A Marketplace Operations Lead will steer operational excellence across seller onboarding, fulfilment and quality assurance. The role requires a pragmatic leader who can balance strategic thinking with hands-on execution, optimise processes and build strong cross-functional relationships. The successful candidate will drive seller satisfaction, reduce operational friction and support scaling priorities for a growing online marketplace.
This job description outlines the role, responsibilities and requirements for a Marketplace Operations Lead. It is designed to help HR professionals and recruiters attract experienced candidates who can manage marketplace operations end-to-end.
Marketplace Operations Lead Job Profile
The Marketplace Operations Lead will oversee daily marketplace activities, ensuring smooth seller performance, timely fulfilment and a positive buyer experience. Reporting to the Head of Operations, this role combines data-driven decision-making with people management and process improvement.
This profile suits a candidate with strong analytical skills, excellent stakeholder management and proven experience in the marketplace or e-commerce operations. The lead will be expected to implement scalable processes and improve operational metrics.
Marketplace Operations Lead Job Description
The Marketplace Operations Lead is responsible for the operational integrity of the platform. Key duties include managing seller onboarding and verification, setting service level agreements with sellers and logistics partners, and establishing quality controls to maintain product compliance and customer satisfaction.
The role requires close collaboration with product, customer service, supply chain and commercial teams to resolve operational issues, prioritise improvements and launch initiatives that increase sales conversion and repeat purchase rates. The lead will analyse performance data, create reports and present recommendations to senior management to support strategic planning.
The role also involves leading a small operations team, mentoring staff, and developing process documentation and training materials. The ideal candidate will be hands-on, able to lead projects from conception to delivery, and comfortable working in a fast-paced environment where priorities shift quickly.
Marketplace Operations Lead Duties and Responsibilities
- Manage end-to-end seller lifecycle, including recruitment, onboarding, verification and offboarding.
- Define and monitor operational KPIs such as fulfilment rates, defect rates, lead times and cancellation rates.
- Design and implement processes to improve seller compliance, catalogue accuracy and product quality.
- Coordinate with logistics partners to optimise fulfilment flows and reduce delivery exceptions.
- Lead incident management for operational disruptions and ensure timely resolution with root-cause analysis.
- Drive initiatives to reduce operational costs while maintaining service levels and customer experience.
- Collaborate with product and engineering teams to prioritise platform improvements and automations.
- Prepare regular performance reports and present insights to senior stakeholders.
- Recruit, train and coach the operations team; set objectives and review performance.
- Ensure compliance with marketplace policies, legal requirements and industry standards.
Marketplace Operations Lead Requirements and Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in Business, Operations Management, Logistics, Economics or related field; relevant professional qualifications desirable.
- Minimum 5 years' experience in marketplace, e-commerce or operations roles with increasing responsibility.
- Proven experience managing seller networks, third-party logistics or fulfilment operations.
- Strong analytical skills with experience using data tools to track metrics and inform decisions.
- Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills; able to influence cross-functional teams.
- Demonstrable experience leading teams and driving process change in a fast-moving environment.
- Familiarity with marketplace platforms, catalogue management and compliance processes.
- Proactive, solutions-focused approach with strong organisational and prioritisation skills.
- Comfortable with agile ways of working and continuous improvement methodologies.
- Fluent in English; additional languages are an advantage depending on geography.
