IntermediateLEADERSHIP
Describe a situation where you led a cross-functional team (e.g., merchandising, production, QA, and factory technicians) to solve a major style or bulk production issue. What specific leadership actions did you take to align stakeholders and ensure a successful outcome?
garment technologiest
General

Sample Answer

On a large denim program for a European retailer, we were at 40% bulk and facing a 12% rejection rate due to shade variation and back rise twist. Shipment risk was about $1.2M. I pulled together merchandising, production planning, QA, the laundry, and factory technicians into a daily 30‑minute war-room for one week. First, we mapped the process and agreed on one shared target: get rejections under 2% without missing the ex‑factory date. I had QA bring hard data, merch share buyer expectations, and the factory walk us through real constraints. From there, we standardized wash recipes, re‑set pattern/block for the back rise, and introduced a 100% inline check at key operations for 3 days. Within 10 days, rejection fell from 12% to 1.5%, and we shipped on time with no chargebacks. The factory later adopted that war‑room model for two other key accounts with similar success.

Keywords

Created a cross-functional “war-room” with clear shared targetsUsed data from QA and buyer expectations from merchandising to align everyoneStandardized process (wash, pattern, inline checks) and time-boxed actionsDemonstrated measurable impact on rejection rate and on-time shipment