Design Director, Sustainability

Primary Purpose:
At Coach, we believe better-made things can help create a better-made future-and this starts with how we design, craft and develop our products. Though we've always prided ourselves on creating high quality product crafted to last, we know we must go further and build a more circular future for fashion. With this responsibility in mind, we are launching a new initiative focused on circularity with an innovative business model thatreimagines product "end of life" and Coach's impact on the environment.

TheDesign Director, Sustainability will work with the VPto bring this initiative to life for our customers-supporting bold sustainability and circularity goals that reflect the creative vision and Coach aesthetic. This individual will be a key member of a dynamic, empowered team driving agile ways of working across functions to fuel innovation and speed to market.

The successful individual will leverage their proficiency in Design to...
- Research and develop seasonal sustainable inspiration boards to convey the creative vision and inspire the team. Continuously bring new ideas and innovative concepts that enhance the collection while realizing Coach circular product principles.
- Partner with team to refine seasonal concept, materials, hardware, and color palette for collections.
- Create sketches, product prototypes and finished samples.
- Responsible for upholding design integrity, high quality execution, and timeliness throughout the entire development process from concept through engineering and commercialization.
- Responsible to lead the team to meet all timeline milestones and deadlines; monitor the work of the team to ensure all deliverables are completed accurately
- Ensure all prototypes are available for product presentation and finalization.
- Drive new approaches to designing for a circular economy, e.g., designing out waste and designing products intended to have multiple lives
Partner cross-functionally with Merchandising, Materials, Sustainability and Product Development teams on regular basis.
- Lead, mentor and develop a team of designers

The accomplished individual will possess...
- Minimum 8-10 years of experience designing handbags
- Bachelor's Degree in Design or related field preferred
- Must possess a strong fashion sense and have the ability to interpret trends
- Ability to sketch both technical drawings and freeform renderings
- Experience developing product directly with factories; understanding of development from concept through engineering required
- Understanding of materials, hardware, leather, and handbag construction required
- Excellent interpersonal, communication, and leadership skills with the ability to interact with a diverse group at all levels
- Effective organizational skills with strong attention to detail and follow-up
- Strong self-starter who excels in fast-paced, start-up type environments; able to handle multiple priorities
- Passionate about sustainability
- Must be a collaborative, team player with great initiative
- Experience managing a team

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 moraleand spirit in theirteam; 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.
Coach 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 Coach at www.coach.com.