Project Manager

Red Rover Recruitment; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 95,000 - 125,000; Full time

Job summary

Red Rover Recruitment represents a North American consumer-products manufacturer seeking a Project Manager to lead Target-driven programs from concept through launch. You will coordinate across Sales, Customer Service, IT, Supply Chain, Production and Quality, ensuring timely delivery while maintaining strong customer relations.

The role is home-based with occasional meetings and travel to U.S. facilities as needed, requiring a practical understanding of product movement from sourcing to

Qualifications

• Proven project management experience leading customer-facing programs.
• Experience coordinating cross-functional teams across Sales, Service, Supply Chain, Production and IT.
• Strong ability to translate requirements into actionable project plans.

Responsibilities

• Lead Target-related projects from requirements through launch and stabilization.
• Serve as primary project contact for Target with clear timelines and status updates.
• Create detailed project plans, schedules, risks, and action logs across multiple functions.
• Coordinate setup, including product structures, EDI planning, and system requirements.
• Collaborate with Purchasing and Supply Chain to track materials and lead times.
• Manage capacity, scheduling, and recovery plans when milestones are at risk.
• Oversee QA/QC requirements, documentation, and invoicing readiness.
• Provide regular updates to internal leadership and the customer.

Skills

Target experience

Cross-functional leadership

Project planning

MS Project

Customer-facing

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Microsoft Project

Job description

Our client, an established North American manufacturer of consumer household products, is hiring a Project Manager to lead customer projects supporting Target.

This is a customer-facing role for someone who knows how to turn a major retailer's requirements into coordinated action across a manufacturing organization. You will serve as the central link between Target and internal teams spanning Sales, Customer Service, Supply Chain, Purchasing, Production, Quality, Logistics, Finance, IT and Engineering. The position is home based.

This is an opportunity to take ownership of complex, cross-functional programs for one of the largest retailers in the United States. You will have direct customer exposure, visibility with senior leadership and the ability to influence how important new products and customer initiatives move from requirements through launch and stable delivery.

What you will do:

• Lead Target-related customer projects from initial requirements and planning through operational launch, first shipments and stabilization.
• Serve as a primary project contact for Target, providing clear updates on timelines, milestones, risks, decisions and launch readiness.
• Translate customer requirements into integrated project plans with clear owners, dependencies, deadlines and success criteria.
• Coordinate project activity across multiple facilities and internal functions, including Sales, Customer Service, IT, Purchasing, Finance, Production, Quality, Warehousing, Logistics and Engineering.
• Create and maintain detailed project schedules, Gantt charts, action logs, risk and issue registers, decision records and customer-facing status reports.
• Lead project kickoffs, cross-functional reviews, customer meetings and recurring progress calls.
• Coordinate customer and product setup, including EDI planning and testing, product structures, item information and related system requirements.
• Partner with Purchasing and Supply Chain to track raw materials, packaging, supplier commitments and long-lead items.
• Work with Production and Planning to confirm capacity, scheduling, line readiness, required volumes and recovery plans when milestones are at risk.
• Coordinate QA/QC standards, customer-specific requirements, specifications, validation, approvals and supporting documentation.
• Oversee logistics readiness, including material receipt, warehousing, packaging and labeling requirements, routing, shipping and delivery coordination.
• Track equipment installation and commissioning activities when new customer programs require additional manufacturing capability.
• Partner with Finance and Sales on costing, commercial requirements, change impacts, reporting and profitability analysis.
• Identify schedule, scope, cost, quality and operational risks early; develop practical options and escalate with a recommendation.
• Manage customer-initiated changes through a disciplined process that makes timing, cost, inventory and operational consequences visible.
• Support special customer and commercial projects as business needs evolve.

What success looks like:

• Target receives accurate, timely communication and has confidence that projects are under control.
• New products and customer initiatives launch on schedule with the required systems, materials, quality documentation, production capacity and logistics in place.
• Internal teams understand exactly what they own, when it is due and how their work affects the overall project.
• Risks are identified early, recovery options are developed and stakeholders are not surprised by preventable issues.
• EDI, item setup, ordering, shipment and invoicing processes are ready before launch.
• Changes are documented and evaluated before Korex makes new schedule or cost commitments.
• Projects transition smoothly from launch into stable ongoing operations.
• Customer service is balanced with sound commercial and operational judgment.

What you bring:

• Clearly defined professional experience as a Project Manager supporting Target as your company's client or customer.
• Experience working for a consumer-products brand, private-label manufacturer, contract manufacturer, packaging supplier, retail-services provider or similar organization serving Target.
• Demonstrated ownership of Target-specific projects, launches, implementations or operational programs—not solely sales analysis, marketing support or general exposure to the Target account.
• Experience leading complex, cross-functional projects involving several of the following: Sales, Customer Service, Supply Chain, Purchasing, Production, Quality, Logistics, Finance, IT, Engineering or external vendors.
• A practical understanding of how physical consumer products move from customer requirements through sourcing, manufacturing, quality approval, shipment and ongoing service.
• Experience developing and actively managing project plans, Gantt charts, milestones, dependencies, risks, actions and status reporting.
• Strong customer-facing communication skills and the confidence to lead meetings, clarify requirements, manage expectations and communicate risks constructively.
• Strong organization and follow-through in an environment with changing requirements, competing priorities and firm retailer deadlines.
• Sound problem-solving and commercial judgment, including the ability to assess tradeoffs among customer service, timing, cost, quality and operational feasibility.
• A university degree.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office and project-management software; Microsoft Project experience is strongly preferred.
• Residence in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area and ability to attend occasional meetings at Target headquarters.
• Ability to travel occasionally to company facilities in the United States or Canada when required.

Strong assets:

• Direct experience with Target supplier systems, processes and stakeholder teams.
• Retail EDI, customer onboarding, item setup, product master data, ASNs, routing guides, retailer portals, order-to-cash or invoice/deduction processes.
• Commercialization, new product introduction, product launch or customer implementation experience.
• Household cleaning, home care, personal care, food and beverage, OTC, chemicals, packaging or another CPG manufacturing environment.
• Private-label or contract-manufacturing experience.
• Multi-site manufacturing or cross-facility project leadership.
• Customer-specific quality requirements, specifications, validation, first-article approvals or change control.
• Purchasing, supplier management, cost analysis or profitability exposure.
• Equipment installation, commissioning or production-line launch experience.
• PMP, CAPM or equivalent project-management training.

Why consider this opportunity?

• Own meaningful projects supporting Target, with direct exposure to customer stakeholders.
• Work from home while remaining close enough for important in-person meetings in Minneapolis.
• Operate at the centre of customer service, commercialization, manufacturing, supply chain and project execution.
• Gain visibility across multiple functions, facilities and senior leaders.
• Influence programs from early planning through production, shipment and stabilization.
• Join an established North American consumer-products manufacturer with sophisticated production capabilities and a strong history of serving major customers.

• If you have managed projects for Target from the supplier side and enjoy being the person who keeps complex customer programs moving, we would like to hear from you.