Senior Manager, Merchandising Strategy & Operations

Who We Are

Babylist is the leading registry, e-commerce, and content platform for growing families. More than 9 million people shop with Babylist every year, making it the go-to destination for seamless purchasing, trusted guidance, and expert product recommendations for new parents and the people who love them. What began as a universal registry has grown into a full ecosystem for new parents, including the Babylist Shop, Babylist Health, and a flagship showroom in Los Angeles. Hundreds of brands in baby and beyond partner with Babylist to engage meaningfully with families during one of life’s most important transitions. With over $1 billion in annual GMV, and more than $500 million in 2024 revenue, Babylist is reshaping the $320 billion baby product industry. We’re helping parents feel confident, connected, and cared for at every step. As we build the generational brand in baby, our mission remains simple: to connect growing families with everything they need to thrive.To learn more, visit www.babylist.com.

Our Ways of Working

Babylist thrives as a remote-first company, with HQ team members located across the U.S. and Canada. We meet in person twice a year—once as a company and once by department to strengthen the relationships that power our work. We show up consistently, stay purpose-driven, leverage AI to amplify our impact, and achieve results—together, from anywhere.

What the Role Is

We're looking for a Senior Manager, Merchandising Strategy and Operations to drive the operational excellence behind our merchandising organization during a pivotal moment, one where our business is scaling rapidly, our merchandising function is maturing, and operational efficiency has never been more critical to our success. This is a high-impact role designing systems, unlocking bandwidth, and building the infrastructure that enables our Merchandising team to operate at peak performance.

This is more than a "keep the lights on" role, it's an opportunity to define what operational excellence looks like at Babylist, building the foundation for sustainable growth. Reporting to the VP of Merchandising, you'll partner closely with Merchants, Planning, Data, Finance, Accounting, Legal, Owned Brands, Operations and Tech to translate strategy into transparent, scalable, repeatable execution. You'll bridge teams, drive accountability, and ensure everyone is rowing in the same direction. You bring both big picture thinking and a willingness to roll up your sleeves–you're energized by both the vision and the details. Success requires influencing without authority, building consensus, and delivering measurable efficiency gains that directly impact revenue and margin.
Who You Are

• 10+ years of experience in retail operations, sales operations, or related experience with proven expertise in process design and cross-functional influence
• Prior experience building processes, tools, benchmarks, and the right data infrastructure to scale businesses and organizations
• Strong analytical and financial modeling skills with the ability to translate complex data into actionable insights and derive insights from large data sets
• Have systems aptitude and proficiency in BI/analytics tools and Excel (pivot tables, vlookups, dashboards, etc.)
• Strong project management experience with an ability to evaluate and re-prioritize rapidly and deliver results against aggressive deadlines
• Commitment to strengthening operational processes with knowledge, creativity, and empathy
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills for a variety of audiences
• Self-motivated and able to work autonomously & collaboratively to find direction in ambiguity and complexity, working independently and alongside Finance, Accounting, Planning, Data, Tech, and cross-functional teams
• Demonstrated proficiencies as a program manager in a rapidly changing environment
• Experience launching and driving adoption for org-wide changes to operational processes
• Bachelor's degree in Business, Merchandising, Supply Chain, or related field preferred; advanced degree a plus
• You're comfortable and enthusiastic about working in an AI-forward environment where AI tools are part of daily operations
• You embrace using technology to enhance your work while keeping people at the center

How You Will Make An Impact

• Define and drive the operational KPIs that underpin revenue and margin performance(including new vendor and product pipelines, pricing competitiveness, operational cost drivers), partnering with Data, Finance, and Merchandising to ensure visibility, accountability, and continuous optimization across the merchandising engine.
• Deliver meaningful gains in operating efficiency and team capacity by simplifying how work gets done and establishing clear measures of success. Remove friction across cross-functional workflows to increase throughput and reliability, and drive accountability and operating discipline
• Drive strategic vendor success by setting clear processes, milestones, and operating rhythms for Joint Business Planning. Own end-to-end execution—including data synthesis, deck development (in partnership with Brand), project management, and deliverable tracking. Monitor and optimize vendor performance across revenue, co-op, and gross margin targets, and lead Quarterly JBP Reviews to assess progress, surface insights, and course-correct.
• Deliver monthly and quarterly readouts to leadership and team with insights, root cause analysis, and recommended actions. 
• Enable successful strategic planning and execution by owning the milestone calendar across key initiatives (e.g., annual planning, seasonal strategies, product development, and promotions), facilitating meetings, and ensuring clear timelines, shared artifacts, and alignment on requirements and next steps
• Serve as the connective tissue between Merchandising Operations, Accounting, and FP&A to ensure merchandising activity translates cleanly into accurate financial performance, reporting, and forecasts.
• Document end-to-end processes and maintain standard operating procedures (SOPs). Train merchants and cross-functions on tools, policies, and workflows
• Lead change management and continuous improvement initiatives, including automation and AI roadmap (e.g., tool enhancements, process automation). Enable teams with dashboards, playbooks, and self-serve capabilities
• Support strategic initiatives such as Showroom opening, pilot programs, and new channel launches

Why You Will Love Working At Babylist

Our Culture

• We work with focus and intention, then step away to recharge
• We believe in exceptional management and invest in tools and opportunities to connect with colleagues
• We build products that positively impact millions of people's lives
• AI is intentionally embedded in how we work, create, and scale—supporting innovation and impact

Growth & Development

• Competitive pay and meaningful opportunities for career advancement
• We believe technology and data can solve hard problems
• We're committed to career progression and performance-based advancement

Compensation & Benefits

• Competitive salary with equity and bonus opportunities
• Company-paid medical, dental, and vision insurance
• Retirement savings plan with company matching and flexible spending accounts
• Generous paid parental leave and PTO
• Remote work stipend to set up your office
• Perks for physical, mental, and emotional health, parenting, childcare, and financial planning

About Compensation

We use a market-based approach to compensation. The starting salary range for this role is:

$131,347 to $157,700

Your starting salary will be based on your location, experience, and qualifications, with increases over time tied to performance, role growth, and internal pay equity.

Interview Process & Consent
Babylist uses AI to record and transcribe all interviews for evaluation purposes in accordance with CCPA and GDPR. By participating in an interview, you consent to this recording and transcription.

Interview Integrity
During the interview process, we're evaluating your individual problem-solving skills, creativity, and approach to challenges. While AI tools like ChatGPT, Claude, and Cursor are part of your daily toolkit once you join Babylist, all interviews, assessments, and take-home assignments must be completed independently. 

You may not use AI tools, third-party services, coaching platforms, or content-farming services during any part of the interview process unless we explicitly permit it. We will clearly communicate when AI tools are allowed for specific assessments.

Any indication of third-party assistance or AI-generated responses will result in immediate disqualification. We may also verify educational credentials through third-party sources—providing false or misleading information will result in removal from consideration.

Official Communication
All communication will come only from the Babylist Talent Team via an @babylist.com email address. We will never request payment, bank information, or personal financial details. Be cautious of fraudulent outreach via non-company email addresses, messaging platforms (e.g., WhatsApp, Telegram), or unsolicited phone calls. Verify legitimate opportunities on our careers page.

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