WHO WE ARE LOOKING FOR
We are looking for a Principal Product Developer (Footwear) based in the Guangzhou PMO who is a recognized footwear product creation expert and strategic leader. This role sets the development agenda for complex, high-impact product portfolios, translating consumer, athlete, business, and innovation opportunities into industry-leading footwear solutions that create marketplace advantage.
The ideal candidate brings mastery across product development, engineering, materials, manufacturing, costing, sustainability, and project leadership. This person operates across multiple roles and categories, provides senior-level technical and strategic direction, leads through influence, and raises the capability and performance of the broader team.
WHAT YOU WILL WORK ON
As a Principal Product Developer in the Guangzhou PMO, you will own the vision, strategy, and execution of complex product creation programs from early concept through commercialization and production. You will serve as the product development authority across multiple roles, functions, sports teams, and regions—connecting Guangzhou PMO with PHK, Local Creation, PCC, offshore factory partners, and global teams across Product Development, Engineering, Materials, Costing, Sourcing, Manufacturing, Testing, and Innovation to deliver breakthrough product and scalable capabilities.
Key responsibilities include:
- Set and drive the product development strategy for complex franchises, high-risk models, new platforms, and cross-category initiatives.
- Lead multiple roles and workstreams across product development, technical problem solving, innovation, factory execution, process improvement, and organizational capability building.
- Translate athlete, consumer, design, performance, sustainability, cost, and business requirements into clear development strategies and executable product plans.
- Own critical product decisions and development trade-offs from concept through commercialization, ensuring design intent, product performance, quality, profitability, manufacturability, and delivery are achieved.
- Serve as the senior technical authority for escalated product, material, tooling, engineering, testing, costing, and manufacturing challenges; identify root causes and direct durable solutions.
- Lead the creation, validation, and scale-up of new concepts, materials, methods of making, technologies, digital tools, and operating models that unlock future growth and competitive advantage.
- Identify emerging marketplace, manufacturing, and technology opportunities, and convert them into actionable innovation roadmaps, pilots, and scalable capabilities.
- Lead cross-functional decision-making across large, diverse teams and multiple geographies; align leaders and experts around priorities, risks, resources, and outcomes.
- Establish operating plans, seasonal priorities, governance, and success measures for assigned portfolios; anticipate risk and intervene early to protect product and business outcomes.
- Represent Product Development in senior leadership forums and provide strategic recommendations that influence category direction, sourcing strategy, investment, and organizational priorities.
- Act as a force multiplier for the team by coaching developers, building technical depth, sharing best practices, and creating structured development opportunities for less experienced talent.
- Stand in for category or functional leadership when requested, maintaining decision quality, stakeholder alignment, and continuity of execution.
- Shape and embed standards, policies, tools, and ways of working that improve product excellence, speed, efficiency, sustainability, and data integrity across the product creation organization.
- Provide expert leadership across strategic portfolios, including Running, Basketball, Core, Kids, NSW, and Brand Impact, based on evolving business needs.
WHO YOU WILL WORK WITH
- You will be based in the Guangzhou PMO and partner with senior leaders and expert teams across Product Management, Development, Engineering, Materials, Testing, Costing, Sourcing, Sustainability, Innovation, Manufacturing Partners, and Global Product Creation. You will connect Guangzhou-based teams with PHK, headquarters, PCC, offshore factories, and other product creation partners, leading alignment across cultures and organizational boundaries to achieve shared product and business outcomes.
WHAT YOU BRING
Experience
- Bachelor's degree in product development, engineering, manufacturing, design, business, or a related field, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
- Typically 8–10+ years of applied footwear product creation experience, including advanced development work on technically complex or strategically important products.
- Demonstrated success leading major product initiatives, innovation programs, or complex portfolios across multiple categories, functions, partners, or geographies.
- Experience operating as a technical or functional authority, influencing senior stakeholders, and guiding decisions without relying on formal reporting relationships.
- Proven experience coaching, mentoring, and developing product creation talent; prior team, project-team, or formal people leadership experience is strongly preferred.
Functional Competencies
- Expert mastery of end-to-end footwear development, commercialization, manufacturing, and product lifecycle management.
- Broad technical expertise across construction, materials, tooling, engineering, testing, fit, performance, quality, costing, sustainability, and methods of making.
- Advanced systems thinking, issue management, risk assessment, root-cause analysis, and decision-making in ambiguous or high-pressure situations
- Demonstrated capability to lead innovation from opportunity identification and concept creation through validation, adoption, and scale.
- Strong command of product creation data, digital tools, process governance, and metrics used to improve readiness, efficiency, and product outcomes.
- Deep understanding of factory capabilities and the ability to elevate partner performance through technical direction, capability building, and long-term collaboration.
Leadership Competencies
- Strategic leadership: shapes long-term direction, establishes priorities, and connects product decisions to business and marketplace opportunities.
- Enterprise influence: communicates complex issues clearly and aligns senior leaders, experts, and partners around decisive action.
- Innovation leadership: challenges established approaches, encourages experimentation, and converts learning into scalable product or process advantage.
- Talent and capability building: provides expert coaching, strengthens technical communities, and raises standards across the function
- Cross-cultural collaboration: builds trust and leads effectively across functions, organizations, manufacturing partners, and geographies.
- Executive communication: presents clear recommendations, trade-offs, and decisions with credibility to senior leadership.
- Operational excellence: establishes accountability, monitors outcomes, and continuously improves how teams deliver product excellence and team excellence.
Preferred
- Experience working in or closely with a China-based product creation office, preferably Guangzhou PMO, and collaborating with factory partners, suppliers, PHK, and global headquarters teams.
- Track record of delivering breakthrough footwear products, platforms, technologies, or transformational process improvements.
- Experience across more than one product category, technical discipline, manufacturing model, or product creation role.
- Ability to travel up to 25% for product creation, marketplace, supplier, and manufacturing engagement.