Product Director

About the job

Coats Digital provides industry-leading software solutions designed to optimize operations for fashion, apparel, and footwear manufacturers. Its technology helps businesses improve efficiency, enhance transparency, and support sustainability across the supply chain. With a strong foundation in industry expertise, Coats Digital works with manufacturers and brands worldwide, offering digital tools that streamline processes from design to delivery. Operating globally and headquartered in the UK, Coats Digital focuses on delivering innovative solutions that drive measurable improvements in productivity, cost management, and sustainability. For more information, visit: www.coatsdigital.com Role Purpose: As Product Director, you will define and drive the vision for an end-to-end supply chain solution serving apparel and textile manufacturers globally. This is a high-impact role at the intersection of manufacturing domain expertise and modern SaaS product management responsible for shaping how manufacturers plan, execute, and optimise their operations from raw material to finished goods shipment. You will lead a team of product managers, own the product roadmap across the manufacturing supply chain lifecycle, and work closely with engineering, commercial, and customer success teams to deliver solutions that create measurable value for manufacturers. The ideal candidate has lived and breathed the factory floor before transitioning into software, bringing the credibility, context, and conviction needed to build truly differentiated products for this industry. Key Responsibilities: End-to-End Supply Chain Vision • Own the product vision and strategy for a connected manufacturing platform spanning pre-production planning, capacity management, production execution, costing, and shipment tracking. • Identify and close capability gaps in the end-to-end manufacturing value chain, from yarn to finished goods delivery. • Drive the integration strategy between planning, execution, and analytics layers to give manufacturers a unified operational backbone. • Stay ahead of industry shifts — including nearshoring trends, sustainability mandates, AI adoption, and digital factory initiatives and translate these into product opportunity. AI-Powered Product Development • Lead the definition and delivery of AI and machine learning capabilities that address real operational challenges in garment manufacturing, including predictive planning, automated costing, production optimisation, and anomaly detection. • Work with engineering and data science teams to identify where AI can create step-change improvements in manufacturer outcomes, moving beyond incremental feature additions. • Ensure AI features are explainable, trustworthy, and adoptable by factory operators and planners not just technically sophisticated. • Build a product roadmap that systematically embeds intelligence across the supply chain, making the platform smarter with every customer interaction and data point collected. Voice of the Customer & Market Intelligence • Conduct structured Voice of Customer (VOC) and Observational VOC (OVOC) engagements with manufacturers, brands, and supply chain operators globally. • Synthesise customer insights, market trends, and competitive intelligence into clear product priorities and investment cases. • Track product adoption and usage patterns to identify value delivery gaps and drive improvement across the customer journey. Product Strategy & Roadmap • Develop and maintain a prioritised, outcome-driven product roadmap aligned to manufacturer needs and business objectives. • Build business cases for new modules, platform extensions, and integrations across the supply chain lifecycle. • Define MVP scopes in collaboration with engineering, balancing speed to market with long-term platform integrity. • Clarify target customer segments based on manufacturing complexity, operational maturity, and willingness to invest in digital transformation. Go-to-Market & Commercial Alignment • Build compelling, outcome-focused value propositions that articulate ROI for manufacturers at different stages of digital maturity. • Coordinate product and capability launches aligning commercial, marketing, pre-sales, and engineering teams around cohesive go-to-market moments. • Ensure the product portfolio is competitively positioned and appropriately priced across geographies and customer segments. Product Lifecycle & Enablement • Maintain comprehensive product documentation, customer-facing training materials, and implementation guides. • Work closely with the Engineering Product Owner to maintain a healthy, well-prioritised backlog. • Support strategic customer engagements, including discovery workshops, executive briefings, and co-creation sessions. Qualifications and Experience: • Minimum 5 years working directly in garment or apparel manufacturing in a hands-on operational capacity such as production planning, industrial engineering, supply chain management, or factory operations followed by a deliberate transition into software or technology roles. • 10+ years of total professional experience spanning manufacturing and software/technology. • 3+ years in a Product Manager or Product Owner role within SaaS or enterprise software. • Proven track record of defining and delivering complex, multi-module product roadmaps. • Strong ability to translate operational manufacturing challenges into scalable software solutions. • Excellent communication and executive presentation skills; able to engage credibly at C-level. • Familiarity with Agile product management practices and solution design methodologies. • Degree in Apparel Manufacturing, Industrial Engineering, Information Technology, or Business Administration.

Requirements

• Manufacturing Domain Expertise
• SaaS Product Management
• AI and Machine Learning Capabilities
• Operational Efficiency
• Communication Skills
• Executive Presentation Skills

Qualifications

• Degree in Apparel Manufacturing
• Industrial Engineering
• Information Technology
• Business Administration

Preferred Technologies

• Manufacturing Domain Expertise
• SaaS Product Management
• AI and Machine Learning Capabilities
• Operational Efficiency
• Communication Skills
• Executive Presentation Skills

About the company

Coats Digital provides industry-leading software solutions designed to optimize operations for fashion, apparel, and footwear manufacturers.