Senior Manager - Production Planning (Vans Footwear)

Position Summary

The Senior Manager, Production Planning for VF Asia (Vans Footwear) is responsible for leading end‑to‑end production planning across a multi‑country vendor network, ensuring alignment between demand, capacity, and execution excellence.

This role plays a critical leadership function in supporting VF’s evolving sourcing footprint in Asia, particularly as Vietnam becomes a key hub for development and execution. The position requires a balance of strategic planning, operational execution, and people leadership, ensuring both business results and a high‑performing, engaged team environment.

Key Responsibilities

1. Production Planning Strategy & Execution

• Lead the development and execution of seasonal and long‑range production plans across vendors and countries
• Align planning outputs with brand demand, sourcing strategies, and vendor capacity
• Drive OTIF (On Time In Full) performance and mitigate supply chain risks proactively
• Ensure integration of production planning with development, costing, and manufacturing timelines

2. Vendor & Capacity Management

• Partner with Vans Footwear vendors to ensure accurate capacity planning, allocation, and utilization
• Challenge vendors on transparency, including:
• Subcontracting practices
• Capacity constraints
• Production bottlenecks
• Lead escalation and mitigation plans for capacity gaps or execution risks
• Drive consistency in vendor planning standards across the Asia network

3. Cross‑Functional Alignment

• Act as the key interface between:
• Sourcing Development / Sourcing Operations team.
• Commercialization / Technical teams
• Brand / Merchandising counterparts
• Ensure clear communication and alignment on:
• Production milestones
• Material readiness
• Delivery commitments
• Drive decision‑making through structured planning reviews

4. Leadership & Team Development

• Build, lead, and develop a high‑performing Production Planning team across Vietnam and CMBD
• Create a culture of:
• Accountability and ownership
• Speak‑up voice and constructive challenge
• Continuous improvement and execution discipline
• Coach team members to grow both:
•  Technical planning capability
•  Leadership maturity and influence

5. Operational Excellence & Continuous Improvement

• Identify and implement improvements in:
•  Planning processes
•  Data accuracy and visibility
•  Reporting and decision frameworks
• Lead initiatives to simplify workflows and improve speed and agility
• Drive adoption of best practices across vendors and internal teams

6. Risk Management & Governance

• Monitor and manage risks including:
• Production delays
• Quality spillovers from planning gaps
• Vendor non‑compliance (e.g. unauthorized subcontracting)
• Ensure robust escalation mechanisms and clear ownership
• Maintain strong discipline in planning governance and execution tracking

Key Deliverables / Success Measures

• Improved delivery performance (OTIF / On‑time shipment)
• High production plan accuracy and stability
• Strong vendor capacity alignment and transparency
• Reduced last‑minute escalations and firefighting
• Positive improvement in team engagement and culture metrics
• Development of a sustainable talent pipeline within Planning

Required Qualifications & Experience

• 5+ years in production planning / supply chain / sourcing operations
• Strong experience in footwear or apparel manufacturing environments
• Proven leadership experience managing teams in multi‑country Asia setups
• Deep understanding of:
• Vendor operations
• Capacity planning
• End‑to‑end production cycles

Core Competencies

Functional

• Advanced production planning & capacity management
• Vendor performance management
• Supply chain risk mitigation
• Data‑driven decision making
• Familiar with all current generation Production Planning software.

Leadership

• Strong people leadership and coaching capability
• Ability to influence across functions and senior stakeholders
• Clear, structured communicator
• Resilient under pressure with strong judgment

Behavioral

• High ownership mindset
• Courage to challenge constructively
• Focus on transparency and integrity
• Continuous improvement mentality

Leadership Expectations

• Leads by example in building positive, engaged team culture
• Creates an environment where associates feel:
• Heard
• Respected
• Empowered to contribute
• Balances delivery pressure with people development
• Drives consistent behaviors, not short‑term fixes

Scope & Impact

• Regional scope across Vietnam and broader Asia vendor base
• Direct impact on supply chain execution, cost, and speed to market
• Key contributor to VF’s GTM & simplification process projects.

Why This Role Matters

This role is critical to enabling VF’s transition toward a more agile, Asia‑centric sourcing model. The Senior Manager of Production Planning will help ensure that growth, capability build, and operational excellence are delivered in parallel, while strengthening both vendor partnerships and internal team culture.

Functional Competencies:

• Strong English communication skills, both written and spoken; Cantonese and/or Mandarin is a plus.
• Strong Excel, PowerPoint, and presentation skills.
• Data modeling and forecasting experience.
• Proven ability to analyze data and generate insights that solve business problems.
• Ability to manage ambiguity in a dynamic planning environment.
• Supply chain planning and retail knowledge preferred.
• KPI management and performance tracking capability.

R-20260511-0010