Head of Footwear Sourcing Strategy

Role Overview

The mission of this role is to bridge the gap between global footwear sourcing and development, ensuring that sourcing is strategically influential from the very beginning. By cultivating strong partnerships across teams in Innovation, Creation, Quality, Supply Chain, and Sustainability, this position aims to develop a learning culture that enhances both quality and timely delivery. Success in this role is measured by the ability to deliver a sourcing roadmap that enables the seamless execution of our product portfolio, while effectively balancing cost, quality, and delivery objectives.

Team Insight

You will join the Product Organization, recognized as the innovation engine responsible for the design, development, and sourcing of cutting-edge products.

Key Responsibilities

• Strategic Alignment: Foster close collaboration between the footwear sourcing organization, primarily based in Vietnam, and the broader footwear product organization located in Switzerland.
• Integrate Sourcing Considerations: Ensure that sourcing requirements are strategically interwoven into the product roadmap to guarantee that all projects are 'sourcing ready' by product freeze.
• Stakeholder Management: Serve as a strategic partner across cross-functional teams including Innovation, Creation, Quality, Supply Chain, and Sustainability.
• Learning Culture: Incorporate a 'learning culture and process' within the product development framework to systematically enhance quality and on-time delivery.
• Portfolio Execution: Provide a sourcing roadmap that supports flawless execution of the product portfolio, balancing cost, quality, and delivery objectives.

Qualifications

• 8+ years of progressive experience in strategic footwear sourcing and production operations.
• Strong understanding of the footwear product development lifecycle, particularly integration points for sourcing, along with experience in upstream product strategy, innovation, product creation, and quality management.
• Adept at connecting the dots across functions, demonstrating the ability to navigate ambiguity and adapt to shifting priorities.
• Proven leadership skills for managing a portfolio of cross-functional projects.
• Strategic thinking and execution capabilities, with a track record of translating strategic objectives into actionable plans within complex organizational structures.
• Experience in cross-cultural collaboration within global organizations, effectively fostering cooperation among geographically dispersed teams (e.g., Europe and Asia).
• Exceptional stakeholder management abilities, building and maintaining strong relationships with diverse internal stakeholders to influence outcomes and foster consensus.
• Experience in continuous improvement methodologies, promoting a learning-oriented environment.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills for evaluating complex trade-offs (cost, quality, delivery) and formulating effective solutions, alongside the capability to synthesize and clarify complex issues.
• Excellent communication skills, with the capacity to articulate complex ideas clearly and persuasively to various audiences, effectively engaging and aligning with senior leaders.