Senior Manager, Global EPR Compliance

Who We Are:
Kontoor Brands is a portfolio of three of the world’s most iconic lifestyle, outdoor and workwear brands: Wrangler®, Lee® and Helly Hansen®. Kontoor Brands is a purpose-led organization focused on leveraging its global platform, strategic sourcing model and best-in-class supply chain to drive brand growth and deliver long- term value for its stakeholders.
Job Posting:
Senior Manager, Global EPR Compliance
The Global EPR Compliance & Circularity Head will establish and lead Kontoor Brands’ global capability for Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) and related product stewardship compliance. This role will own the operating model for packaging, paper, plastics and textile EPR obligations across applicable markets; coordinate with internal functions to collect and validate reporting data; manage Producer Responsibility Organization (PRO) relationships and external advisors; and translate evolving regulations into practical business actions. The role is designed to work in parallel with external advisors during the transition period, while building the internal knowledge, processes and governance needed for Kontoor to ultimately own recurring EPR execution.
Why This Role Matters at Kontoor
Global regulatory growth
EPR requirements are expanding across U.S. states, Canada, Europe and product categories including packaging and textiles.
Data-heavy execution
Compliance requires repeatable collection and validation of sales, product, packaging, material composition, weight, recyclability, and market data.
Internal ownership gap
Consultants provide expertise, but Kontoor needs an accountable internal owner to drive execution, stakeholder alignment and knowledge of retention.
Key Accountabilities
Global EPR compliance strategy
Develop and maintain a global EPR compliance roadmap covering packaging, paper, plastics, textiles and relevant circular economy requirements.
Regulatory monitoring and interpretation
Monitor emerging laws and guidance, assess applicability to Kontoor, and translate requirements into business actions, timelines and data needs.
PRO registration and reporting
Lead registrations, submissions, fee-related data packages, and ongoing engagement with PROs and other responsible authorities.
Compliance calendar and controls
Maintain a global EPR calendar with filing deadlines, ownership, evidentiary requirements, approval checkpoints, and escalation paths.
External advisor management
Coordinate with external advisors and other advisors, define scopes of work, track deliverables, validate outputs and drive knowledge transfer into Kontoor.
Data governance and reporting readiness
Build standardized templates, data definitions and quality checks for sales, packaging, materials, fiber composition, weights, recyclability and market-specific requirements.
Cross-functional stakeholder leadership
Partner with Sustainability, Legal, Finance, Tax, Supply Chain, Packaging, Product Development, Sourcing, IT, regional teams and brand leaders.
Fee forecasting and business planning
Support annual planning by modeling known and potential EPR fees, liabilities and cost drivers by market, material and product category.
Audit and assurance support
Coordinate records, assumptions, evidence files, document retention and responses to internal reviews, external audits or regulator inquiries.
Circularity and design influence
Work with product and packaging teams to identify opportunities to reduce EPR exposure through material optimization, packaging reduction, recyclability, and circular design choices.
Essential Duties
Own the end-to-end global EPR compliance process, including jurisdictional applicability assessments, obligation mapping, registrations, reporting preparation, submissions and post-filing documentation.
Create and maintain a global EPR obligation tracker covering packaging, paper, textile and related product stewardship requirements across applicable jurisdictions.
Coordinate data collection from ERP/reporting systems and business owners; identify gaps in data availability, quality, ownership and system capabilities.
Partner with IT and analytics teams to improve EPR reporting automation, including data pipelines, dashboards, controls and repeatable reporting templates.
Manage relationships with PROs, external consultants, legal advisors, industry groups and relevant external stakeholders; support negotiations or decisions related to program participation where applicable.
Provide internal guidance to Sustainability, Legal, Finance, Tax, Supply Chain, Packaging, Product Development, Sourcing and regional teams regarding EPR requirements and emerging regulatory impacts.
Lead recurring EPR governance meetings, issue logs, risk reviews and action plans; escalate compliance risks and business impacts to leadership.
Support development of internal policies, SOPs, training materials and record retention practices for EPR compliance and product stewardship.
Analyze fee structures and eco-modulation signals to identify opportunities for cost avoidance, packaging optimization, textile circularity and product stewardship improvements.
Prepare leadership-ready updates summarizing regulatory changes, compliance status, key risks, consultant spending, fee exposure, data readiness, and opportunities for business optimization.
Lead and design reusable packaging strategies, support recyclable materials programs, and guide circularity initiatives.
Required Qualifications
Bachelor’s degree in sustainability, environmental science, business, supply chain, law, public policy, engineering, packaging, textiles or related field; equivalent experience considered.
7+ years of experience in regulatory compliance, environmental compliance, product stewardship, sustainability reporting, packaging compliance, EPR, circular economy programs, or related fields.
Demonstrated ability to manage complex cross-functional programs with many stakeholders, deadlines and data sources.
Strong analytical skills with experience using Excel and business intelligence or data reporting tools; ability to translate data into compliance deliverables and management insights.
Experience managing external consultants, advisors, legal partners or third-party service providers.
Excellent communication skills with ability to influence across functions, geographies and leadership levels.
Preferred Qualifications
Experience with packaging EPR, textile EPR, PPWR, plastic packaging taxes, product stewardship, PRO reporting or related global circular economy regulations.
Experience in apparel, footwear, retail, consumer goods, manufacturing, packaging, logistics or global branded products.
Familiarity with ERP, PLM, Power BI, sustainability reporting platforms or compliance management systems.
Knowledge of packaging materials, textile/fiber composition, recyclability, eco-modulation, recycled content and circular design principles.
Experience building SOPs, compliance calendars, audit-ready evidence files, control frameworks or governance processes.
Advanced degree, legal/regulatory training, project management certification or sustainability credential preferred.
Core Competencies
Regulatory judgment
Data discipline
Program leadership
Stakeholder influence
Consultant management
Audit readiness
Commercial mindset
Circularity orientation
First 12 Months: Success Outcomes
Global EPR regulatory inventory, compliance calendar and RACI created and socialized.
Standardized data dictionary and reporting templates established for packaging and textile EPR needs.
PRO relationships, evidence files, filing history and assumptions centralized in an auditable repository.
Priority data gaps and system improvement requirements documented with clear business owners and action plans.
Leadership dashboard launched covering deadlines, compliance status, fee exposure, risks and opportunities.
This is a high-impact global role for a hands-on regulatory and sustainability leader who can build the operating system for EPR compliance while helping Kontoor make smarter product