Lead, Jordan Sports Marketing, Buyer & Athlete Merchandising

Nike • Beaverton, OR

5d

About The Position

NIKE, Inc. is seeking a product-obsessed, athlete-first, and operationally strong leader to manage Jordan Sports Marketing’s seasonal buying, athlete merchandising, contract management, inventory planning, reporting, and select sport portfolio servicing processes. This role leads the product buying and servicing engine across footwear, apparel, and equipment, from demand creation through inventory release. The ideal candidate brings strong buying, planning, inventory management, merchandising, and cross-functional leadership experience, paired with a genuine passion for sport, fashion, style, culture, athlete insights, and premium service. The successful candidate should be able to sit at the intersection of athlete insights, product and merchandising, fashion and cultural trends, white glove servicing, and relationship building. This is not only a buying role. It helps shape the athlete product experience by translating athlete preferences, seasonal product stories, marketplace relevance, and Jordan Brand priorities into buying strategies, product curation, and athlete assortments.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Merchandising, Inventory Management, Supply Chain, Product, Sports Marketing, or a related field; or equivalent combination of education, experience, and training.
• 5+ years of progressively responsible experience in buying, merchandising, planning, inventory management, product operations, marketplace, retail, supply chain, Sports Marketing operations, or related work.
• Proven experience buying product, managing assortment plans, supporting merchandising processes, developing demand forecasts, managing inventory to a plan, and managing a plan to a budget.
• Genuine passion for sport, athletes, fashion, style, culture, product, and premium service experiences.
• Strong knowledge of Nike and/or Jordan product, seasonal assortments, marketplace trends, consumer demand, product storytelling, and athlete-relevant style cues.
• Ability to translate athlete insights, product preferences, and cultural trends into buying strategy, product curation, and athlete assortments.
• Strong understanding of seasonal buying, contract creation, inventory management, product servicing, reporting, and supply chain process flow.
• Experience with SAP order management and contract-related workflows.
• Strong Excel skills and ability to build, analyze, and maintain tools that support business decisions.
• Experience with reporting tools such as Cognos, Brio, SO reports, PO reports, or similar reporting and data platforms.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to identify issues, develop solutions, and elevate when needed.
• Detail-oriented with strong organizational skills and the ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, including meeting facilitation, presentation, documentation, and follow-up.
• Skilled relationship builder and stakeholder manager with proven ability to build trust across a matrixed organization.
• Ability to collaborate across Sports Marketing, Athlete Insights, Athlete Experience, Merchandising, Brand Marketing, Product Management, Communications, Demand Planning, Supply & Inventory Planning, Finance, Operations, and vendor partners.

Nice To Haves

• Experience supporting athlete servicing, product allocations, product seeding, account management, or high-profile sport portfolio work (e.g., WNBA) preferred.
• Experience in Sports Marketing, athlete servicing, product seeding, promotional product, or brand marketing operations.
• Experience partnering with Merchandising and Product teams to understand seasonal product strategies, marketplace product priorities, and athlete-relevant product opportunities.
• Experience capturing athlete feedback, preferences, and product insights and translating them into service or buying decisions.
• Experience supporting high-heat product, energy product, special projects, athlete key moments, or premium service moments.
• Experience with AV / VLP tools, seasonal buy templates, Box, SAP/S4, Material Master, SO reports, PO reports, and inventory reporting.
• Experience managing vendor processes, invoice approvals, purchase requests, or non-standard buying workflows.
• Demand planning experience.
• Experience creating SOPs, reporting calendars, business tools, and onboarding resources.

Responsibilities

• Lead seasonal product buying and product servicing operations for Jordan Sports Marketing across footwear, apparel, and equipment.
• Manage buy calendars, forecast demand, build and validate buy templates, maintain product planning tools, ensure deadlines are met, and support athlete, team, event, contractual, sport portfolio, and brand marketing needs.
• Partner with Merchandising, Product, Brand Marketing, Athlete Insights, Sports Marketing Representatives, and Athlete Experience partners to understand seasonal product strategies, athlete preferences, key styles, launch priorities, marketplace-relevant product, and cultural trends.
• Connect athlete insights with seasonal product plans and support assortments that reflect Jordan Brand priorities and strengthen relationships.
• Create, maintain, validate, and adjust contracts in SAP and related systems, including managing contract setup, contract maintenance, inventory adjustments, dropped styles, substitute product, cancel dates, delivery status, product exceptions, and ad hoc contract analysis.
• Own reporting and inventory management routines that support product visibility and business decision-making, including usage reporting, coverage reporting, SO and PO reporting, delivery status tracking, aged inventory monitoring, past due purchase order review, contract utilization analysis, and forecasting input for future product buys.
• Capture athlete feedback, preferences, and product insights and share those inputs back across the organization.
• Support select high-priority athletes, teams, sport portfolio work (e.g., WNBA), and initiatives through product allocations, key event seeding, product fulfillment coordination, and athlete-specific product needs.
• Lead seasonal buying and product servicing operations across footwear, apparel, and equipment.
• Manage inline and promo product buys from demand creation through inventory release.
• Submit timely and accurate forecasts to Inventory Planning and ensure buy templates are accurate.
• Ensure seasonal gates, dates, internal deadlines, and order-entry requirements are met.
• Create, maintain, validate, extend, and adjust SAP contracts for contractual commitments, events, initiatives, sport portfolio needs, and athlete servicing needs.
• Manage product data exceptions, inactive styles, dropped styles, product substitutions, inventory adjustments, and cancel dates.
• Request diverts from inline purchase orders and pull substitute product from inline availability as needed.
• Develop, execute, and report on demand, inventory, purchase, and delivery plans.
• Monitor inventory levels, delivery status, PO status, blocked product, dropped product, aged inventory, and past due purchase orders.
• Run and maintain coverage reports, SO reports, PO reports, usage reports, tracking reports, and contract utilization analysis.
• Provide contract usage information and analysis to support forecasting for future product buys.
• Evaluate unplanned or unusual contract changes and escalate issues when needed.
• Identify opportunities to improve accuracy, reporting visibility, process flow, and operational efficiency.
• Partner with Merchandising, Product, Brand Marketing, Athlete Insights, Athlete Experience, and Sports Marketing Representatives to identify key seasonal styles, marketplace opportunities, launch priorities, cultural trends, and athlete-relevant product stories.
• Develop deep product knowledge across Jordan footwear, apparel, and equipment categories, with an understanding of what is relevant to athletes, sport culture, fashion, style, and the marketplace.
• Translate athlete feedback, product preferences, style insights, and cultural trends into practical buying decisions, product curation, and athlete assortments.
• Build and maintain athlete-relevant assortments, VLPs, seasonal product tools, and product planning resources.
• Ensure key styles and relevant product stories are represented in seasonal buys and servicing plans.
• Support high-heat product opportunities, premium buys, key launches, trend-relevant product, and sport moments.
• Create simple tools and resources that help Sports Marketing teammates understand seasonal product priorities, key stories, and service opportunities.
• Share relevant athlete insights and product feedback with cross-functional partners to help inform future planning and servicing decisions.
• Support select high-priority athlete, team, sport portfolio (e.g., WNBA), or initiative servicing opportunities.
• Partner with Sports Marketing Representatives to fulfill athlete product needs and contractual product obligations while strengthening long-term relationships.
• Support sport portfolio servicing needs as appropriate, including product allocations, product fulfillment, and key athlete moments.
• Help coordinate product seeding, event servicing, athlete product curation, and premium service moments.
• Assist with athlete onboarding, product allocations, and service-related operational needs.
• Represent Jordan Brand through every product and service touchpoint by delivering a premium, thoughtful, and relationship-led athlete experience.

Benefits

• Accommodations to complete the interview process including screen readers, sign language interpreters, accessible and single location for in-person interviews, closed captioning, and other reasonable modifications as needed.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior