Senior Footwear Product Developer - Brooks Running : Job Details

Who We Are:

Brooks is a team of passionate people united by a desire to do meaningful work, lead healthy lives and make a difference. We share a focused mission: to inspire everyone to run and be active. That's it. No distractions—it's all about the run. Through science, creativity, service, authenticity and connection, we obsess over delivering the best running gear on the planet. We do it our way, with our unique spirit, with a goal of being more relevant to runners than any other brand, day after day and mile after mile. We are determined to innovate, challenging ourselves to lead thought at every turn. Inside these walls and on the roads, tracks and trails, we live and breathe Run Happy, celebrating the positive impact running has on our lives and others. We inject it into all we do because it makes everything better, smarter, more fun and more memorable. Our company culture defines us, bonds us together and creates the conditions for success. It is lived daily as a behavioral expression of our collective set of brand values: Serve People, Lead Thought, Play As a Team, Compete Every Day, Demonstrate Integrity, Have Fun and Be Active. If you're on our team, it means you're part of creating something extraordinary. You're part of Brooks.

Your Job:

The Senior Footwear Developer will lead, manage, and execute the footwear development process, utilizing advanced product and process knowledge. He/she will work with a cross-functional product creation team from the collection of insights through commercialization to deliver products that exceed consumer expectations. Must have advanced knowledge of the total footwear construction process including; outsole/midsole drawing, pattern engineering, material construction and properties, and costing. Other critical responsibilities include understanding manufacturing capabilities, anticipating issues, problem solving, and timely resolution. He/she will be responsible for generating ideas around engineering principles that enhance product performance, product value, and communicate them across the product teams.

Job Responsibilities:

• Ability to oversee and manage multiple projects from Insights gathering to Brief Stage, through Design, Development, Costing, and into Commercialization
• Lead cross-functional triad teams throughout the product creation cycle
• Plan and execute product development according to the seasonal critical dates that lead to on–time delivery of sales samples and production confirmation
• Display an in-depth knowledge of the manufacturing process with the ability to modify the process in order to advance and achieve new manufacturing techniques which enhance the overall performance of product
• Partner with and guide design and development personnel to ensure that designs are manufacturable and meet cost and quality objectives of the organization
• Critique, adjust and evaluate technical blueprints (outsole/ midsole), upper patterns and materials from a performance, manufacturing, and functional perspective
• Mentor development personnel and others on the Footwear Team
• Participate in Asia development trips, 3 - 4 per year, to work with manufacturers and suppliers on existing and current development projects
• Recommend and specify to product team the material, component and construction options to meet pricing targets and product's functional goals, as well as assure product performance integrity through product testing (physical and field testing)
• Initiate and lead meetings with product teams during various phases of development to review, evaluate, update and ultimately drive the decision making process that leads to on–time production confirmation and margin goals
• Lead cost breakdown analysis of product at key calendar milestones with assistance from Costing team
• Collaborate with Research, Design, Development, Marketing, Costing and Color in order to show sample materials that meet the criteria for the category based on material performance data
• Organize and communicate new process and techniques to the cross functional teams
• Create and build a knowledge base and stay informed about vendor capabilities and performance, factory relationships, quality issues, materials pricing and lead times

Qualifications:

Reports to: Director, Footwear Development

Department: Footwear Development - 30

Position Class: Exempt, Salaried

Position Location: Headquarters – Seattle

Job Description – Senior Footwear Developer

Last Updated – 7/8/15