Director, RTW Operations

We believe that difference sparks brilliance, so we welcome people and ideas from everywhere to join us in stretching what’s possible.

At Tapestry, being true to yourself is core to who we are. When each of us brings our individuality to our collective ambition, our creativity is unleashed. This global house of brands – Coach, Kate Spade New York, Stuart Weitzman – was built by unconventional entrepreneurs and unexpected solutions, so when we say we believe in dreams, we mean we believe in making them happen. We’re always on a journey to becoming our best, but you can count on this: Here, your voice is valued, your ambitions are supported, and your work is recognized.

A member of the Tapestry family, we are part of a global house of brands that has unwavering optimism and is committed to being innovative and wholly inclusive. Visit Our People page to learn more about Tapestry's commitment to equity, inclusion, and diversity. 

I. Primary Purpose:

The Senior Director, RTW Operations, is responsible to provide effective, efficient and appropriate support for the development, production and after-market requirements of Tapestry RTW product. Reporting into NY and partnering closely with NY and Asia regional teams, this role covers multiple disciplines, with support being provided for Materials Management, Product Development, Technical Design, Bulk Production and Quality.

In addition to these key responsibilities, the role also includes risk management and strategic planning, project management as required, factory sourcing and the development of good Service Provider relationships.

As leader of the Regional Support Team, Asia, this role serves as a critical link between internal RTW teams and external Service Providers in Asia region and beyond.

II. Key Responsibilities:

• Partner with the NY RTW Teams to gain a full understanding of the brands design intent, the desired fit and the correct aesthetic interpretation, and to ensure that the Regional Support Team and Service Providers have a clear understanding of the required standards and expectations.
• Lead, mentor and support the Regional Support Team members to ensure that all expectations are met in a timely manner and that and efficient and effective level of support is able to be provided as needed at all times.
• Maintain full awareness of the brands time/action calendars and the SP’s adherence to the agreed timelines and call out all known or anticipated risks.
• Communicate any deviations from calendar, facilitate solutions with the SP’s and ensure that all issues are satisfactorily resolved.
• Ensure that all communications with the SP’s are fully aligned with the agreed Tapestry standards and expectations.
• Ensure that all technical directions given to the SP’s are soundly aligned with the best technical practice for modern garment production, and share with the team any knowledge of new and advantageous advancements gained from site visits.
• Ensure that all potential technical or product-related challenges are known, fully discussed and resolved.
• Escalate all important issues to the VP Product Development, RTW, as necessary.
• Conduct frequent site visits to the SPs to ensure that the brands requirements are fully understood and that the execution of product meets the agreed expectations.
• Provide advice and instruction the SPs and challenge them when necessary.
• Attend SP pre-production meetings, conduct inline inspections and oversee pre 3rd party inspections as necessary.
• Support the onboarding of new SP’s to ensure that they have a clear understanding of the required processes and quality standards.
• Ensure full compliance to the agreed brand quality standards at all times.
• Lead or support specialist technical projects to enhance and elevate product as required.

Tactical:

• Conduct factory visits to review proto & market tech packs at start of development, reviewing all comments and resolving all queries.
• Ensure the effective approval of pre-production and TOP samples in region.
• Ensure the effective management of the RTW Balanced Score Card (BSC).
• Conduct regular factory visits to review production WIP, resolving, communicating or escalating any issues that may impact the timeline.
• Calibrate SPs to achieve self-certification for in-line and Final Finished Goods Inspections.
• Calibrate and train designated Tapestry Quality Auditors as necessary.
• Partner with PD leads to ensure best cost and adherence to the agreed timelines.
• Join Weekly WIP calls with factories.
• Join Seasonal Line review meetings with Merch/Vendors/Compliance.

• Support and facilitate NY teams trip plans as required.

III. Dimensions:

Reports to the VP Product Development, RTW.

Interacts with:

1.  Asia RTW teams - TD, Merchandising, RM’s team (fabric and trims), Labeling and Compliance, Logistics.
2.  NY Headquarters – all RTW teams.
3.  Asia Service Providers.

IV. Education & Experience Requirements:

Bachelor's degree in Fashion or equivalent industry experience preferred.

15+ years’ experience in apparel or related industry with a concentration in product design & development, product engineering, construction and manufacturing.

Excellent co-ordination and strong communication skills in written and oral English.       

Luxury brand background.

Good connections with partners in the wider industry, such as factories, tanneries, mills, etc..

High attention to detail.

Proficiency in Web PDM, PLM, Illustrator and Outlook.

Self-motivated and ability to work under pressure.

Ability to undertake frequent travel throughout Asia.

Knowledge of AQL and quality control systems.

V. Key Competencies.

Proven leadership skills in terms of small team management.

Ability to work in a collaborative multi-cultural team environment.

Excellent communication skills.

Initiative/Pro-activeness.

Analysis/Decision Making.

Customer focus and Ownership.

Good understanding/appreciation of modern production systems.

Our Competencies for All Employees

• Courage: Doesn’t hold back anything that needs to be said; provides current, direct, complete, and “actionable” positive and corrective feedback to others; lets people know where they stand; faces up to people problems on any person or situation (not including direct reports) quickly and directly; is not afraid to take negative action when necessary.
• Creativity: Comes up with a lot of new and unique ideas; easily makes connections among previously unrelated notions; tends to be seen as original and value-added in brainstorming settings.
• Customer Focus: Is dedicated to meeting the expectations and requirements of internal and external customers; gets first-hand customer information and uses it for improvements in products and services; acts with customers in mind; establishes and maintains effective relationships with customers and gains their trust and respect.
• Dealing with Ambiguity: Can effectively cope with change; can shift gears comfortably; can decide and act without having the total picture; isn’t upset when things are up in the air; doesn’t have to finish things before moving on; can comfortably handle risk and uncertainty.
• Drive for Results: Can be counted on to exceed goals successfully; is constantly and consistently one of the top performers; very bottom-line oriented; steadfastly pushes self and others for results.
• Interpersonal Savvy: Relates well to all kinds of people, up, down, and sideways, inside and outside the organization; builds appropriate rapport; builds constructive and effective relationships; uses diplomacy and tact; can diffuse even high-tension situations comfortably.
• Learning on the Fly: Learns quickly when facing new problems; a relentless and versatile learner; open to change; analyzes both successes and failures for clues to improvement; experiments and will try anything to find solutions; enjoys the challenge of unfamiliar tasks; quickly grasps the essence and the underlying structure of anything.

Our Competencies for All People Managers

• Strategic Agility: Sees ahead clearly; can anticipate future consequences and trends accurately; has broad knowledge and perspective; is future oriented; can articulately paint credible pictures and visions of possibilities and likelihoods; can create competitive and breakthrough strategies and plans.
• Developing Direct Reports and Others: Provides challenging and stretching tasks and assignments; holds frequent development discussions; is aware of each person’s career goals; constructs compelling development plans and executes them; pushes people to accept developmental moves; will take on those who need help and further development; cooperates with the developmental system in the organization; is a people builder.
• Building Effective Teams: Blends people into teams when needed; creates strong morale
  and spirit in his/her team; shares wins and successes; fosters open dialogue; lets people finish and be responsible for their work; defines success in terms of the whole team; creates a feeling of belonging in the team.

Tapestry, Inc. is an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer and we pride ourselves on hiring and developing the best people. All employment decisions (including recruitment, hiring, promotion, compensation, transfer, training, discipline and termination) are based on the applicant’s or employee’s qualifications as they relate to the requirements of the position under consideration. These decisions are made without regard to age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic characteristics, race, color, creed, religion, ethnicity, national origin, alienage, citizenship, disability, marital status, military status, pregnancy, or any other legally-recognized protected basis prohibited by applicable law. Visit Tapestry, Inc. at http://www.tapestry.com/