Altra: Footwear Design Director

Altra Running

26d

About The Position

At Altra, we are on a never-ending journey to seek out opportunities to unlock potential in ourselves and others and to create a more diverse and inclusive running community. When we’re all working together as the best versions of ourselves, we can feel empowered both individually and as a community. So, before we get to the job details, take a minute to learn a little more about us – our values and our culture. If you can see yourself working side-by-side with a team of people driven to discover more about ourselves and the world around us, Altra just may be the place for you. To learn more about our values and our culture, visit Altra Careers or www.altrarunning.com. Position: Design Director, Footwear What you will do: A day in the life of a Design Director at Altra looks a little like this. The Director, Footwear Design is responsible for designing and understanding run performance culture and the needs of those runners. This candidate is comfortable in ambiguity, can set a creative vision that inspires and motivates the design team, and be an excellent cross functional partner. The ideal candidate will be passionate about running and elevating Altra’s position through industry changing product that emotionally connects with runners and brings best in class design and detailed craft. Let’s break down that day-in-the-life a bit more. You will lead the Creative Vision for Altra Running and drive key footwear Initiatives from design through execution. You will champion a culturally connected vision with emphasis on product design integrity, forward thinking innovation, industry leading quality & product performance. You will drive the commercial portfolio by partnering with your Materials, Color, Product and Development teams, and bring to life the seasonal Creative Direction through impeccable Design, future forward trends, and fresh innovation. You will report into the Head of Product and Merchandising to build a long term creative vision that leverages innovation, best in class fit and performance and something that pushes Altra into new territory. You will be comfortable in the white space and bring others along to help them see what the future of Altra footwear design could be. You will partner closely with the rest of the leadership team to communicate concepts as well as help ensure those concepts come to life across the product team and into commercial reality. You will ensure the team hits deadlines and excels in technical details and performance benefits for the runner. You will review all product with the leadership team and ensure that the vision is executing, and any necessary design changes are clearly communicated to the design and development teams. You will also have connections with the broader VF Design leadership community and be part of building the future of VF design with your counterparts in the other Brands (North Face, Vans, Timberland, etc). This candidate will have a history of charting paths less followed, wanting to grow, learn and push boundaries and be comfortable with calculated risk. They work well in all stages of the product creation process-conception and experimentation, rapid prototyping, and bringing new designs and concepts to commercialization. This individual will inspire confidence and understand how to influence others, enabling strong cross functional collaborative relationships. This individual will also bring a positive attitude and align to Altra’s values of a Challenger mindset and the Spirit of Discovery, understanding they must push past roadblocks and create clarity amidst ambiguity. Provide Product Design direction, knowledge, leadership, and management skills for Altra’s Footwear Design team as the Brand scales to .5B. Encourage and facilitate the creative process with an emphasis on enhancing communication, finding and expanding common design themes and identifying design opportunities for new products. Determine project assignments to team members; provide workload planning as needed to ensure that deadlines are met to reach Brand goals. Coordinate design efforts with the other members of the Product Creation Teams. Develop Designer skills. Interpret new product concepts as needed to meet the needs of our runners; be in the know of market trends and provide creative direction to support business directives. Motivate the design staff to excel in their performance and contributions, resulting in sales and growth for the company. Lead team and partner with other Brand leaders to drive the Brand’s Creative Vision through its products. Responsibility for owning, expanding and evolving Altra’s Visual Brand Language across all footwear products and ensuring the Footwear Design team understands and executes according to a shared create language and vision.

Requirements

• This person must be motivated, a problem solver and a self-starter
• Create concepts that are new for the Brand and bridge those into footwear designs that algin with Altra’s vision and takes us into the future.
• How to set and implement a creative vision for meaningful, distinct product that takes Altra somewhere new.
• Strong knowledge and understanding of footwear construction and manufacturing
• Experience in creation of tech packs and execution of industrial product designs.
• Examples of successful products that you have led/designed.
• Ability to showcase your experience in design research and how you utilize design trends in your work.
• Ability to demonstrate your technical knowledge for how to build performance product, preferably running product but other performance product can be acceptable as well.
• Examples of how you have leveraged color and material work to amplify the footwear design team’s product
• Showcase previous cross functional projects that were brought to life across the product team.
• 8-10 years of experience
• 1-2 years of supervisory experience required

Nice To Haves

• Cobbling and prototyping skills are a bonus
• 3D design programs experience is a plus but not mandatory
• Competency in sketching, illustration, and rendering skills including ability to create 2D tech packs

Responsibilities

• Lead the Creative Vision for Altra Running and drive key footwear Initiatives from design through execution.
• Champion a culturally connected vision with emphasis on product design integrity, forward thinking innovation, industry leading quality & product performance.
• Drive the commercial portfolio by partnering with your Materials, Color, Product and Development teams, and bring to life the seasonal Creative Direction through impeccable Design, future forward trends, and fresh innovation.
• Report into the Head of Product and Merchandising to build a long term creative vision that leverages innovation, best in class fit and performance and something that pushes Altra into new territory.
• Partner closely with the rest of the leadership team to communicate concepts as well as help ensure those concepts come to life across the product team and into commercial reality.
• Ensure the team hits deadlines and excels in technical details and performance benefits for the runner.
• Review all product with the leadership team and ensure that the vision is executing, and any necessary design changes are clearly communicated to the design and development teams.
• Provide Product Design direction, knowledge, leadership, and management skills for Altra’s Footwear Design team as the Brand scales to .5B.
• Encourage and facilitate the creative process with an emphasis on enhancing communication, finding and expanding common design themes and identifying design opportunities for new products.
• Determine project assignments to team members; provide workload planning as needed to ensure that deadlines are met to reach Brand goals.
• Coordinate design efforts with the other members of the Product Creation Teams.
• Develop Designer skills.
• Interpret new product concepts as needed to meet the needs of our runners; be in the know of market trends and provide creative direction to support business directives.
• Motivate the design staff to excel in their performance and contributions, resulting in sales and growth for the company.
• Lead team and partner with other Brand leaders to drive the Brand’s Creative Vision through its products.
• Responsibility for owning, expanding and evolving Altra’s Visual Brand Language across all footwear products and ensuring the Footwear Design team understands and executes according to a shared create language and vision.

Benefits

• extensive development and growth opportunities for your current and future positions
• a competitive compensation package
• a strong benefits package that includes medical, dental, vision, and 401(k)

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Director
• Education Level: No Education Listed
• Number of Employees: 11-50 employees