Production Manager

No fast fashion here - only high quality products that matter.Who I Am Looking For Hello, I’m Phaon. I’m the Head of Product Management at Sleeping Duck and I’m after someone who relishes the challenge of making a technical physical product to the highest quality standards. Someone who really cares that a customer receives the best version of what they purchased. Our mission is to improve lives by using scientific and customer insights to address the challenges we face in achieving the best possible nights sleep. We design and engineer products and services that deliver meaningful, positive impact towards this goal. This requires us to invest deeply in understanding the factors that influence sleep quality and comfort throughout the night — as well as how our interventions directly affect these factors. This means you need to be able to -

• Take the time to understand what the leaders of the business are trying to achieve and assist in distilling this into clear projects and goals
• Stand up and be actively chasing after solutions - there’s no sitting around
• Have a can do attitude and always ask how you can support and service the team

We’re always looking to push the boundaries in how we can impact customer’s lives. How we can create a “wow” moment, a memorable experience, when they get their hands on our product. You manage the essential component - the manufacturing process. The manufacturing supply chain operates in multiple countries and we manage multiple products with different materials and specifications. You need to be able to juggle multiple operations and suppliers whilst not losing the details. This is hard but satisfying work. I want someone who can be relentless in pursuing better outcomes with suppliers. Someone who can spot opportunities to improve, understand manufacturing product risks and put implementation plans into action. All the technical details really matter, and we need to make sure those details are produced correctly in manufacturing. Intimately understanding the production process, reviewing active production, reporting and solving production issues as they occur. Put pressure on suppliers but establish partnerships which get them on our side. I need someone who can understand the ecosystem and help nurture it to thrive. You will enjoy this role if you are detail oriented and care deeply that things are made the way they are supposed to be made. What We Are Building At Sleeping Duck And Why Sleeping Duck is a collective of engineers, designers, customer advocates, and medical professionals united by a shared mission: to create meaningful improvements in the quality of our customers’ lives. We focus on optimising sleep—because better sleep means more energy, better focus, and a greater capacity to thrive each day. We began by challenging the traditional mattress industry—reimagining how mattresses and bed frames are designed, engineered, and purchased. Today, we’re expanding into new frontiers of sleep science, exploring how elements like temperature regulation, sensors, and lighting can make the sleep experience more restorative, comfortable, and uninterrupted. One of our most exciting innovations is the Z10 Body Fit System, engineered in collaboration with a neurosurgeon and leading physiotherapists. Developed to support patients experiencing chronic pain and those undergoing surgery, the Z10 is delivering exceptional results—and is currently available exclusively through physiotherapists. Projects like this are what drive us: complex problems, human-centred design, and life-changing outcomes. Our customers consistently tell us they love what we do—and their thousands of reviews on ProductReview speak for themselves. Ultimately, that’s what fuels us: helping people get their best night’s sleep, and creating experiences that truly exceed expectations. We currently operate in Australia and the USA and will continue to grow into international markets. What The Role Looks Like In Practice You are in the production management team, part of the Product team. You’ll be working with me and my Product team. We are a small team, consisting of product managers and production managers. We work closely with the Design team. The Design team works on new product design, design updates to existing products and concept research. The Product team leads product implementation and operations. Production Management Looks After These Key Areas

• Making sure the product is manufactured to our quality standards.
• Directing our quality assurance team who are in the factory, gathering daily reports of what is happening
• Solving any production issues with the team
• Understanding the actual process of how a product is made and the differences between suppliers
• Applying cost price pressure on suppliers with a strategic approach
• Diversifying manufacturing supply chain to reduce supply risk

You need to be in constant communication with the factories and our quality assurance team. There shouldn’t be any last minute surprises that something has been made wrong just before packing, or it's not going to hit goods ready dates. You are intimately familiar with our products, spending time reviewing all product specification sheets and how it manifests in reality - what are all the actual steps to get it made, and researching how it could be done better. You define out how quality checks practically should be conducted and make sure the quality assurance team does it as per procedure. You work with the supplier to help improve their processes. You know how to conduct a production and quality audit, on site within the factory. You are big on details and make sure that everything is documented correctly. You’ll be working with external sourcing agents and internal sourcing specialists, product managers to find alternative suppliers to procure market pricing and diversify supply chain risk. You gather warranty case information from customers, analysing what went wrong and how we can improve our production process to reduce issues which arrive to the customer. Supply and demand analysis is not part of this role. You work with our supply and demand planners to organise quality assurance team resource requirements, and raise any other manufacturing considerations into the supply planning. You handle everything after purchase order placement to the product leaving the factory. You do not manage outbound freight logistics. We achieve success in the production management area when we receive high quality products which meet the design specification, cost and time targets. We plan so that there are no disruptive events, and reduce technical defects to avoid customer complaints. Preferably, YouRelevant experience for this role

• Have managed production in the furniture/mattress space
• Know how to run quality control and direct team members
• Are extremely comfortable dealing with manufacturers from different countries - whether it be China, Europe, Vietnam, The Americas
• Can construct a strategic approach to achieve a lower cost price
• Can audit suppliers and make production risk assessments
• Are comfortable with understanding custom product designs, and understand how design transforms into actual manufacturing processes
• Speak languages other than English, such as Chinese or Vietnamese.

I’m less concerned with the number of years working and more interested about your approach and attitude. You need to be able to dive into technical areas, ask questions, research, go on-site and find out what is actually happening. Always be learning. If you have the fire and determination to keep pushing for better outcomes, you’ll do well. What You Might Like Or Dislike Sleeping Duck is a workplace with a unique working style. People are passionate and care about outcomes. The team is serious about getting stuff done. We reward you with independence and responsibility, and an expectation that you will be proactive in asking questions. With tasked responsibilities, we shouldn’t have to be chasing you up. You should have work ready. Product is an always evolving area, with ambitious projects and multiple competing priorities. Some projects get released, some projects get cancelled. You may spend time in one area which doesn’t see the light of day. It’s sometimes hard to stay across everything that is happening and changing. As you will be working with suppliers in different countries, your working hours will often be flexible. If the supplier is only available after hours, you’ll make the time to meet. It could include late night meetings, flying overseas, and being in the office as much as required to get the job done. We are here in service of the company vision and our job is to provide ways on how we can achieve it.We are inspired by big goals - and strive to see how we can make it work. “This sounds too hard, complicated, or expensive” is not a slogan which exists at Sleeping Duck. As we are small and nimble, it’s well positioned for support and relationships. You’ll know everyone in the company, if you take the time. We all celebrate and win together. How We Hire - The Process

• Apply to this ad. I appreciate when you take the time to write personal cover letters and application notes. Reconsider the temptation to use AI to generate your words. I really just want to hear from you, personally in this instance.
• Brittany, our P&C Lead will give you a phone call to discuss your application
• We will meet virtually for a 1:1 - a first get to know each other - video call.
• You’ll come into the office, see what it’s like to work here, and meet with myself and other team members. We’ll go deeper into your experience and skills.
• There may be a task/project for you to display your skills.
• There may be a final follow up meeting with one of the founders.
• An offer will be made.

The main objectives of the above is to see whether Sleeping Duck is a good fit for you, and to see how your skills and qualities match the role. You should be prepared to explain your thinking process - how do you strategically organise production management. How do you analyse for quality, cost and time risks? How do you think about assessing suppliers? How have you managed quality assurance agents who are on the factory floor? Have examples ready from your previous experience. Demonstrate your learnings from mistakes and how ideally you like to run production management. I want to see how you communicate with others, in a formal setting, but also informally, when we are just sitting around, having a chat. What are your motivations and challenges, fears and aspirations? What makes you - you. If the above resonates, apply now!