Senior Manager, Product Trend, Global - Converse at Converse

Become part of the Converse Team

Converse is a place to explore potential, break barriers and push out the edges of what can be. The company looks for people who can grow, think, dream and create. Its culture thrives by embracing diversity and rewarding imagination. The brand seeks achievers, leaders and visionaries. At Converse, it’s about each person bringing skills and passion to a challenging and constantly evolving world to make things better as a team.

Converse designs the future. At Converse, designers chase their curiosities and build what’s next, shaping the culture and advancing human creativity. The Design Teams include artists, inventors and specialists, all with different focuses, including color and material experts, and apparel, footwear and graphics designers. Converse designers look to the future, courageously pursuing materials, ideas and forms that further elevate the consumer’s experience, raise the bar for modern style and reduce environmental impact.

The Product Creation and Merchandising team has a one-team mentality across a multitude of specialties- Trend and Concept, Footwear Design, Product and Consumer Merchandising, Product Development and Business Operations- collectively driven to deliver the Converse consumers with the best products possible and advance the independent spirit of youth.

WHO WE ARE LOOKING FOR

We’re looking for a Senior Manager of Product Trend who has a strong understanding of fashion industry trends with an emphasis on footwear. Through continued research and consumer connection, you will balance both the art and science of trend forecasting to accurately identify patterns used to inform global direction. Confident, passionate and inspiring presentation skills are deeply valued. This influential leader must be highly motivated and organized with the ability to lead a distributed team and work on multiple projects at once!

WHAT YOU WILL WORK ON

If this is you, you will help fuel our product creation teams with relevant intel to make the most informed decisions for future seasons. This role must demonstrate excellent research and analytical skills with the ability to interpret, edit, and apply trend data into compelling, brand right content to guide our product creation teams. Excellent communication skills will be crucial as this role works with both internal and external partners / agencies. You will work closely with Trend and Concept leadership to set product trend direction for Design as well as test concepts before they go to market, informing multiple tracks of creation where applicable. Ability to travel both domestically and globally is vital.

WHO YOU WILL WORK WITH

This role will report to the Director, Trend & Concept, Global, working within a team of specialists who translate trend knowledge into our overarching creative direction. Reporting to you is our Product Trend Geography Leads who ensure we keep a pulse on what is happening globally. The Trend and Concept Team, which this role sits within, is a centralized team with cross functional reach- working closely with the product creation teams, adjacently with our quantitative insights strategy team, and cross INC with Nike trend and insights teams. This team works with both internal and external partners / agencies / consumers.

WHAT YOU BRING

• Must have a bachelor's degree and a minimum of 8+ years experience in trend forecasting (Note: One of the following alternatives may be accepted: PhD or Law + 6 yrs; Masters + 7 yrs; Associates degree + 9 yrs; High School + 10 yrs)
• Must have experience mentoring or leading others
• Passion for trend research with a discerning eye for style and consumer behaviors
• Clear and inspiring communicator
• Organized and able to multi-task projects
• Experience working with consumer focus groups and research agencies
• Ability to forecast future trends up to 2 years from market
• Ability to work across multiple time zones, in person and over Zoom
• Ability to travel both domestically and globally

Converse is more than a company; it’s a worldwide advocate for self-expression. This belief motivates our employees, permeates our working environment and inspires our products. No two of us look or think exactly alike. We are each one-of-a-kind. Individually and as a culture, we have the freedom to create and grow professionally. Generous benefits packages only sweeten the experience. From Boston to Shanghai, from Brand Design to Finance, Converse is a brand that celebrates the unique and creative people of the world. Together, we’re different.