Manager of Retail Estimating & Value Engineering

The Royal Group, an affiliate of Schwarz Partners, is currently seeking a Manager of Retail Estimating & Value Engineering to support our TRG Retail Division. The Manager of Retail Estimating and Value Engineering leads the estimating and value-engineering function for Temporary and Semi-Permanent Retail Display opportunities across the TRG network after Sales has properly qualified and defined the opportunity.

This manager owns cost validation, PCF development, recommended pricing, market competitiveness, value engineering, and estimating standards. As a cross-plant leader, the role builds trusted relationships with TRG plant estimating and operations teams, harmonizes cost and pricing assumptions, and has functional authority to return estimates or estimate requests that are incomplete, unsupported, or not market-competitive. Final customer pricing authority remains with Commercial leadership.

An immediate priority is to recruit, onboard, and develop an estimator who can take over routine budgeting and ballpark work currently supported by the Director of Retail Operations and Retail sourcing leadership. Success is defined by repeatable Retail Display standards, improved speed and accuracy, stronger margin and total-TRG economics, and a capable team that performs without executive intervention.

In this role, the Permanent Display Engineer will closely collaborate with cross-functional teams including engineering, manufacturing, and marketing to ensure designs are feasible, meet deadlines, and exceed customer expectations.

The Royal Group’s mission is to provide value-added solutions to the most demanding customers.

ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS FOR THIS POSITION: 

• Estimating Leadership and Scope Control - Lead estimating for qualified Temporary and Semi-Permanent Retail Display opportunities across TRG.
• Cost Model and PCF Accuracy - Own complete cost development, including materials, print, tooling, labor, assembly, packout, freight, outside components, fulfillment, and risk assumptions.
• Market Competitiveness and Margin - Challenge plant, supplier, and internal assumptions to improve competitiveness, protect margin, and support total-TRG economics.
• Recommended Pricing - Develop recommended sell prices, quantity strategies, and pricing options while preserving Commercial leadership's final customer-pricing authority.
• Intake Governance - Establish and enforce estimating intake standards after Sales qualification; return incomplete or poorly defined requests for correction.
• Retail Display Standards - Establish consistent estimating, costing, documentation, and review standards for TRG plant partners supporting Retail work.
• Cross-Plant Relationship Leadership - Build constructive relationships with plant estimating and operations leaders to harmonize costs, pricing assumptions, turnaround expectations, and market alignment.
• Value Engineering - Lead cost-reduction and value-engineering reviews with Design, Engineering, Supply Chain, and Operations to improve manufacturability, scalability, and customer value.
• Complex Opportunity Strategy - Recommend quantity breaks, risk allowances, make-versus-buy options, plant approaches, and alternative execution models for complex opportunities.
• Team Building - Immediately source, hire, onboard, and develop an estimator; build capacity, clear ownership, and succession within the estimating function.
• Systems and Knowledge - Develop estimating tools, templates, cost libraries, benchmarks, and documentation that reduce dependency on individual knowledge.
• Performance Management - Establish scorecards for turnaround time, estimate accuracy, win rate, margin, estimate-to-actual variance, rework, and standards compliance.
• Continuous Improvement - Lead estimate reviews and estimate-to-actual learning loops; convert recurring variances into standards, training, and process improvements.
• Cross-Functional Alignment - Coordinate with Sales, Project Management, Design, Engineering, Supply Chain, Finance, and Operations with clear owners, decisions, timelines, and next steps.
• Budgeting Support - Provide timely ballpark and budgeting estimates with documented assumptions, confidence, and exclusions while preventing undefined work from bypassing intake standards.
• Risk and Escalation Discipline - Surface material customer, margin, schedule, or execution risk early and escalate with a defined problem, root cause, recommendation, owner, and recovery timeline.

REQUIRED EDUCATION / EXPERIENCE: 

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Manufacturing, Business, Finance, or a related field preferred; equivalent directly relevant experience considered.
• 7-10+ years of direct estimating and/or value-engineering experience in Temporary and Semi-Permanent Retail Displays.
• Direct Retail Display experience is required; packaging-only estimating experience does not qualify for this leadership role.
• Demonstrated experience building cost models and pricing strategies in a manufacturing, converting, display, or mixed-material production environment.
• Demonstrated ability to lead through influence across multiple plants, functions, and P&L owners.
• Experience recruiting, onboarding, coaching, and developing estimators or related technical-commercial talent.
• Track record of improving estimate speed, accuracy, competitiveness, margin, and process discipline.
• Mixed-material or Permanent Display estimating experience is strongly preferred.
• Experience creating PCFs, estimate templates, cost libraries, pricing benchmarks, quote-review standards, and estimate-to-actual reporting.

REQUIRED SKILLS & ABILITIES: 

• Advanced cost modeling for corrugated, paperboard, print, tooling, labor, assembly, packout, freight, fulfillment, and outside components.
• Strong understanding of Temporary and Semi-Permanent Display construction, manufacturing methods, materials, and cost drivers.
• Ability to interpret BOMs, structural or CAD drawings, production specifications, retailer requirements, and supplier quotations.
• Strong value-engineering capability focused on customer value, manufacturability, scalability, market conditions, and complete cost.
• Advanced Excel and financial-analysis skills; experience with Amtech or a comparable ERP/estimating platform preferred.
• Working knowledge of domestic and offshore supplier pricing, 3PL/fulfillment models, and cross-plant sourcing economics.
• Strong written, verbal, facilitation, negotiation, and relationship-building skills.

AS AN INDUSTRY LEADER, THE ROYAL GROUP OFFERS: 

• Year-round employment for job stability. 
• Unlimited opportunities for growth, training, and career advancement. 
• Exceptional pay and great, affordable benefits (including life, medical, dental, vision, 401(k) with company match and more!). 
• A clean facility, featuring state-of-the-art technology. 
• A respectful, empowering, team-oriented and employee-friendly environment. 
• The Royal Group truly values our employees as our greatest asset, and we strive to support both you and your family at work and in life. 

If you would like to be part of a forward-thinking team with a family feel, culture of excellence, and customer-focused reliability, we want you to be a part of our team!