Signal & Strand · 1 day ago
Director of Product Development & Production
Los Angeles, CA
Full-time
Onsite
Director/Executive
$150K/yr - $175K/yr
8+ years expSignal & Strand is a company that partners with organizations in the apparel and lifestyle sectors to enhance leadership and product development. They are seeking a Director of Product Development & Production to manage the full product lifecycle, ensuring quality and efficiency while collaborating with various teams to bring products to market.
Information Technology & Services
Responsibilities
Support the development of multi-season product plans that balance creative direction with margin targets, feasibility, and operational realities
Translate brand and category strategies into clear seasonal priorities, line requirements, and development pathways
Serve as a connective partner across functions, ensuring alignment from concept through production handoff
Manage all stages of product development — materials, costing, fit, sampling, approvals — ensuring accuracy and calendar adherence
Maintain development tools, BOM accuracy, tech pack readiness, and sample tracking across categories
Ensure technical consistency and quality through fit sessions, vendor communication, and development checkpoints
Collaborate with Design, Merchandising, Raw Materials, and Sourcing to ensure seasonal handoffs, timelines, and deliverables remain on track
Provide early visibility into feasibility, materials needs, production risks, and cost implications
Partner with Planning and Supply Chain to support forecasting, raw material commitments, and production readiness
Work closely with Sourcing on vendor allocation, costing rounds, sample execution, and quality expectations
Maintain clear communication with factories to ensure accurate sampling, timely responses, and strong development execution
Support vendor scorecarding and performance management to strengthen overall supply-chain output
Manage and enforce seasonal product calendars, checkpoints, and cross-functional workflows
Improve tools, processes, and documentation that support accuracy, visibility, and efficiency across teams
Champion adoption and best practices for PLM, Adobe Suite, and development-critical systems
Utilize KPIs — IMU, sample accuracy, fit approval rate, vendor performance, development timing — to guide daily execution
Identify bottlenecks and operational gaps; develop action plans to strengthen speed, clarity, and cross-team efficiency
Provide leadership with seasonal reporting that enhances visibility into product status and risks
Manage and mentor Product Developers and cross-functional partners, providing clear direction and growth pathways
Support hiring, onboarding, and capability building as the product function scales
Foster a culture of accountability, collaboration, and continuous improvement
Qualification
Required
8–12+ years of experience in apparel product development, with strong understanding of technical design, sourcing, and production
Deep fluency in garment construction, fabric development, costing, and the end-to-end development cycle
Experience working across multiple categories; strong cross-functional coordination skills
Proven ability to manage complex seasonal calendars and multiple product lines
Strong communication and problem-solving abilities; able to influence without authority
Hands-on experience with PLM, Adobe Illustrator/Photoshop, and development workflows
A balance of creativity, process discipline, and operational awareness
Company
Signal & Strand
In a world of noise, we find the signal — the pulse of potential. We weave the strands of talent, vision, and purpose into organizations that endure.
11-50 employees
Funding
Current Stage
Early StageCompany data provided by crunchbase