Altra: Footwear Developer, Special Projects & Collaborations

A day in the life of a Specialist Footwear Developer – Special Projects & Collaborations centers on supporting high‑visibility development programs that often involve designers, partners, athletes, and third‑party collaborators, while maintaining Altra’s performance, fit, quality, and cost standards.

This role contributes to the development from Design Review through Commercialization, with increased emphasis on coordination, cross‑functional alignment, and external collaboration. You will support alignment between creative vision and development execution.

Let’s break down that day-in-the-life a bit more. 

• Support special projects and collaborative footwear initiatives from concept through production, ensuring alignment between design intent, performance requirements, and manufacturability. 

• Partner with external collaborators and internal cross-functional partners, guiding product feasibility and execution while protecting Altra standards.

• Assist in building and maintaining accurate workback schedules and milestone tracking to drive cross-functional alignment.

• Work closely with Merchandising, Product Management, and Design to align seasonal and project‑specific objectives, timelines, and deliverables.

• Proactively manage project timelines, highlighting risks and helping teams stay aligned to key milestones.

• Collaborate with VF Asia Development, Engineering, Costing, and Manufacturing teams to deliver products at target margin and cost. 

• Ensure complete and accurate technical packages are created, published, and maintained in Flex PLM, including CADs, BOMs, specifications, patterns, and project documentation. 

• Assist in addressing quality concerns, working cross‑functionally to protect brand integrity and performance claims across marketing, sales, and product supply. 

We all have unique skills that we bring to work and celebrate every day. For this role, there are foundation skills you’ll need to succeed and excel. Additionally, while formal education in a related field is great to have, we are most interested in your 4+ years of experience and professional achievements.

The foundation skills you will need in this position are: 

• 4+ years of footwear product development experience, with exposure to special projects, collaborations, or premium initiatives preferred. 

• Experience working on cross-functional projects within the product development lifecycle.

• Understanding of the end‑to‑end footwear development process, from brief hand‑off to production confirmation. 

• Knowledge of footwear materials, and manufacturing processes.

• Strong project management and organizational skills, with the ability to manage multiple timelines and stakeholders simultaneously. 

• Highly collaborative communication style, able to build trust across Merchandising, Product, Marketing, and Design. 

• Proficiency in Adobe Illustrator, PLM systems, and Microsoft Office. 

• Willingness to support domestic and overseas travel and flexibility during peak development periods. 

#LI-DD1

Hiring Range:

Incentive Potential: This position is eligible for additional compensation awards that may include an annual incentive plan, sales incentive, or commission potential. Specific details of the additional compensation eligibility for this position will be provided during the recruiting and interview process.

Benefits at VF Corporation: You can review a general overview of each benefit program offered, including this year's medical plan rates on www.MyVFbenefits.com  and by clicking Looking to Join VF? Detailed information on your benefits will be provided during the hiring process.

Please note, our hiring ranges are determined and built from market pay data. In determining the specific compensation for this position, we comply with all local, state, and federal laws.

At VF, we value a diverse, inclusive workforce and we provide equal employment opportunity for all applicants and employees. All qualified applicants for employment will be considered without regard to an individual’s race, color, sex, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, national origin or ancestry, citizenship, physical or mental disability, medical condition, family care status, marital status, domestic partner status, sexual orientation, genetic information, military or veteran status, or any other basis protected by federal, state or local laws. If you require accommodations during the application process, please contact us at [email protected]. VF will provide reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals to the extent required by applicable law.

Pursuant to all applicable local Fair Chance Ordinance requirements, including but not limited to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, VF will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.