Director of Product

JOIN US AND "CREATE YOUR VISION"

ABOUT US 

S&S Activewear is a leading North American, tech-enabled specialty distributor of imprintable apparel, including t-shirts, fleece, athletic wear, headwear, workwear, scrubs and accessories. We pride ourselves on being the “critical link” that enables our 100+ brand partners such as Adidas, Columbia and Gildan to reach our hyper-fragmented base of customers, comprised of apparel decorators, eRetailers and promotional products distributors that embellish apparel items for diverse end consumer use cases (e.g., everyday wear, concerts, fitness attire, life events, team sports, etc.). At S&S, we differentiate in the market through a customer service focus, strategic product portfolio, world-class distribution infrastructure, a collaborative growth culture and a relentless focus on technology and innovation. 

Our success has compounded since the Company’s humble beginnings in 1988 as a regional t-shirt distributor to a leading, multi-billion-dollar value-added distribution platform that drives market penetration for our suppliers while enabling the growth, operations and fulfillment for a diverse range of customers across channels and business sizes.  We strive to be the apparel distributor of choice while inspiring and fostering growth for customers, employees and suppliers through our core values of service, deep relationships, innovation, continuous improvement and accountability.

ABOUT THE ROLE

We are seeking a strategic and experienced Director of Product to lead and mentor a team of Product Owners who serve as the critical bridge between business stakeholders and agile software development teams. This role is ideal for a leader who thrives in a fast-paced environment where custom software solutions are built to meet complex business needs.

COMPENSATION & SCHEDULE

Salaried (based on experience)

Monday - Friday (8am-5pm), Full-Time, Exempt

Onsite: 220 Remington Drive - Bolingbrook, IL

WHAT YOU WILL DO

Leadership & Team Management

• Lead, coach, and develop a team of Product Owners, fostering a high-performance, collaborative culture.
• Define and drive the product ownership strategy, ensuring alignment with business goals and technical capabilities.
• Promote best practices in agile product management, backlog grooming, and stakeholder engagement.

Strategic Product Oversight

• Collaborate with executive leadership to define product vision, strategy, and roadmaps.
• Translate business objectives into actionable product initiatives and ensure delivery through agile methodologies.
• Prioritize product features and enhancements based on business value, user needs, and technical feasibility.

Project Prioritization & Portfolio Management

• Own the product portfolio prioritization process, balancing short-term deliverables with long-term strategic goals.
• Facilitate cross-functional prioritization discussions with stakeholders to ensure alignment and transparency.
• Implement frameworks (e.g., RICE, MoSCoW, WSJF) to evaluate and rank initiatives based on impact, effort, and risk.
• Monitor and adjust priorities based on evolving business needs, resource availability, and market dynamics.

Stakeholder Engagement

• Serve as the primary liaison between business stakeholders and development teams.
• Facilitate clear communication of product goals, requirements, and progress across departments.
• Ensure stakeholder feedback is continuously integrated into the product development lifecycle.

Process & Delivery Excellence

• Champion agile principles and ensure consistent application across teams.
• Monitor product delivery timelines, quality, and performance metrics.
• Identify and mitigate risks to ensure successful product outcomes.

WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR

Experience

• 8+ years of experience in product management, with at least 3 years in a leadership role managing Product Owners or Product Managers.
• Proven track record of delivering custom software solutions in an agile environment.
• Experience working closely with cross-functional teams including engineering, design, QA, and business stakeholders.

Skills

• Strong leadership, mentoring, and team-building capabilities.
• Excellent communication, negotiation, and stakeholder management skills.
• Deep understanding of agile frameworks (Scrum, SAFe, Kanban) and product lifecycle management.
• Expertise in project prioritization and portfolio management techniques.
• Analytical mindset with a data-driven approach to decision-making.

Education

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Computer Science, Engineering, Information Technology, or a related field (MBA or equivalent is a plus).

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in enterprise software in B2B environments.
• Familiarity with tools like Jira, Confluence, Aha!, or similar.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to talk or listen. 

WORKING ENVIRONMENT

Work Environment This role operates within a remote or hybrid professional office setting, requiring a high level of self-motivation, discipline, and effective communication across virtual platforms.

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

S&S Activewear welcomes people of all backgrounds and experiences and are committed to creating a diverse culture and supporting human growth. We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer and are committed to providing equal opportunity for all employees and applicants. We conduct business without regard to sex, race, creed, color, religion, marital status, national origin, citizenship status, age, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, genetic information, disability, military status, status as a veteran, or any other protected characteristic. Our policy is to recruit, hire, train, promote, assign, transfer, and terminate employees based on their own ability, achievement, experience and conduct and other legitimate business reasons. S&S participates in E-Verify and will provide the federal government with your Form I-9 information to confirm you are authorized to work in the U.S.  This job offer is contingent upon the completion of a satisfactory background check.