Team & Position Description:We are looking for an Industrial Designer II to join our Creative team in Vernon Hills, IL. This role offers the opportunity to design across a diverse range of toy and pet brands, including products for both Learning Resources and Brightkins. You'll work on a collaborative, fast-paced team that values creativity, ownership, and bringing products to life quickly-from early concept exploration through production. This is a hands-on role for a designer who enjoys building, iterating, and solving real product challenges with guidance from the Manager of Product Design. If you're passionate about toy design and want to make a direct impact in a growing, family-owned company, we'd love to hear from you.
What we're looking for (Key Performance Objectives):- Manage and support the development of 10-15 Learning Resources children's toy products and/or Brightkins pet toy products annually, delivering assigned work against agreed project milestones from concept through production.
- Deliver high-quality design solutions on schedule and achieve approximately 90% approval from cross-functional partners within each project phase, incorporating feedback promptly when revisions are needed.
- Generate multiple concept directions for assigned projects and advance strong solutions within the agreed concept and refinement timelines; prepare 5-10 concepts annually for user testing through prototypes or renderings.
- Develop manufacturable, durable products by identifying and helping resolve design, engineering, material, and assembly challenges before final production handoff.
- Collaborate cross-functionally and with vendors to maintain project momentum and achieve 100% alignment with agreed development milestones and deliverable dates.
- Contribute to 1-3 continuous improvement initiatives annually within the Product Design or broader product development process.
Requirements/Ideal Attributes:- Portfolio showcasing strong toy design and product development experience
- BS/BA in Industrial Design, Toy Design, or equivalent
- 5+ years of consumer product development experience, preferably in children's toys (pet product experience also a plus)
- Proficiency in Rhino, KeyShot, Adobe Creative Suite, and 3D prototyping tools
- Strong hands-on prototyping skills across materials and methods
- Knowledge of plastics, manufacturing processes, and design for manufacturing
- Strong communicator and collaborator across teams and external partners
- Proactive, detail-oriented, and comfortable owning projects with guidance
Compensation Range: $77,000 - $87,000 annual salary - Actual compensation may vary due to other factors such as: years of experience, skill set and location. Total compensation includes profit sharing bonus potential, 401k matching, and a variety of other benefits (details can be found here).
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