Senior Manager, Kids Footwear Product Design, Global Jordan
Nike · Beaverton
WHO YOU WILL WORK WITH
You will report directly to the Sr. Product Director, Kids and collaborate with teams across Jordan Design and the broader organization. Key partners include:
- Sr. Product Director, Kids, Jordan Advanced Digital Design, and Color/Material Excellence
- Product Merchandising and Product Development
- Consumer Insights and Innovation partners
- Brand Design, Narrative, and downstream marketing teams
- Materials, Manufacturing, and external creative/vendor partners
You will serve as a connector across these groups, ensuring product direction, storytelling, and execution are unified and aligned with the Product Direction for Kids Footwear.
WHO WE ARE LOOKING FOR
We’re seeking a Sr. Manager, Kids Footwear to help shape the creative direction and execution of Jordan Kids Footwear. This leader will focus on delivering high-value, accessible footwear that maintains Jordan’s signature craft, cultural resonance, and emotional impact.
You will guide designers through the development of seasonal and long-term Kids Footwear concepts, ensuring the work remains aligned with Jordan’s creative strategy while advancing the brand’s reach. This role demands both creative sensitivity and operational precision, with the ability to translate insight into product, create clarity through ambiguity, and support the growth of a multidisciplinary team.
You report to the Sr. Product Director, Kids, operating as a key creative leader within the Kids offense. You understand how to build products that resonate widely without compromising authenticity, and you bring an entrepreneurial drive that pushes the work into new territories.
- Bachelor's degree in Product Design or related field. Will accept any suitable combination of education, experience and training.
- A well-curated portfolio demonstrating research depth, conceptual development, design rigor, problem solving, and high-quality final execution.
- Experience working directly with a broad range of consumers and athletes, and the ability to translate insight into meaningful product direction.
- Proven contribution to initiating, developing, and implementing research that uncovers new opportunities for product and process.
- A self-initiated, entrepreneurial approach to innovation and creative solution-building.
- Understanding of innovative methods of make and sustainability-focused design.
- A track record of commercialized footwear products or innovations delivered to market.
- Experience leading teams through ambiguity, clarifying direction, and driving concept work toward successful outcomes.
- Ability to prioritize across seasonal work and long-term initiatives with differing levels of complexity.
- Skill in building and maintaining design vision end-to-end, ensuring product stays aligned with strategy.
- Advanced project management skills and the ability to organize meetings, timelines, and deliverables across partners.
- A self-starter mentality, driven by curiosity, initiative, and action.
- Ability to articulate creative direction in a way that inspires and mobilizes others.
- Experience mentoring designers and guiding team dynamics.
- Strong collaboration instincts and the ability to influence across a matrixed organization.
- A team-oriented mindset that values diverse perspectives and fosters an open, inclusive creative environment.
- Resilience and agility, able to navigate ambiguity and keep teams moving forward with optimism and clarity.
- Strong self-awareness and the ability to articulate strengths, opportunities, and learnings.
- A growth mindset that embraces experimentation and constructive reflection as integral to the creative process.
- Deep curiosity and cultural fluency, with an understanding of design culture and the community influences shaping the future of footwear.
WHAT WILL YOU WORK ON
As Sr. Manager, Kids Footwear, you will help direct the creation of Jordan Kids Footwear, shaping product identity, seasonal direction, and long-term category evolution.
Your responsibilities will include:
- Leading the design and development of Kids Footwear concepts and seasonal assortments.
- Translating insights, cultural cues, and consumer behavior into product that is both accessible and inspiring.
- Partnering closely with the Sr. Product Director, Kids, to define and maintain Product Direction for Kids Footwear.
- Guiding designers through world-building work, visual frameworks, narrative tools, and design systems that clarify the role of Kids Footwear within the brand.
- Collaborating with merchandising, product development, materials, color, and brand partners to ensure alignment and consistency across product creation.
- Driving seasonal process through briefs, reviews, prototyping, refinement, and cross-functional alignment.
- Maintaining clarity and quality across multiple projects, ensuring product meets both design and business expectations.
- Supporting the exploration of new business opportunities within the Kids offense as the category grows.
You will help ensure that Kids Footwear reflects the essence of Jordan: authentic, culturally connected, emotionally resonant, and crafted with intention.
We offer a number of accommodations to complete our interview process including screen readers, sign language interpreters, accessible and single location for in-person interviews, closed captioning, and other reasonable modifications as needed. If you discover, as you navigate our application process, that you need assistance or an accommodation due to a disability, please complete the Candidate Accommodation Request Form.