Manager of Design Operations & Training in Wheat Ridge, Colorado at Sarah O. Jewelry

Salary Range: $80,000 - $95,000

Type: Full time

Location: Wheat Ridge, CO // Fully onsite. Occasion travel to nearby stores is required.

Schedule: Monday - Friday, standard business hours

Benefits:Health insurance (medical, dental, vision), PTO, 401(k) match, employee discounts

Reports to: Director of Merchandising

Application Deadline: Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis until the position is filled

About Sarah O.

We believe every piece tells a story, one as unique as the person wearing it. Sarah O. is a woman-owned fine jewelry company known for our distinctive designs, ethically sourced materials, and thoughtful craftsmanship. Our collections blend timeless elegance with modern artistry, featuring everything from alternative bridal pieces to custom creations that celebrate life’s most meaningful moments.

We take pride in our collaborative, creative, and customer-focused culture. Whether designing in the studio, helping clients find their perfect ring, or crafting bespoke pieces that capture personal milestones, our team is passionate about creating jewelry that inspires connection, confidence, and joy.

Join us in bringing authenticity to the world of fine jewelry, one story at a time.

Who You Are

You’re a technically minded jewelry expert who can bridge the gap between creative vision and production reality. You understand how construction, stone proportions, CAD feasibility, and manufacturing considerations shape a successful custom piece, and you can translate those details clearly for both customer-facing and production teams.

You’re equally comfortable educating others and owning the details yourself. You can train store and production teams on custom intake and technical fundamentals, troubleshoot designs before they become production issues, and communicate effectively with CAD and manufacturing partners. You’re excited to work at the intersection of craftsmanship and technology, serving as a key partner to the design team and helping integrate tools like Instant Atelier into a seamless custom jewelry process.

Most importantly, you bring consistency and clarity to a complex process. You know when to make a call, when to ask the right technical question, and how to keep a custom piece moving from a customer’s initial idea through CAD, production, and final execution.

What You’ll Do

• Own the technical execution of the custom process from intake through CAD and production, and serve as the company's final escalation point for technical design issues that cannot be solved in store.
• Develop and lead the custom training program, coaching Design Leads and Sales Associates and onboarding for new customer-facing design staff on custom intake, jewelry construction, wearability, stone proportions, settings, and terminology.
• Review store-team and Instant Atelier (IA) concepts after Design Lead approval, confirming they are technically complete, production-ready, and fully specified before they move to CAD.
• Serve as the liaison between design teams and the CAD and manufacturing partner(s), communicating revisions and technical feedback clearly to both sides.
• Own and maintain the Custom Playbook, SOPs, AI prompts, intake forms, CAD standards and reference database, measurements, nomenclature, training resources, and technical documentation to ensure consistency across the custom workflow, Instant Atelier, website, and all stores.
• Act as the company-wide technical resource for questions on construction, durability, and stone setting, reducing interruptions to the bench jeweler by fielding technical questions first.
• Create custom repair intake standards and train store and production teams on repair evaluation, documentation, photography, and handoff.
• Uphold QC standards in partnership with the bench jeweler and Creative team, and train store, production, and bench teams on them.
• Improve and scale the custom process, building both in-store and online custom consultation systems, and support stone and inventory sourcing for custom design.
• Consistently report on custom design performance to leadership.

What We’re Looking For

• 5+ years of hands-on experience with jewelry CAD workflows and custom production, whether from a design, bench, or account-management background.
• Experience training or mentoring a team, ideally in a retail or production environment.
• Working knowledge of stone proportions, settings, and jewelry construction.
• Strong communication skills, with the ability to translate technical detail for a non-technical audience.
• Ability to translate business requirements into technical specifications and drive training and education to achieve business goals for custom design.
• Preferred: Experience at a comparable jewelry retailer, designer, or manufacturer.
• Preferred: Familiarity with AI-assisted design or virtual consultation tools.

Sarah O. is an equal opportunity employer, passionately committed to equitable hiring and boldly dedicated to diversity in our work and teams. We do not discriminate in employment opportunities or practices based on actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related conditions), age, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran status, uniformed service member status, disability, or any other characteristic protected by law. We strongly encourage individuals from all backgrounds to apply. Even if you don’t meet every single requirement, you might be the right candidate for this or other roles.