Director, Project Management - Manufacturing

About Us
Fanatics is building a leading global digital sports platform. We ignite the passions of global sports fans and maximize the presence and reach for our hundreds of sports partners globally by offering products and services across Fanatics Commerce, Fanatics Collectibles, and Fanatics Betting & Gaming, allowing sports fans to Buy, Collect, and Bet. Through the Fanatics platform, sports fans can buy licensed fan gear, jerseys, lifestyle and streetwear products, headwear, and hardgoods; collect physical and digital trading cards, sports memorabilia, and other digital assets; and bet as the company builds its Sportsbook and iGaming platform. Fanatics has an established database of over 100 million global sports fans; a global partner network with approximately 900 sports properties, including major national and international professional sports leagues, players associations, teams, colleges, college conferences and retail partners, 2,500 athletes and celebrities, and 200 exclusive athletes; and over 2,000 retail locations, including its Lids retail stores. Our more than 22,000 employees are committed to relentlessly enhancing the fan experience and delighting sports fans globally.
About the Company
Fanatics Collectibles is a new company operating at the intersection of collectibles, culture, and technology. Backed by world-class investors, operators, and sports & entertainment partners, we are building the global leader in next-generation collectibles. As part of the broader Fanatics ecosystem, we leverage a digital sports platform that spans over 900 sports properties and engages more than 81 million fans. Together, we are reimagining every part of the collectibles experience for fans, partners, and creators.
Role Summary
Fanatics Collectibles makes trading cards and collectibles for the world's leading sports and entertainment properties. As the business scales its in-house production, it needs a dedicated leader to deliver and support its manufacturing footprint.
The Director, Project Management – Manufacturing will lead project management for Fanatics Collectibles' manufacturing facilities. This starts with the Sunnyvale, CA and Allen, TX plants and extends to future facilities across the United States and, over time, worldwide. The role covers the full project lifecycle: early budget estimates and planning, design and value engineering, construction, equipment installation and commissioning, production ramp-up, and close-out. It also supports ongoing plant operations through capital improvements, reconfigurations and expansions.
This is an owner-side leadership role. The Director will set direction for and manage a team of external partners, including project managers, architects and engineers, process and equipment engineers, and general contractors. The Director is accountable for delivering every project safely, on schedule, within budget, and to the operating needs of the manufacturing business.
Key Responsibilities
Program and project leadership
Lead every manufacturing facility project from concept through close-out: new builds, fit-outs, expansions, reconfigurations and capital improvements at existing plants.
Set up and run a consistent project delivery framework for Fanatics Collectibles manufacturing, covering stage gates, approvals, reporting, and document control.
Manage several projects at once at different sites, and balance resources and priorities across the portfolio.
Budgets, cost and value engineering
Prepare and validate early budget estimates and capital requests for leadership approval.
Own project budgets, contingency, forecasting and change-order control, and report variances and risks early.
Lead value engineering efforts that reduce cost and schedule without hurting production performance, quality or safety.
Manufacturing process and equipment integration
Work with manufacturing and engineering teams to turn production requirements into facility requirements, such as line layout, material flow, utilities, environmental controls and security.
Coordinate the procurement, installation and commissioning of production equipment, and its integration with building systems.
Plan and manage construction and equipment work at operating plants so that production disruption stays as low as possible.
Support production ramp-up and hand-off to operations, including commissioning, punch lists, training and warranty transition.
Vendor and contractor management
Choose, contract and manage external project management, A&E, engineering, and construction partners through competitive procurement.
Hold partners accountable for scope, schedule, cost, quality and safety performance.
Make sure work complies with permitting, building codes, OSHA, and environmental requirements.
Growth and future facilities
Support site evaluation and due diligence for new U.S. and international manufacturing facilities, working with the Global Real Estate team, brokers and incentive advisors.
Build repeatable facility standards, design guidelines and delivery playbooks that can scale to future sites in the U.S. and abroad.
Close-out and reporting
Manage project close-out, including final accounting, as-built documentation, warranties, lessons learned and asset handover.
Give executive leadership regular, clear reporting on portfolio status, risks and decisions needed.
Key Partners
The Director works closely with: