Director Client Partnerships

Role Overview

We're looking for a Director Client Partnerships to own our most important client relationships and lead the team behind them.

This is not a task-management role. You are the executive our clients call first - the person who earns their trust, shapes where their business goes on TikTok Shop, and gets them to say yes to the bold moves that actually move the needle. You'll also lead a pod of Account Managers and Creator Managers, which means your results come as much from how well you develop your people as from what you execute yourself.

The two things that make someone great in this seat: you can win a room, and you can build a team. Platform expertise matters, but it's teachable - the relationship instincts and the leadership are not.

Location: This role is based in our NYC office in Midtown Manhattan.

What You'll Own

The Client Relationship

• Be the trusted senior voice for your accounts - the person clients bring problems to before they become escalations.

• Set the strategic agenda for each brand and sell it in: get buy-in on direction, budget, and the moves that unlock growth.

• Navigate the client organization. Build relationships beyond your day-to-day contact so decisions don't stall and resources get unlocked.

• Grow the partnership. Spot where we can do more for a brand, make the case, and close it.

• Own retention and renewal for your book, and lead the commercial conversations that come with it.

• Turn performance into a story executives act on, in regular business reviews and in the moment.

Your Pod

• Lead a pod of Account Managers and Creator Managers: set standards, review the work, and own the outcomes across every brand in your pod.

• Develop your people. Coach on strategy and client presence, give direct feedback, and build the next generation of senior operators here.

• Know your accounts well enough to catch problems before your team brings them to you.

• Raise the bar on how the team works - better systems, better playbooks, less rework.

The Growth Engine

• Own full-funnel growth for your brands: assortment, pricing, promotions, content, creator and affiliate programming, live commerce, and paid.

• Set and hit quarterly GMV, margin, and ROI targets.

• Work fluently with data - dashboards, funnel diagnostics, and the judgment to know which number matters this week.

• Partner with our content, creator, and analytics teams to bring the full weight of Spotlight to your accounts.

What You Bring

• Commercial instinct. You've grown accounts, closed expansions, or carried a number. You're persuasive without being pushy, and you're comfortable asking for things and you know when is the right time to cross-sell/upsell.

• Real leadership experience. You've directly managed people and enjoyed it - hiring, coaching, holding a standard, having hard conversations.

• Executive presence. You hold your own with senior stakeholders and can make a complex situation simple in five minutes.

• 4+ years in e-commerce, marketplace growth, social commerce, or agency account leadership.

• Analytical depth. Fluent in Excel/Sheets and reporting tools; you reason from data rather than around it.

• Platform fluency. Hands-on TikTok Shop experience is a strong plus, but not a prerequisite - if you've operated in commerce and you learn fast, we'll get you up to speed quickly.

• Comfort with ambiguity. You can chart a path with little precedent and few instructions.

Success Metrics

• Growth of your book - GMV, margin, and the expansion of the partnerships you own.

• Client trust, retention, and renewal.

• The performance and development of your pod, including AMs ready for more scope.

• Quality and speed of execution across every account under you.

Why You'll Love Working with Us

• High autonomy. You'll be trusted to run your book - no micromanagement.

• Direct access to top-tier brands and the ability to shape their social commerce strategy.

• Real upside. Competitive base plus performance-based variable tied to the growth of your book.

• Entrepreneurial runway. Spotlight is a blank canvas for high-agency operators to build new ideas, initiatives, and verticals.

• Health benefits/401k and a collaborative, lean team that moves fast and wins together.