Because we strive to put people first. Culture, our way.
As Head of Design you will help create and develop the vision for the department working alongside your Leadership team. Leading and working with your team of Designers, alongside Assistant & Trainee Designers, you will deliver key products and trends, enabling Primark to surprise and delight customers across all markets.
A key focus will be empowering your Design team, fostering a high-performance culture, constantly seeking new opportunities to enhance the product proposition and working closely with trusted suppliers and freelancers.
As part of this role, you will work alongside the Buying and Merchandising leadership teams and ensure the Design function is represented in senior leadership and sign-off meetings, influencing department decision-making on strategy and product to maximise profit and sales.
Duties & Responsibilities
Design Vision & Strategy
- Communicate and translate strategic priorities to the Design team and relevant stakeholders, setting clear metrics and deliverables.
- Build effective relationships with business leaders and stakeholders.
Product Design
- Oversee product design and ensure trends are translated into commercially successful products.
- Oversee the Design team in building and maintaining critical paths to support commercial opportunities throughout the year.
- Identify opportunities to utilise technology to improve trend forecasting and ways of working.
- Establish forums to communicate trends to stakeholders across Buying, Merchandising, Design, Brand, sourcing and quality, suppliers and freelancers.
Leadership
- Build, manage and mentor a high-performing team focused on delivering the Design vision and strategy across departments.
- Set goals and provide feedback against these.
- Build trust and credibility across Primark and develop strong internal networks and partnerships to achieve strategic objectives.
- Build talent and succession plans in line with current and future business needs, providing opportunities within the team for growth and development.
- Oversee the Design budget and manage it to drive the best return on investment for the business.
Collaboration
- Collaborate effectively with Buying and Merchandising to deliver monthly product sign-off.
- Work with and influence other design leads to ensure a unified Design voice within and across departments.
- Form strategic partnerships and productive working relationships with preferred suppliers aligned to Primark strategy.
- Provide ongoing direction to drive outsourced design, and coordinate and manage Supplier Designers and Freelancers.
Knowledge, Education, Skills and Experience
- 10 years in a Design role with at least 5 years in a management position.
- Experience in a global or international retailer is preferable.
- Demonstrated experience in the implementation and execution of Design strategies and plans.
- Ability to effectively manage complex tasks and prioritise multiple projects and competing priorities.
- Strong leadership skills, with the ability to effectively coach, guide and mentor while ensuring the team achieves its goals.
- Strong creative vision and ability to foster and encourage a culture of creativity within your team.
- Outstanding written and interpersonal communication skills.
- Experience creating a high-performance culture through target setting, performance evaluation and employee engagement.
- Demonstrated experience creating effective relationships across the business, including relationship management at Executive levels.
- Demonstrated ability to develop a culture that embraces innovation and challenges existing ways of working without compromising business performance.
- Experience managing third-party suppliers and freelancers, with the ability to manage third parties to deliver services.
Personal Attributes
- Creates trusted relationships and collaborates across multifunctional teams to successfully drive business objectives.
- Promotes customer centricity and ensures focus on creating great customer experiences.
- Sets aggressive goals and is accountable for continuously driving improved performance, leading change and ensuring high standards.
- Excellent planning and organisation skills, with the ability to multitask, plan and prioritise work for self and team, and work within agreed timescales.
About Primark
At Primark, people matter. They are the beating heart of the business and the reason Primark has grown from its first store in Dublin in 1969 to over 80,000 colleagues and 500 stores in 19 countries.