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Summary
Product Manager, Hardlines at Learning Resources leads the ideation, development, and lifecycle management of toy and game product lines, launching 10-15 new products annually while ensuring brand alignment and market competitiveness. This role shapes the company's product portfolio through cross-functional collaboration and vendor management to drive new product revenue growth.
Job Description
About Educational Insights:
We are on a mission to bring learning to life! For 60 years, our team of teachers, scientists, artists, coders, and kids-at-heart has created award-winning toys and games designed to spark creativity, ignite curiosity, and provide opportunities for kiddos to discover their unique passions. Our team motto is, "Where work is play." We love to laugh and delight in testing out new games. Our love of play transfers into the toys and games we create, where we aim to build confidence, celebrate diversity, and ignite the spark in every child. We pride ourselves on being committed to our employee’s personal and professional development, a thriving culture and a diverse, creative atmosphere. Along with our culture and competitive benefits package, we offer opportunities for training and development by Harvard and UCLA professors as well as in-demand, motivating external speakers. We are looking for professionals who are truly just kids at heart! We hope you’ll come join our award-winning team today!
Team & Position Description:
We are currently seeking a Product Development Manager to join our dynamic Product Development team! Here’s what makes this team awesome: team-centricity, creativity workshops, blue sky innovation, and mission driven development. In this role, you will have an opportunity to shape our line and work with cross functional leaders to define our brand both today and in the future. Your products will spark curiosity, bring families together, and help children discover a love of learning.
What you’ll do day to day:
- Product Innovation & Development: Spearhead the ideation and development of new toy lines and games in assigned categories. Oversee all stages of development—from research and prototyping to safety testing and manufacturing.
- Market Competitiveness and Trend Analysis: Conduct in-depth competitive research and data analysis to inform product development and positioning. Ensure appropriate educational standards are adhered to.
- Cross-Functional Collaboration: Work collaboratively with Marketing, Sales, Quality Assurance, E-commerce, Packaging Design, and Analytics teams to align product development with market needs and promotional strategies.
- Vendor Management: Develop and manage strong relationships with overseas manufacturers and negotiate high-value contracts with a deep understanding of the manufacturing process and materials in order to reduce costs.
- Line Management: Monitor assigned product lines tracking and reporting on sales, customer feedback, and social engagement, leading to recommendations for drops, revamps, or expansion each year.
- Rapid Prototyping: Create product mock ups for exploration and testing using standard equipment from laser cutters to 3D printers.
What we’re looking for (Key Performance Objectives):
- Launch 10-15 new products annually that contribute to a 10% increase in new product revenue in the first year. Conduct thorough research and market analysis to identify new areas for development appropriate to our brand annually.
- Negotiate and manage vendor agreements and new products with a 90% on-time delivery rate and adherence to designated budgets.
- Enhance overall product performance and customer satisfaction as measured by star reviews, QA feedback, and other metrics.
- Foster high team performance with satisfactory team evaluations in annual reviews and 3rd party surveys.
- Shepard concepts through the stage gate process and successfully present them during line reviews, town halls, and sales presentations.
Requirements/Ideal Attributes:
- 5+ years experience in children’s product development, toy industry preferred.
- Bachelor’s Degree in a relevant field.
- Strong storytelling skills and confident presentation ability
- Proficiency in Microsoft Office and the ability to analyze financial data, experience in Power BI a plus.
- Experience with Adobe Creative Suite or 3D modeling tools are ideal but not required.
- Strong collaboration skills with a focus on cross-functional teamwork.
- Excellent time and priority management capabilities.
We are a drug-free workplace and an EEO employer.
Please note: This role will be filled by our internal recruitment team, so no assistance is needed from any outside staffing agency at this time.
Salary Range: $80,000 to $105,000 – Actual compensation may vary due to other factors such as: years of experience, skill set or location.
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