Head of Global Retail Training

Diesel has long been a leading pioneer in denim and casual fashion, known for moving outside and ahead of trends in its industry. While retaining always its DNA, in recent years Diesel has evolved into the world of premium casual wear, becoming a true alternative to the established luxury market. Diesel is a truly worldwide organization. It is present in more than 80 countries with 5,000 points of sale, including more than 400 company owned stores.

HEAD OF GLOBAL RETAIL TRAINING 

Directly reporting to the Global Insights & Retail Excellence Director, the Head of Global Retail Training will play a pivotal role in shaping and executing Diesel's retail training strategy across our global network of stores. This individual will be responsible for developing and delivering comprehensive training programs to enhance the skills and capabilities of our retail teams, ensuring exceptional customer experiences, driving sales performance, and support the brand repositioning to Alternative to Luxury.
Coordinating a team in HQ, Regional Retail Managers (functional reports) and Training ambassadors in stores, He/she will guarantee the deployment of learning solutions for retail training in collaboration with the relevant stakeholders in the HQ and in the Regions. He/she will carefully monitor and measure the impact and effectiveness of training initiatives in terms of business and people performance metrics, always aligned to the brand strategies and sales performances.
 
KEY JOB RESPONSIBILITIES

•  Develop and implement a global retail training strategy aligned with Diesel's brand values, business objectives, and customer service standards - always balancing Regional needs vs Global standards consistency.
•  Design, deliver, and continuously improve training programs for various retail roles, including sales associates, store managers, and regional trainers.
•  Design, cascade and execute Diesel Global Retail Training governance, setting clear ownerships, roles & responsibilities, and clear tasks of all involved stakeholders.
•  Own Global Training Calendar definition, execution and maintenance along the year.

•  Collaborate with cross-functional teams, including retail operations, human resources, and merchandising, to identify training needs and opportunities for improvement.
•  Collaborate, instruct and enable regional teams on a regular basis ensuring an efficient communication and consistency across the regions, in line with the worldwide training community ethos.
•  Provide ongoing support and coaching to Retail Trainers (and if needed to store managers) to reinforce learning and development objectives. Create and animate a global network of store training ambassador, partnering with Regional Training and HR.
•  Create engaging and interactive training materials, including presentations, e-learning modules, training manuals, training concepts, utilizing multimedia and innovative instructional techniques.

•  He/she should be confident in covering five main training areas:

• Product knowledge and storytelling
• Soft skills and customer experience elevation
• Operational excellence
• Talent development – in partnership with HR Team (Global and Regional)
• Store staff onboarding programs - – in partnership with HR Team (Global and Regional)

•  In partnership with Regional referents, Conduct regular training sessions, workshops, and seminars for retail staff, both in-person and virtually, to ensure consistent delivery of brand messaging, product knowledge, and sales techniques.
•  Evaluate the effectiveness of training initiatives through feedback mechanisms, performance metrics, and assessments, and make data-driven recommendations for enhancements.
•  Is constantly informed about sell out performances, and together with other teams, is proactive in defining fast reaction to support business needs.
•  Stay abreast of industry trends, best practices, and emerging technologies in retail training and incorporate relevant insights into training programs.
•  Foster a culture of learning and excellence within the retail organization, promoting continuous development and career growth opportunities for employees.
•  Serve as a brand ambassador and advocate for Diesel's values and mission, both internally and externally.

PROFILE

•  Academic.
•  Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Human Resources, Education, or a related field; Master's degree may be a plus.
•  International exposure may be a plus.

Previous work experience
•  At least 5 years of experience in a similar managerial role in a well structured retail company and/or in a field training role.
•  Previous experience in store is considered highly relevant.
•  Previous exposure to luxury retail will be considered a plus, preferably fashion or lifestyle.
•  Proven track record of designing and delivering effective training programs, with a focus on retail sales, customer service, and product knowledge.
•  Demonstrated experience in Project Management, proven ability to design and execute plans coordinating various stakeholders across geographies and departments.

Professional expertise
•  Strong knowledge of front and back of house store dynamics and activities is beneficial.
•  Proficiency in instructional design methodologies, learning management systems (LMS).
•  Digital mindset and skills in digital learning – knowledge of the main learning tools (including multimedia authoring tools) available by the market.
•  Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint).
•  Knowledge of artwork applications and graphic content creation can be a plus.
•  Proven analytical skills, confidence in reading main Retail performance metrics.

Soft skills
•  Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively in a fast-paced, matrixed environment, balancing competing priorities and deadlines.
•  Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple tasks and priorities simultaneously.
•  Excellent leadership and communication skills, including previous management of a team.
•  Strong interpersonal and empathic communication skills, with the ability to engage and motivate diverse audiences at all levels of the organization.
•  Exceptional presentation and facilitation skills, with a knack for making complex concepts accessible and engaging.
•  Strong teamworking attitude but still able to deliver excellent results autonomously.

Languages
•  Excellent in Italian and English is required, both written and spoken.
•  Fluency in additional languages highly desired.

MAIN INTERFACES
•  Regional Retail Training Teams  - as functional report.
•  All Global Retail Excellence Teams, among which Global Retail Operations, BI, Sales Planning, Allocation, CRM & Clienteling.
•  Global HQ Departments (i.e., Merchandising, Marketing, Production, Sustainability, etc.).
•  Regional Retail Managers, Field Retail Managers and store managers.
•  Global and Regional HR Functions.
•  OTB group: IT, Trainers from other brands.

LOCATION: 
•  Role predominantly based in HQ in Breganze (VI) – due to need to interact with other Global Functions (e.g. Retail Operations, Global Merchandising, CRM, Marketing…).
•  On a need basis, flexibility to work from Milan Head Office.
•  Availability to travel both domestically and internationally requested.

#DSL #LI-AR