Sr Manager, Color Management & Quality Assurance

Varsity Brands

10h•Hybrid

About The Position

The Senior Manager, Color Management & Quality Assurance leads the company’s color management, quality testing, and inspection programs to ensure consistent color accuracy, product performance, and quality across all apparel and hard goods categories. This role manages a team of color, quality, and laboratory professionals and partners closely with product development, sourcing, suppliers, and manufacturing teams. The Senior Manager oversees supplier onboarding, testing compliance, and performance measurement, and designs performance-based color approval and inspection programs that drive quality excellence, operational efficiency, and continuous improvement across the global supply base.

Requirements

Demonstrated experience leading and developing technical teams, including laboratory, color, or quality professionals, with accountability for performance, workload planning, and capability building.
Strong working knowledge of textile and product testing standards, color measurement systems, inspection methodologies, and regulatory compliance requirements applicable to global apparel manufacturing.
Proven experience designing, implementing, or scaling performance-based quality, testing, or inspection programs across a multi-vendor supply base.
Experience onboarding and managing global suppliers.
Strong analytical, organizational, and communication skills.
Willingness to travel domestically and internationally as business needs require.
Bachelor’s degree in Textile Science, Apparel Engineering, Color Science, Quality Management, or a related field.
7+ years of progressive experience in color management, material and product testing, quality assurance, and supplier quality within the apparel industry.

Nice To Haves

Advanced degree in a relevant field preferred.

Responsibilities

Lead and develop a high-performing team responsible for color management, material and product testing, and quality inspection, including goal setting, workload prioritization, and capability development aligned to seasonal business needs.
Own the end-to-end color management strategy across development and production, establishing standards, tolerances, and approval processes, resolving color issues, leading root cause analysis, and ensuring consistent execution across materials, embellishments, and manufacturing partners, including sublimation programs.
Oversee fabric and finished product testing programs to ensure compliance with internal standards, brand requirements, and regulatory guidelines, including annual testing coverage, internal lab capabilities, test result review, risk mitigation, documentation, and partnership with third-party laboratories.
Design and manage a performance-based quality inspection program that adjusts inspection rigor based on supplier risk and performance, oversees inspection execution with third-party providers, analyzes results, and drives corrective actions in partnership with sourcing and manufacturing teams.
Lead vendor onboarding and ongoing management for color, testing, and inspection programs, ensuring suppliers are trained, compliant, and production-ready, and serving as a primary escalation point for quality-related issues.
Develop, maintain, and leverage supplier performance scorecards focused on color accuracy, testing compliance, inspection results, and responsiveness, using insights to drive improvement plans and inform sourcing strategies.
Partner cross-functionally with product development, design, sourcing, production, and compliance teams to embed color and quality requirements early in the product lifecycle, support innovation initiatives, and deliver training on standards and best practices.
Establish scalable, standardized processes across regions and categories, monitor industry standards and trends, and lead continuous improvement initiatives to reduce defects, delays, and quality-related costs.