Frankfort, IL
The Product Development Manager is responsible for managing, training, and developing the Product Development Team, maintaining vendor relationships/communication, creating/approving new product collections, and ensuring great quality. This position will assist in the development of a range of items adding to the product line. The Product Development Manager will lead the product strategy and understand the market trends. This position requires good leadership skills and integrity with an overall can-do attitude as expected for a management position.
Product Development/Graphic Designer:
1. Carry out research of products, analyze business data, identify trends and plan out strategies for new product developments.
2. Form product concepts based on research results. Work with Product Development designers to create the most exciting products that meet market needs.
3. Working as a team to brainstorm new ideas for future products.
4. Communicate with foreign manufacturers on product designs and completion of new products to ensure great quality. Design and create items capable of our manufactures producing.
5. Analyze and control costs including manufacturing cost, marketing cost, and operation cost.
6. Must understand our customer base and create items to appeal to them.
7. Training, developing, Managing Product Development Team and task management.
8. Uphold high standards of design work. Ensure quality of design meets or exceeds standards and must weigh the time spent against the results.
9. Approving, generating Design mocks for vendors & customers.
10. Creating correction and instructional layouts to communicate with vendors overseas.
11. Work with other departments within the Company.
12. Create SOPs, ensure KPIs are met.
13. Reviewing produced items, know how to prioritize and have real sense of urgency.
14. Additional responsibilities may be assigned.
Qualifications
1. Bachelor’s degree or above, design background is a plus.
2. 5 years of consumer product development experience is required. Experience in toys, crafts, party supplies, apparel, and furniture is preferred.
3. Proficiency in Microsoft Office – Excel, Adobe Creative Suite.
4. Multitasking and the ability to shift priorities in a fast-paced environment.
5. Self-motivated, consistently giving your best efforts, and continually looking for ways to improve.
6. Creative and artistic ability.
7. Attention to detail.
8. Strong interpersonal abilities and project management skills.
9. Ability to work independently.
1. Bachelor’s degree or above, design background is a plus.
2. 5 years of consumer product development experience is required. Experience in toys, crafts, party supplies, apparel, and furniture is preferred.
3. Proficiency in Microsoft Office – Excel, Adobe Creative Suite.
4. Multitasking and the ability to shift priorities in a fast-paced environment.
5. Self-motivated, consistently giving your best efforts, and continually looking for ways to improve.
6. Creative and artistic ability.
7. Attention to detail.
8. Strong interpersonal abilities and project management skills.
9. Ability to work independently.
This job operates in a professional work environment and warehouse environment. This role routinely uses standard office equipment such as computers, phones, photocopiers, filing cabinets, and fax machines.
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.
While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to talk or hear. This is largely a sedentary role; however, the employee frequently is required to stand; walk; use hands to finger, handle or feel; and reach with hands and arms. This would include the ability to lift boxes, open filing cabinets and bending/standing as needed.
Full-Time Position. M-F 8:00 am -5:00 pm. Occasional evening and weekend work may be required as job duties demand.
Possible travel twice a year, June and January, an employee may be required to travel to Dallas for the CBI show.
We offer a competitive salary 75k-85k and strong benefit package including medical, dental, vision, life insurance, holiday pay, wellness paid time off, vacation packages, and 401k with company match.
