi-state teams or influencing large operational structures.
Strong understanding of optical sales processes, merchandising, optical retail KPIs, and P&L management.
Excellent communication, leadership, and stakeholder-management skills.
Highly data-driven with the ability to build and interpret dashboards, KPIs, and financial reporting.
Experience guiding change management, operational improvement, or large-scale project execution.

Responsibilities

Develop and lead AEG’s multi-year Optical Strategy, including footprint optimization, merchandising, pricing, and revenue growth pathways.
Translate enterprise goals into actionable operating plans, KPIs, and performance expectations for all optical locations.
Partner with COO, Finance, and Regional Directors to establish annual budgets, capture targets, and P&L objectives for optical.
Drive consistent standards across locations for visual merchandising, pricing, promotions, and product mix.
Evaluate current workflows and implement standardized best practices to improve patient flow, sales conversion, capture rate, and cycle times.
Lead performance reviews of optical operations across all regions; identify gaps and build improvement plans.
Establish and maintain Optical Scorecards, providing regular performance reporting by region, practice, provider, and staff.
Develop SOPs for optical processes, quality standards, merchandising, staffing, and inventory management.
Strengthen OD/MD relationships to optimize optical handoffs, communication, and clinical-to-retail coordination.
Partner with Regional Directors and Practice Managers to ensure alignment between optical teams and clinic operations.
Support onboarding and development for optical staff and leaders; collaborate with HR on role design, competencies, and training.
Lead collaboration with the Senior Director, Product & Merchandising on frame assortment, pricing tiers, promotions, vendor partnerships, and product innovation.
Monitor sales trends, customer insights, and competitive benchmarks to refine product and pricing strategy across regions.
Partner with Finance to monitor and improve optical P&L, including revenue, cost of goods, labor ratios, margins, and inventory turns.
Deliver financial projections, ROI analyses, and models supporting growth opportunities and capital investments.
Identify underperforming practices and develop targeted action plans with clear timelines and outcomes.
Develop strategies for expanding optical services, including new store openings, remodels, relocations, and brand experience upgrades.
Evaluate market trends and define opportunities for new offerings (premium lens packages, digital retail, eyewear programs, etc.).
Support integration of new acquisitions or locations into AEG’s optical model.