Free People Production Manager - Footwear

Urban Outfitters•Philadelphia, PA

10h

About The Position

Free People is looking for a footwear category leader that facilitates and executes our multi branded vision through the development and management of pre-production processes and production work flow. This role requires an expert troubleshooter with strong competencies in raw material, price/costing, and delivery issue resolution. The ideal candidate will have strong collaboration skills with partners in product development, design, and merchandising. Additionally, this role is required to provide training, development, and support for team members and direct reports.

Requirements

Significant leadership experience managing teams working in a fast paced environment.
Experience traveling overseas to evaluate vendors and to determine areas of improvement.
Supervise subordinates’ responsibilities to ensure accomplishment of department goals and deadlines.
Promote the development of subordinates through supervision and training.
Pro-actively approach problem solving.
Implement operational efficiencies.
Adapt quickly to changes.
Driven by deadlines with a high sense of urgency.

Responsibilities

Manage brand initiatives and goals.
Control operations calendar deadlines and monthly book to dates.
Control final allocations.
Develop and maintain relationships with vendors to ensure successful business partnerships.
Analyze industry trends to proactively identify supply base issues to reduce cost, minimize risk, protect continuity of supply, and exploit emerging opportunities that benefit the brand.
Collaborate between stakeholders to create calendar and meet deadlines.
Outline and communicate brand and category strategy based on Trend meeting.
Improve adoption rates over specific time period and hit approved line plan style count measured by seasonal line plan actualization.
Manage commitments and order placements.
Calculate and manage rolling and final IMUs at order placement for variance IMU analysis.
Strategize brand business opportunities including freight modes for distribution center receipt, flow, and margin opportunity.
Manage product development and production process.
Provide IMU targets and guidance to team to negotiate final costing with vendors ensuring margins are met or exceeded.
Assess and develop staff.
Build the appropriate team to ensure effective day to day management of each business group and accurate and readily available records and reports.
Coach staff to generate creative solutions.
Lead change, and coach team to respond to a rapidly changing business environment.
Coordinate and facilitate team to deliver aesthetically correct samples that meet brand’s vision.
Facilitate team to maintain and manage the pre-production time and action and production work-in-process.