Job Summary
The Regulatory Compliance Manager monitors and assesses laws, regulations, enforcement trends, and industry standards affecting KEEN as a global footwear company and leads the cross-functional work needed to achieve and maintain compliance. This role will also touch on the operations of KEEN's affiliated companies around the world, such as Fuerst Group, Rofu, and Chrome Industries.
In partnership with Legal and business subject-matter experts, this role translates legal and regulatory requirements into executable compliance programs, including clear work plans, accountable owners, milestones, deadlines, policies, processes, controls, training, and audit-ready evidence.
Serving as a hands-on project leader, the position brings disciplined organization, tracking, and persistent follow-through to drive matters from identification through verified completion, provide clear status reporting, and escalate obstacles and risks to the Senior Director, Legal in a timely manner. The position leads through influence and does not have direct reports.
Please note this job description is not designed to contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties, or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties responsibilities and activities may change at any time with or without cause.
Essential Functions
Description
- Leads cross-functional implementation of new and existing regulatory requirements from issue identification through verified completion by defining scope, owners, milestones, dependencies, deliverables, and sustainable operating processes.
- Monitors and assesses new and changing laws, regulations, enforcement trends, and industry standards globally that may affect KEEN; maintain a central tracking system for material regulatory developments, assigned compliance obligations, upcoming changes, implementation deadlines, and responsible business owners; and provide timely, business-focused summaries of risks and recommended next steps.
- Manages the overall regulatory compliance portfolio, including prioritizing initiatives, maintaining project plans, tracking decisions, dependencies, risks, and open actions, providing clear status reports, escalating obstacles, and persistently following through to completion.
- Builds and maintains scalable compliance infrastructure, including policies, procedures, controls, playbooks, workflows, systems or automation, records-management practices, and audit-ready evidence.
- Coordinates ongoing compliance programs and gap assessments in assigned areas such as privacy and data, product safety and testing, labeling and packaging, environmental and EPR requirements, green claims, AI, marketing, supply chain and import/export, and employment regulations.
- Designs and coordinates risk-based compliance communications and training, maintain accessible guidance, and prepare concise metrics and reports for Legal and business leadership.
- Partners with Legal, functional and regional teams, and external specialists such as consultants or outside counsel to resolve issues, support audits or information requests, coordinate corrective actions, and embed compliance into business workflows. Design and coordinate risk-based compliance communications and training, maintain accessible guidance, and prepare concise metrics and reports for Legal and business leadership.
Qualifications
- Bachelor's Degree in Legal Studies, Public Policy, Political Science, Business Administration, Compliance, or a related field required.
- Minimum five (5) years of professional experience relevant to the responsibilities of the role, such as regulatory compliance, legal operations, risk, government service, legislative or regulatory affairs, public policy, or cross-functional program or project management.
- Experience building, operating, or materially improving multi-jurisdictional compliance programs, including policies, controls, monitoring, corrective actions, and evidence management preferred.
- Experience supporting regulatory matters involving privacy and data, product safety, labeling and packaging, environmental or extended producer responsibility requirements, green claims, AI, marketing, supply chain, import/export, or employment preferred.
- Experience coordinating regulatory or compliance matters across U.S. states and international markets, particularly China, Japan, the European Union, the United Kingdom, and Canada preferred.
Any equivalent combination of experience and education which clearly indicates the ability to perform the essential functions of the position may substitute on a year for year basis.
Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities
- Demonstrated ability to research and analyze regulatory materials, identify issues, and work with counsel or subject-matter experts to translate requirements into practical business actions.
- Demonstrated experience organizing and driving complex, multi-stakeholder initiatives from initial analysis through implementation or resolution.
- Strong project and program-management skills, including the ability to establish owners, milestones, dependencies, and accountability across teams.
- Ability to influence and drive results without direct authority in a complex, cross-functional organization.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including concise summaries for business leaders and clear guidance for operating teams.
- Action-oriented, resourceful, collaborative, and adaptable, with sound judgment, attention to detail, and the ability to reprioritize among competing risks and deadlines.
- Proficiency with business productivity, project-management, reporting, and records-management tools, including the ability to create clear trackers, dashboards, workflows, and audit-ready documentation.
- Experience with regulatory-intelligence, governance, risk and compliance, policy-management, or project-management systems.
- Experience building, operating, or materially improving multi-jurisdictional compliance programs, including policies, controls, monitoring, corrective actions, and evidence management.
Travel - Yes, up to 10% of the time.
Base Salary: $122,700 - $126,900 yearly
The salary range posted for this position represents the anticipated hiring range for this role. Offers are made within this range based on factors such as relevant experience, skills, education, internal equity, and market considerations. This is the hiring range for the position; compensation above the posted maximum is not typically available at the time of hire.
Work Location: Hybrid
This role is based in the Portland, OR area and follows a hybrid work model. Employees are expected to reside within a reasonable commuting distance of our Portland office and generally work on-site four days per week, with flexibility based on business and team needs.
Why Work at KEEN: Driven by a passion for life outside, KEEN is a values-led, independently owned brand from Portland, Oregon, that’s on a mission to create original and versatile products, improve lives, and inspire outside adventure. Founded in 2003, KEEN launched a revolution in the footwear industry with the introduction of the Newport adventure sandal and has donated more than $18 million to non-profit organizations and causes around the world to promote responsible outdoor recreation, including conservation efforts to protect open spaces. KEEN strives to show the world through its products and its actions that a business for good can actually be good for business. By giving back, reducing impact, and activating communities and individuals to protect the places where we work and play, KEEN puts its values in motion and takes action to leave the world a better place.
At KEEN, we believe in a more just and equitable future for all people. As a global brand, we acknowledge that our business, buildings, and daily lives exist within the traditional territories of indigenous peoples. We strive for a future that recognizes the knowledge, rights, and resilience of these peoples.
Fuerst Group, KEEN, and Chrome are equal opportunity employers. We value an inclusive and diverse community. Qualified candidates of all backgrounds are encouraged to apply and will be considered without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, veteran status, or disability.
