Senior Strategy & Operations Manager (Shipping)

DEPOP; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

A growing e-commerce platform in the UK seeks a Senior Strategy & Operations Manager (Shipping) to lead the execution of shipping strategies. This role requires extensive experience in strategy and operations, strong analytical skills, and the ability to influence stakeholders. The successful candidate will define the shipping roadmap and drive initiatives aimed at enhancing buyer affordability while supporting company growth, ultimately shaping the long-term shipping strategies for the marketplace.

Benefits

Health & Mental Wellbeing support

Flexible Working options

25 days annual leave plus additional benefits

Qualifications

• Extensive experience in strategy or operations within technology-led businesses.
• Demonstrated experience owning cross-functional initiatives tied to growth.
• Experience working closely with Product, Engineering, and Finance teams.

Responsibilities

• Own the shipping execution strategy and initiatives.
• Lead cross-functional efforts to reduce shipping costs.
• Define and drive a coherent shipping roadmap for growth.

Skills

Strategic and analytical problem-solving skills

Experience in operations or consulting

Ability to influence senior stakeholders

Comfort with financial and operational models

Excellent communication skills

Job description

Overview

Depop is entering its next phase of growth, with a clear ambition to scale buyer demand, increase purchase frequency, and strengthen our competitive position, particularly in the US. Shipping is a critical lever in achieving this, directly shaping buyer conversion, affordability perception, seller success, and long-term marketplace economics. As Depop grows, shipping has evolved from a supporting operational function into a driver of growth and unit economics. The scope now spans pricing and affordability, commercial strategy, product experience, and long-term logistics design, with strong focus from Depop and Etsy leadership. We are hiring a Senior Strategy & Operations Manager (Shipping) to play a central role in shaping how Depop scales its marketplace economics over the next phase of growth. This role exists to provide senior, end-to-end ownership of shipping strategy execution, ensuring we can deliver a coherent, multi-year shipping roadmap that supports growth while improving affordability and the sustainability of our cost base.

This is a senior individual contributor role with full ownership of shipping execution across strategy and operations. You will not manage a team, but you will operate with significant autonomy and influence, acting as the single-threaded owner across Product, Engineering, Analytics, Finance, Commercial, Marketing, Operations, and external partners.

Responsibilities

• End-to-End Ownership of Shipping Execution
• Own outcomes across Depop\'s shipping roadmap, with direct impact on growth, affordability, and marketplace economics.
• Define priorities, sequencing, dependencies, and success metrics across a portfolio of shipping initiatives.
• Drive alignment across teams with competing priorities, making trade-offs explicit to maximise impact and execution velocity.

Affordability as a Growth Lever

• Lead initiatives aimed at improving buyer-facing shipping prices and affordability perception to support conversion and repeat purchase.
• Design, execute, and evaluate experiments across subsidies, seller incentives, and promotional approaches.
• Partner with Analytics and Finance to measure impact and guide ongoing investment decisions.

Cost and Commercial Strategy Execution

• Lead cross-functional efforts to reduce shipping costs while increasing flexibility to support growth over time.
• Shape carrier and logistics partner strategies across multiple shipping models.
• Own execution of shipping-related commercial initiatives in close partnership with Finance, Legal, and Etsy stakeholders.

Long-Term Shipping Strategy

• Lead the definition of Depop's long-term shipping operating model to support scale, growth, and competitive differentiation.
• Advance future-facing initiatives such as multi-carrier design, alternative pickup and drop-off models, label architecture, subscriptions, and loyalty concepts.
• Ensure near-term decisions remain aligned with long-term growth objectives and platform strategy.

Cross-Functional Leadership and Operating Rhythm

• Act as the central owner connecting Product, Engineering, Analytics, Finance, Commercial, Marketing, and Operations around a coherent shipping roadmap.
• Establish effective operating rhythms and decision forums, and deliver clear, data-backed recommendations to senior and executive stakeholders.
• Surface risks, dependencies, and trade-offs early, and influence roadmap sequencing and investment decisions through insight and judgment.

Required skills & experience

• Extensive experience in strategy, operations, consulting, product operations, or related roles within technology-led, marketplace, or platform businesses.
• Demonstrated experience owning complex, cross-functional initiatives tied to growth, economics, or user experience.
• Strong strategic and analytical problem-solving skills, with the ability to turn ambiguous challenges into clear hypotheses, metrics, and action plans.
• Comfort building and using financial and operational models to inform prioritisation and investment decisions.
• Proven ability to influence senior stakeholders and align teams without direct authority.
• Experience working closely with Product, Engineering, Analytics, and Finance teams in a product-led environment.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, particularly in executive-facing contexts.

Desired skills & experience

• Experience in shipping, logistics, fulfilment, or last-mile delivery within an e-commerce or marketplace context.
• Exposure to pricing, affordability, cost optimisation, or commercial strategy initiatives.
• Experience partnering with external vendors, carriers, or platform partners.
• Experience operating in a global or multi-market environment.

Who will thrive in this role

This role is well suited to someone who is motivated by growth-oriented problems and enjoys operating at the intersection of strategy and execution. You are comfortable navigating ambiguity, making trade-offs with incomplete information, and driving clarity across complex, cross-functional environments. You are energised by building systems and operating models that scale and by seeing your work directly enable the next phase of company growth.

Additional information

Health + Mental Wellbeing PMI and cash plan healthcare access with Bupa; Subsidised counselling and coaching with Self Space; Cycle to Work scheme with options from Evans or the Green Commute Initiative; Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) for 24/7 confidential support; Mental Health First Aiders across the business for support and signposting; Work/Life Balance: 25 days annual leave with option to carry over up to 5 days; 1 company-wide day off per quarter; Impact hours: Up to 2 days additional paid leave per year for volunteering; Fully paid 4 week sabbatical after completion of 5 years of consecutive service with Depop; Flexible Working: MyMode hybrid-working model with Flex, Office Based, and Remote options; All offices are dog-friendly; Ability to work abroad for 4 weeks per year in UK tax treaty countries; Family Life: 18 weeks of paid parental leave for full-time regular employees; IVF leave, shared parental leave, and paid emergency parent/carer leave; Learn + Grow: Budgets for conferences, learning subscriptions, and more; Mentorship and programmes to upskill employees; Your Future: Life Insurance (3x salary); Pension matching up to 6% of qualifying earnings; Depop Extras: free shipping on Depop sales within the UK; Special milestones are celebrated with gifts and rewards!