Senior Director, Facilities and Automation

About Us:

Rent the Runway (RTR)  is transforming the way we get dressed by pioneering the world’s first Closet in the Cloud. Founded in 2009, RTR has disrupted the $2.4 trillion fashion industry by inspiring women with a more joyful, sustainable and financially-savvy way to feel their best every day. As the ultimate destination for circular fashion, the brand now offers infinite points of access to its shared closet via a fully customizable subscription to fashion, one-time rental or ownership.

RTR offers designer apparel and accessories from hundreds of brand partners and has built in-house proprietary technology and a one-of-a-kind reverse logistics operation. RTR has been named to CNBC’s “Disruptor 50” five times in ten years, and has been placed on Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies list multiple times.

About the Job:

The Sr. Director of Facilities and Automation will lead facilities and equipment/automation maintenance, capital projects, and strategic program development across all Rent the Runway's facilities. This role combines senior leadership and strategy-building, establishing engineering and maintenance standards, with hands-on project execution and oversight, ensuring safe, reliable, sustainable and operationally efficient equipment and facilities.

The role drives maintenance and facilities management excellence across multidisciplinary teams, providing safety-focused, engineering leadership and establishing best-in-class design, execution, and management standards. They will be a highly experienced subject matter expert in facilities and material handling system maintenance, workplace safety, and data driven management and leadership.

This role will create and strengthen equipment, automation, and facilities vendor and supplier partnerships, manage capital budgets and operational expenditures, and ensure all projects and systems meet rigorous safety, quality, and timeline requirements.

Overseeing engineering and maintenance matters throughout the network, this role will be focused on building systems such as boilers, fire protection systems, and HVAC as well as advanced automation systems such as roller and garment-on-hanger conveyance, cleaning and finishing equipment, and robotic sortation systems. The role will drive continuous improvement initiatives, establish data-driven performance metrics, and maintain unwavering focus on operational excellence.

This role will need to be equally comfortable diving deep into technical specifications and CAD design as they navigate senior stakeholder relationships and executive communications. They will need to communicate clearly and persuasively at all levels, thrive on solving complex technical problems, and collaborate naturally across organizational boundaries. They are energized by the thought of turning innovative ideas into scalable solutions, and do not shy away from a challenge.

This senior leader has a bias for action and leads by example by demonstrating a willingness to dive in, roll up their sleeves and help in any situation.

What You’ll Do:

• Develop and implement enterprise facility condition assessment (FCA) programs, including building systems, automation, equipment, and site infrastructure evaluations
• Ensure compliance with facility-related OSHA, environmental regulations, health and safety standards, building codes and standards, and Factory Mutual (FM) standards
• Lead enterprise facility data management, including CMMS, building records, drawings, asset inventories, and development of document retention standards and systems
• Advance the use of facility technology, including IoT, building automation systems (BAS), and smart infrastructure to improve reliability, efficiency, and visibility, driving predictive maintenance strategies
• Establish team priorities, resource strategies, and engineering processes that support the delivery of facilities management, maintenance and asset lifecycle programs
• Maintain a high level of spoken and written communication with cross-functional teams and partners; influence stakeholders at all levels, including members of the C-Suite teams
• Effectively plan and manage annual OPEX budgets, as well as and CAPEX budgets to optimize and maintain our facilities and equipment to a high standard, while making fiscally responsible decisions that create the best value for the company
• Create and implement an effective program and plan to optimize the economic value for equipment life cycle management
• Establish and reinforce a long-term vision, directing best in class asset management processes, providing a high level of equipment availability and reliability to the Operations Teams, following all regulatory and compliance requirements, and working with Tech and Engineering teams across the organization to plan for future network growth
• Oversight of comprehensive testing and commissioning plans (FAT, SAT), including site preparation, ensuring test procedures are written to maintain engineering rigor supporting GMP, HACCP, and SQF requirements
• Establish performance metrics and continuous improvement routines that drive engineering and maintenance excellence and accountability
• Manage a portfolio of third party vendors ensuring a high level of vendor engagement, review and redlining of service contracts, SLA definition, and maintaining adherence to contracted SLA requirements to ensure the safety and reliability of the facilities and equipment across the network
• Bring subject matter expertise in engineering and maintenance of boilers, building systems, material handling equipment and systems, automation equipment, and conveyor systems
• Provide frequent on-site oversight of capital projects, driving them from conception to successful completion, managing the efforts of both internal and external contractor teams through installation, construction, and commissioning activities
• Lead, develop, and retain a talented team of highly skilled leaders, engineers, maintenance technicians focused on continuous learning and improvement through coaching, mentoring, succession planning and performance management while fostering an inclusive and engaged team culture
• Investigate recurring faults and downtime events, determine root cause, and design corrective actions driving performance and process changes based on lean initiatives to drive operational efficiency and continuous improvement (FMEA, etc.)
• Develop a gold star maintenance program standardizing process, documentation for technical SOPs, spare parts management, metrics definition and tracking for facilities and equipment using industry best practice protocols across the network
• Build out the vision for a technician training program to upskill, strengthen, attract and retain the best talent
• Provide technical guidance on complex engineering issues using analytical techniques, simulation, ROI analysis, and cost/benefit analysis
• This role requires approximately 25-50% availability to travel as required

About You:

4-year degree in Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Mechatronics, Controls or equivalent experience in a relevant technical or engineering field; Masters degree in a technical field, business, or related preferred

10 plus years of progressive technical experience in manufacturing, warehouse, fulfillment, or industrial environments with demonstrated leadership and oversight of large scale equipment and systems

Proven track record managing complex capital projects, budgets, timelines, and demonstrated ability to influence without authority and lead cross functional technical and nontechnical teams; PMP or PRINCE2 certification preferred

Experience leading equipment commissioning projects from specification to operational turnover, managing vendor performance and inspect work quality to ensure adherence to safety and engineering standards

• Proficiency with VFDs, servo systems, HMIs, and industrial networks
• Subject matter expertise in material handling systems, automation equipment, and large-scale integrated operational infrastructure
• Proficiency in design software (AutoCAD, SolidWorks, Bluebeam, or equivalent) and familiarity with simulation tools (FEA, motion analysis)
• Experience with Lean/Six Sigma, root cause analysis, TPM and OEE concepts and strategies in a technical problem-solving environment; Six Sigma certification preferred
• Ability to manage multiple complex projects and tasks simultaneously
• Adept at providing technical leadership and mentoring to facilities maintenance and engineering leaders
• Proven track record of leading and developing teams
• Experience with lean concepts, labor productivity analysis (time studies, standardized work), safety/ergonomic/human factors
• Experience building and managing OPEX and CAPEX budgets; strong financial acumen and cost-benefit analysis skills
• Experience with multi-site operations and facilities management
• Must operate with a sense of urgency, accountability, and have attention to detail
• Strong written and verbal communication; forward-thinkers with the ability to articulate point of view and improve processes
• Strong analytical and data-driven decision-making capabilities; provide strong statistical analysis and data storytelling skills across various levels
• Proficiency with data analysis tools like Looker, Power BI, SQL, and Excel
• Commitment to safety, quality, and employee wellbeing in all aspects of work
• Background in fulfillment center operations, warehouse automation, or reverse logistics a plus
• Ability to work flex shifts, hours, nights and weekends as business dictates