Senior Manager, Design Operations

Job ID: 7946 

Alternate Locations:  

Newell Brands is a leading consumer products company with a portfolio of iconic brands like Graco®, Coleman®, Oster®, Rubbermaid®, Sharpie® and Yankee Candle® - and 24,000 talented teammates around the world. Our culture is built on values in action: Integrity, Teamwork, Passion for Winning, Ownership, and Leadership. We work together to win, grow, and make a real impact—supported by a high-performing, inclusive, and collaborative environment where you can be your best, every day.

Job Overview:

The Senior Manager, Design Operations leads the planning, production, and execution of creative content across Newell Brands’ portfolio, from initial intake to final deployment. This role supports cross-functional initiatives by ensuring operational excellence through intake readiness, project planning, asset management, and omnichannel delivery. Operating at the center of Design Operations, this position is a key force behind process optimization, creative output consistency, and strategic delivery.

The Senior Manager, Design Operations manages a team of production and project coordinators, and is responsible for attracting, developing, and retaining creative production talents, internal and/or external resources. The Senior Manager, Design Operations partners with the Design Leadership team, as well as the eCommerce Leadership team, Sales Delivery team, marketing partners and brands, to ensure on-time delivery, quality of input/output, production timelines, and successful translation of concepts into in-market assets and all forms of artwork deliverables.

Responsibilities:

Team & Cross-Functional Leadership

• Oversee Manager, Design Operations and project teams to ensure execution aligns with strategic and financial goals.
• Partner with Design Leadership, eCommerce, and Sales Delivery to establish and track resourcing, timelines, and metrics.
• Collaborate with Creative Directors to support omni-creative execution planning.
• Support recruiting, hiring, and development of production and project talent.
• Manage internal systems and tools (e.g., Workfront), train teams, and champion best practices in project execution and deployment.

Operational Excellence

• Oversee intake process to ensure readiness gates, prerequisites, and resourcing are in place.
• Identify and escalate readiness gaps and roadblocks.
• Lead end-to-end production workflows including routing, proofing, approvals, and deployment.
• Maintain quality control, brand compliance, and technical accuracy.
• Track performance metrics and lead initiatives that improve readiness, reduce risk, and accelerate content velocity.

Project & Production Management

• Optimize studio workflows across Communication Design for consistency and efficiency.
• Master Workfront setup and implementation; lead training across teams.
• Build project timelines in collaboration with stakeholders.
• Present project delivery timelines with rationale to cross-functional partners.

Deployment

• Oversee timely and complete delivery of print and digital assets to global/local markets.
• Manage DTC traffic drivers (email, paid social) and eCommerce deployment (Amazon, Target, Walmart, etc.).
• Implement content governance workflows and ensure proper metadata tagging.

Systems & Asset Management

• Manage server file structures.
• Implement scalable governance across DAM, CMS, PIM, and deployment tools.
• Ensure production data accuracy and support content updates across platforms.

Agency & Budget Oversight

• Manage contractor spend
• Co-lead vendor selection and RFPs with Director, Design Ops.
• Review and approve external production scopes and compensation agreements.

Qualifications:

• University degree in Design, Art, Business, or related field (Bachelor’s preferred).
• 10+ years in project/operations management within a creative or marketing environment.
• 3+ years of people leadership experience.
• Strong experience with DTC and digital shelf content creation.
• Expertise in Workfront (Workfront Admin experience highly preferred).
• Familiarity with Jira, DAM, PIM, CMS systems, JSON, HTML/CSS, and typographic standards.
• Strong verbal, written, and visual communication skills.
• Excellent presentation, decision-making, and problem-solving skills.
• Proven ability to lead cross-functional collaboration in a fast-paced environment.
• Strong attention to detail, business acumen, and deadline flexibility.
• Ability to travel as needed.

Newell Brands (NASDAQ: NWL) is a leading global consumer goods company with a strong portfolio of well-known brands, including Rubbermaid, Sharpie, Graco, Coleman, Rubbermaid Commercial Products, Yankee Candle, Paper Mate, FoodSaver, Dymo, EXPO, Elmer’s, Oster, NUK, Spontex and Campingaz. We are focused on delighting consumers by lighting up everyday moments. Newell Brands and its subsidiaries are Equal Opportunity Employers and comply with applicable employment laws. EOE/M/F/Vet/Disabled are encouraged to apply.