About This Role
The Creative Production Manager leads a team of production artists, prepress specialists and internal department designers; they are responsible for managing projects associated with all print deliverables (circulars, direct mail, and twice a year convention materials.) This role will act as a main liaison between other creative managers, operations team, and serve as a strategic creative partner with internal team members and clients. Responsible for helping the team achieve quality and production targets and is responsible for leading their team (staffing, performance management, and development), and fostering a collaborative and engaging team environment.
Creative Production Manager
What You’ll Do
Collaborate with creative director, internal and external partners to define and implement production solutions for all print collateral – including newspaper ads, direct mail, signage, grand openings, brochures and convention materials
Manage and optimize the entire production process to meet production goals and quality standards.
Ensure efficient workflow coordination, resource allocation, and scheduling to meet project deadlines.
Monitor daily production activities and make real-time adjustments to address issues and bottlenecks.
Act as a strategic partner to internal teams and partners across a portfolio of products, platforms and experiences
Strong organizational skills and an ability to manage multiple simultaneous projects. Adheres to all standards and SOPs, including file naming conventions, artwork release methods, appropriate electronic filing of artwork on server, etc.
Manages multiple simultaneous projects. Adheres to all standards and SOPs, including file naming conventions, artwork release methods, appropriate electronic filing of artwork on server, etc.
Recruit, train, and develop a highly skilled and motivated production team
Foster a culture of teamwork, accountability, and continuous improvement.
Who You Are
You're a rigorous and innovative thinker who can operate successfully among very bright and charismatic people.
You have strong process change management and process implementation experience
You have a strong work ethic and thrive in a fast-paced, action-oriented organization
You're a great storyteller, with excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to confidently and effectively present recommendations and results
You're a culture keeper who brings positive energy to any team and has experience growing direct reports.
Required Skills
Minimum 7 years of creative production management experience. In-house team a plus.
BA/BS degree or equivalent
Self-starter who has demonstrated complete ownership and delivers focused solutions based on customer needs
Ability to provide, interpret, and analyze client needs to help identify opportunities or issues and develop credible solutions
Proven ability to manage multiple projects at a time while paying strict attention to detail
Excellent listening and negotiation skills
Excellent verbal and written communication skills
Proficient in LAGO (print production) and WRIKE (project management) and Adobe platform
Must be able to proactively listen to others to understand issues and situations. Must be able to clearly articulate business needs to both internal and external customers.
Strong graphic design skills with ability to work in all mediums and provide creative direction, retail experience a plus
Compensation Details:
$115000 - $143500 Per Year
Why should you join our team?
We live our values - W.E.L.I.G.H.T (Winning, Excellence, Love, Integrity, Gratitude, Humility, and Teamwork). Gratitude. Humility. Love. You don’t often see values like these in most corporate statements, but Ace is different. These things are important to us. They represent our commitment to the company, our employees, to Ace retailers and to the Ace brand.
In addition to providing our employees a great culture, Ace also offers competitive benefits* that address life’s necessities and perks, many of which expand and improve year after year, including:
- Incentive opportunities, based on role/grade level (rapid company growth over the past 5 years resulted in incentives being paid out at an average of 122% of your target opportunity!)
- Generous 401(k) retirement savings plan with a fully vested matching contribution the first year in addition to quarterly contributions and annual discretionary contribution (once eligibility requirements have been met). Over the past 5 years, company contributions (matching, quarterly & discretionary) for fully eligible employees have averaged 9.6% of total eligible compensation
- Comprehensive health coverage (medical, dental, vision and disability – up to 26 weeks short-term disability and long-term disability) & life insurance benefits for you and your dependents
- 21 days of vacation immediately available (prorated in the first year) and up to 6 paid holidays depending on the month of hire
- Company Car, phone and fuel card are provided for field-based positions
- Your career at Ace is more than just a job. It’s a chance to be part of something meaningful. We help locally-owned businesses thrive and make an impact in their communities – and we support our employees in doing the same by offering an annual Ace Cares Week, 20 hours off work per year to volunteer at an organization of your choice, opportunities to help Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals and the Ace Helpful Fund through the Ace Foundation
- Ace invests in every employee we hire, with a key focus on development and coaching. We offer on-site classes, facilitator-led courses, and a generous tuition assistance program, plus a performance management approach that goes beyond the typical annual review
- We know the work environment matters. That’s why Ace holds frequent campus events like Employee Appreciation Week, vendor demos, cookouts, and merchandise sales
- We bring them to you! Services such as mobile spas, auto maintenance, car wash and detailing, dry cleaning, dentists, eye doctors, flu shots, recycling and more!
- Employee discounts on Ace merchandise (including top brands like Weber, Traeger, Yeti, Craftsman, DeWalt and more), travel, fitness, computers and thousands more
- Birth/Adoption bonding paid time off
- Adoption cost reimbursement
- Employee Assistance Program (EAP) – access to free visits to therapists and lawyers, guidance on financial matters, elder and childcare, and assistance with tickets to entertainment events
- Identity theft protection
* Benefits are provided in compliance with applicable policies.
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We want to hear from you!
When most people think of career opportunities with Ace Hardware, they often think of the helpful cashiers and sales associates at their local store. However, have you also considered the people behind the scenes who select, promote, ship and process the invoices for more than 75,000 products? Maybe you haven't, but we'd like you to. Because together we help our customers take care of their homes. Come find out why a career with the Ace Hardware Corporation is one of America's best kept secrets.
Equal Opportunity Employer
Ace Hardware Corporation is committed to a policy of promoting equal employment opportunities. The company recognizes the importance of diversity and leveraging the skills and talents of all people to the mutual advantage of each individual and the organization. The company is committed to the prevention of employment discrimination related to race, religion, color, sex (including sexual harassment), gender identity, national origin, age, marital status, disability and military or veteran status, sexual orientation or any other action covered by federal or applicable state/local laws.
Disclaimer
The pay range for this position starts as listed in the job posting, but could be higher based on education and experience. Please note, compensation decisions are dependent on the facts and circumstances of each opening. We take into consideration the minimum requirements outlined in the job description, such as an individual’s education, training and experience, the position’s work location, required travel (if any), and external market conditions when determining the final salary for potential new hires.
Be aware that salary estimates published via alternate online job boards may not be a true representation of the actual pay range offered for this position. Please refer to the Ace position description for the accurate starting pay range information and feel free to discuss this with a Talent Acquisition professional if you are chosen to move forward with an interview.
This written “Position Description” is not intended to cover all aspects of the position listed. It is meant to cover the basic/general essential job functions of a particular position. Ace Hardware Corporation reserves the right to change job duties, including essential job functions, according to business necessity.
