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One of the coolest ecommerce jobs around!

HARRY’S COMMENTS: In what looks to be an extremely cool gig, I’m working with a highly unique ecommerce consultancy/agency in their search for an Ecommerce Practice Lead in this full-time, fully remote, W2 role.

In ~20 years of recruiting, I’ve rarely seen a first-rate ecom consultancy approach its businesses this way. Basically, these folks help businesses that either …

1. Need to launch DTC, or
2. Want to take an underperforming DTC business to a level they believe it can reach, but can’t quite figure out how to get there. Hence, my client’s tagline, “High-performance ecommerce for high potential brands.”

Imagine this (fake) scenario: Suppose Yeti sold its products everywhere but Yeti.com. And suppose the only reason it didn’t sell on its own DTC site was because Yeti Management simply couldn’t wrap its brain around how to make that happen.

Enter my client —

— whose team is loaded with DTC industry A-players who specialize in digital business model development, ecommerce, and technology-enabled growth. 40 years of combined experience (and counting).

They’re all about helping branded manufacturers grow profits and run their op more efficiently. And their secret sauce involves creating reality-based, Board-ready business plans that actually deliver financial results.

CXOs love that sort of thing.

These folks have helped companies of various sizes, maturity, and verticals leverage proven ecommerce playbooks to accelerate top- and bottom-line growth, and their clients value the firm’s pragmatic and focused advice, grounded in a proprietary, rigorous, and data-driven approach, supported by hands-on, “been there, done that” experience and award-winning operators.

Now, I know what you’re gonna say: “Harry, this model is as old as ecom itself!

To which I’d respond, “Not exactly.” There have been other stabs at this model, but this client actually requires that its Engagement Leads have recently run (since 2022!) a profitable DTC ecom P&L of $30 million/up and come from the client-side.

BET ON IT: THE VERY FIRST QUESTION I WILL ASK YOU IS, “CAN YOU SEND ME A LIVE LINK TO YOUR CURRENT DTC ECOMMERCE STORE FOR WHICH YOU RUN THE P&L??”

This is a great role for a marquee DTC ecom executive who’s being called back into the office, yet wants to stay remote. If you’re currently on the client side and you’ve ever thought about taking a walk on the agency side, keep reading …

About the Market

I just did some Googling and here’s what I found: In the United States alone, 3 million sites run Shopify. Shopify has a 29% of the US ecom platform market. This implies that there are 10.3 million ecom sites in America.

According to Perplexity, “Approximately 1.5% of U.S. ecommerce sites generate more than $3 million in annual sales. With an estimated 10 million ecommerce sites in America, this translates to around 150,000 sites achieving that revenue level.” Many more will hit that mark someday. That’s my client’s TAM.

Now, think about it: If I’m a branded manufacturer who’s not selling or underperforming on DTC, I gotta be wondering what I’m missing and how it’s hindering my overall brand growth.

I’m thinking, “It costs a fortune to sell on Amazon — and when I make a sale there, Amazon thinks they own the customer, not me. How irritating is that? Why not strategically invest in DTC, even if I continue to sell on Amazon and other 3P markets?”

Answer: Because it’s hard, that’s why.

According to McKinsey, 20% of all shopping now transacts online, and it’s getting more sophisticated every day, with AI, connected shipping systems, and new ways to market to customers. It’s expensive to attract new customers, and it’s hella complicated to manage shipping and inventory as shoppers expect personalized experiences that work smoothly across websites and apps.

Again, no biggie: My client’s team is made up of experienced client-side ecom pros who have won awards and actually run DTC businesses themselves. They’re not just consultants who study theory. They believe in building a workplace where people work hard but also feel fulfilled. Their culture is all about “leading from the front” – meaning everyone, including leaders, gets involved in the actual work.

Bottom line: No matter how gnarly the ask, what the branded manufacturer CEO gets is a turnkey DTC business that makes money and runs like a top. My client’s team does it all, including the Board presentations.

About the Role

The Ecommerce Practice Lead is a senior position responsible for the overall success of the firm’s Ecommerce Acceleration practice. The job needs someone who can both think strategically and get things done. In this position, your main responsibilities will include …

Leading the Practice:

• Running the entire ecommerce consulting practice
• Building and maintaining client relationships
• Leading complex ecommerce projects
• Creating strategic plans for clients
• Making sure projects succeed and clients are happy
• Watching the practice’s profitability
• Helping bring in new business
• Developing team members
• Staying current with market trends

Leading Strategy:

• Being the top ecommerce expert for clients
• Creating plans to help clients make more money online
• Acting like a temporary Chief Digital Officer for clients
• Managing complex projects across different departments

Running Day-to-Day Operations:

• Making sure the practice makes money through good planning
• Building relationships with client CEOs and executives
• Helping project teams deliver high-quality work
• Improving the firm’s tools and methods

The ideal person for this job has experience running online sales for companies that make branded products, especially if they’ve worked with multiple brands in different countries. They should have managed their own eCommerce P&L and successfully planned and executed digital strategies.

To do well in this role, you need:

• Deep knowledge of how online sales work
• Strong people skills to build relationships
• Ability to think big picture while handling details
• Experience leading teams
• Comfort both managing others and doing hands-on work

The job offers a lot of independence and chance to make an impact. Pay includes salary plus bonuses based on how well the practice grows. Working remotely gives flexibility while still delivering great client service.

This role deals with several important trends in ecommerce:

• More manufacturers wanting to sell directly to customers
• Growing importance of using data to personalize shopping
• Managing sales across websites, apps, and stores
• Using new technology like AI to connect with customers

This is a chance to help shape how manufacturers sell online while building a successful consulting practice. The job combines strategic thinking, making things happen, and the excitement of working at a smaller firm that’s growing fast.

The person who gets this job will need to balance multiple things: getting results for clients, developing their team, creating new tools and methods, and making sure the practice makes money. They need to be comfortable both setting big-picture directions and rolling up their sleeves to help with detailed work when needed.

The mix of strategic and hands-on work, combined with the firm’s focused approach and special methods, creates an excellent opportunity for professional growth and making a real impact. The role offers a chance to join a company that values both high performance and employee well-being, while working with major brands to solve interesting challenges in the fast-moving world of ecommerce.

You won’t believe how much we know about this search …

I spent a ton of time on the phone with the client teasing out exactly what you’ll need to KNOW and DO to hit the ground running in this role. Some of the things I can share with highly qualified candidates include …

1. The “real” background requirements for this position, along with the top five things all resumes MUST have to be considered for the role.
2. The top five problems that exist due to this position being open. These are the little brush fires you will be expected to put out during your first month on the job. Every ecommerce job has these — and this one’s no different.
3. What your average day/week will look like in this role. There’s what you read in the standard ecommerce job posting … then there’s reality. We’ve got the reality.
4. The leading and lagging KPIs that will determine your success in this role. In a nutshell: How you’ll keep score.
5. The major projects you’ll need to complete by Day 100 to be considered a home-run in this position. We’ve got the lowdown on how you can plug-and-play and drive REAL value in this ecommerce job.

I have a massive amount of proprietary intel to share with qualified candidates. My industry research for this assignment exceeds 100 pages! Be sure to TEXT me, Harry Joiner, at (404) 281-2025 for this info. Or simply use the email link when you apply for the role below.

General Responsibilities:

• Serve as a member of the Company’s Senior Leadership Team, both representing the eCommerce Practice and contributing to strategic planning and initiatives for the company.
• Act as the primary leader and ultimate point of accountability for successful engagements across multiple clients and engagement teams.
• Deliver to the gross margin targets for the eCommerce Practice, including accountability for accurate proposals, capacity planning, resource allocation and utilization, and delivery.
• Utilize and improve our frameworks, tools, systems, and processes to ensure scalability, consistency, and best-in-class expertise and value creation plans for our clients.
• Lead the eCommerce engagement teams to work both ON the client’s business (roadmap) and IN the client’s business (business plan, KPIs, and P&L).
• Develop and be responsible for the financial linkages of the Company’s work product, the engagement goals & KPIs, and the client outcomes aligned with their value creation plan.
• Serve as the senior most eCommerce professional and strategist on client engagements.
• Lead and prioritize client growth initiatives, influence architecture and infrastructure requirements to ultimately fulfill eCommerce business strategy.
• Serve as the de facto fractional Chief Digital Officer for the client and as an extension of their existing team during the life of the engagement.

Client Relationship Management:

• Building and maintaining strong relationships with key decision-makers at client organizations, acting as the primary point of contact for large, complex accounts.
• Collaborating and supporting the client CEO and executive leadership on all things eCommerce and digital value creation.

Strategic Engagement Planning & Architecture:

• Developing comprehensive engagement plans, identifying opportunities for value creation through profitable growth and operational excellence, and crafting strategic roadmaps and business plans based on the Company’s proprietary IP, frameworks, and methodologies.

Engagement Delivery Leadership:

• Overseeing day-to-day engagement execution, supporting and managing engagement teams, ensuring high quality deliverables, and addressing challenges throughout engagement lifecycle.

Business Development:

• Supporting the Sales process by meeting with qualified leads, assessing and articulating eCommerce engagement opportunities, and participating in proposal generation and closing.
• Identifying and proposing new business opportunities within existing clients.

Thought Leadership:

• Staying abreast of industry trends, providing strategic insights and benchmarks to clients, and contributing to thought leadership initiatives within the company.

Team Development:

• Coaching team members, sharing expertise, and fostering a high-performing team culture.

Required Qualifications:

• A passionate player/coach who will thrive in “roll-up your sleeves” culture.
• Proven experience leading DTC eCommerce for Branded Manufacturers, preferably in a global and multi-brand environment and with experience as a P&L owner.
• Expertise in developing and executing strategic roadmaps and tactical business plans
• Proven ability to build and maintain strong stakeholder relationships
• Deep understanding of the DTC eCommerce industry and client needs

The company offers competitive pay and good benefits, including:

• Health insurance
• Flexible time off
• Option to work from home
• 401k matching program
• Chance to work with smart, talented people
• Opportunity to be at the cutting edge of ecommerce

Applications for this ecommerce job are being coordinated by Harry Joiner. To apply, CLICK HERE. Candidates, please be sure to email Harry for additional information that will differentiate you in your candidacy. Due to the intensely competitive nature of this search, thorough preparation for these interviews with this proprietary material is strongly recommended.