Sr. Manager, Product Innovation R&D

Sr. Manager, Product Innovation R&D

At Crocs, Inc., every career offers a chance to make a real impact. No two journeys look the same. And that's exactly how we like it. Whether you're welcoming customers into our stores, collaborating with global teams at our headquarters, or keeping operations moving at our distribution centers, your impact is real and valued. At Crocs, Inc. you're not expected to fit a mold. You're encouraged to break it and create something better.

Overview

The Sr. Manager, Product Innovation at Crocs, Inc. will lead the end-to-end innovation and product development lifecycle, from ideation through commercialization. This role will drive cross-functional collaboration across global teams, manage innovation pipelines, and ensure the successful execution of new product initiatives that align with business goals. The ideal candidate will bring a strong background in footwear and a passion for innovation, and proven leadership in managing teams and complex projects.

What You'll Do

• Lead and manage innovation projects across different functions and departments.
• Contribute to implement an open innovation environment, extending the network of suppliers even to parallel industries, to collect ideas and solutions from the most diverse sources.
• Collaborating with the Asia and America Innovation teams.
• Take ownership for the entire development process of the innovation, with an emphasis on quality product development and timely completion of all tasks in accordance with the applicable product creation calendar in the internal digital platform.
• Establish strong collaborative relationships with our research and testing team to realize new functional concepts and produce prototypes, evaluate testing results, and drive towards platforms that are ready for hand off to brand product teams.
• Proactively research new technologies, processes and materials to drive innovation.
• Travel to global industry events to gain insight into the latest innovations in the market.
• Ensure successful implementation of the innovations in production, directly working with QA, Product Execution, Materials, costing and other Crocs teams, as well as with the factories.

What You'll Bring to the Table

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience.
• 8+ years of experience in footwear industry or in the plastics or plastics related industry, specializing in innovation or product development, material development, quality, manufacturing or mold engineering.
• At least three (3) years leading others.
• Knowledge of plastics (injection, compression molding, etc.) and tooling, in the footwear industry or parallel businesses.
• Significant understanding of the product development process.
• Solid understanding of footwear construction and materials.
• Basic understanding of 3D design and development.
• Demonstrated strong written and verbal communication skills with the ability to influence peers, set goals, and guide direction effectively.
• Travel, domestic and international as required by business needs.
• Ability to work independently on multiple projects under minimal guidance, adapt to change, make decisions confidently, and remain comfortable with risk and ambiguity in dynamic environments.

The Company is an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to a diverse and inclusive work environment. We accept applications on an ongoing basis. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, or disability, or any other classification protected by law.

Salary or Pay Range: $139,000 - $149,000. Pay offered will vary based on job-related factors such as location, experience, training, skills, and abilities.

At Crocs, Inc. we believe in the power of a blend of in-person and virtual collaboration to drive creativity and strengthen relationships. Your participation in this flexible schedule plays a key role in building a connected and successful team. In-office requirements vary by our work personas: Resident (5 days), Collaborator (4 days), Connector (2-3 days), Explorer (fully remote). This role has been aligned to the Collaborator persona.

This position is eligible to participate in a company incentive program.

This position is eligible for company benefits including but not limited to medical, dental, and vision coverage, life and AD&D, short and long-term disability coverage, paid time off, employee assistance, participation in a 401k program that includes company match, and many other additional voluntary benefits.

The application window is 45 days, but applicants are encouraged to apply as soon as possible after the posting date in order to ensure optimal consideration. The posting will be removed if the job is filled before the application window deadline.