Le Creuset seeks an Ecommerce Web Manager (Charleston, SC)

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We are working with Le Creuset in their search for an Ecommerce Web Manager based in Charleston, SC. For nearly a century, Le Creuset premium cast iron cookware has been trusted in kitchens around the world for its superior performance, lasting quality and iconic design.

With a traditional sense of craftsmanship and hands-on attention to detail, the artisans at the client's Fresnoy le Grand foundry have kept chefs and culinary enthusiasts in mind, and their work reflects the real demands of a working kitchen. Le Creuset's products are crafted to achieve optimal weight and heat retention properties, and its cookware is versatile, ergonomic, extremely resistant to wear and tear, and guarantees excellent cooking results.  Plus it comes in a rainbow of groovy colors. ...

HARRY'S COMMENTS: Last year, Susan Emmett of The Times UK wrote an article called “Top Ten: Iconic Kitchen Items.” At #1 was Le Creuset’s cast iron cocotte, about which Ms Emmett wrote …

“This is not a pan, it’s a rite of passage from a life of pizza takeaways to one of slow-cooked beef bourguignon and it is one of the most popular items on the John Lewis wedding register. Those tying the knot before the Sixties will have one in volcanic orange, the original colour dating back to the company’s beginnings in 1925. Last year’s newly-weds bought cerise while those getting hitched alongside Kate and William may opt for the latest midnight blue …”

Her love of the product was genuine, and for good reason: Le Creuset is to chefs what Ducati is to motorcyclists, Gibson is to guitarists, and Louisville Slugger is to baseball players.

A staple, yet so much more.

What we are looking for here is a marketing oriented technologist. You've heard me use that term before, and it refers to someone who sees ecommerce technology as a means to an end – not an end unto itself. We want this person to improve conversions. The site's traffic is not bad, but the conversion rate is simply not where it needs to be. This hire will determine what platform fixes get into the project queue. If the platform fixes don't improve conversions, then they shouldn't be in the queue.

Meaning, we are NOT looking for a technology drone. The ideal candidate must look at Le Creuset’s technology piece and ask “What is this technology capable of doing for the customer? What is it capable of doing for revenues?” Among other things, the new hire will impact conversion rates, average SKUs per item, repeat customer rate, and marketing costs per order. For real. For very real.

Not only will you be expected to leverage IBM’s Websphere, but you’ll be expected to work effectively with Crossview, Le Creuset’s highly-valued integration partner. A major opportunity for the company is improving how the site renders content and using analytics to revise how content is acquired and displayed. Additionally, there is an excellent opportunity to mine customer data to improve the user experience.

Accordingly, the ideal candidate will have meaningful analytics processing capability because Le Creuset believes that "if you are disconnected from what consumers are doing on your website, then you cannot optimize your conversion funnel based on known site behaviors."

A great job, any way you slice it.

As usual, I'm packing a ton of excellent information on this search. I had two calls with this client: A 45 minute meet-end-greet with Faye Gooding, Le Creuset’s CEO for the Americas, and a 75 minute kickoff call with the hiring manager, Alex Campbell, Le Creuset’s Director Retail Marketing. Alex is very smart, and we got nitty gritty.

The job is based in Charleston SC, one of the top five places that I’d like to live, personally.  FANTASTIC quality of life.  Right up there with Austin and Boulder.  And based on several online calculators, this role's base compensation will put you into the top quintile of SC's earners.

Really: To love cooking and ecommerce and to live in Charleston making great money and traveling abroad occasionally. I can’t believe they pay me to tell you this story. And I can’t believe they’d pay you to live it. Apply below.

Please Tweet this job, and you'll be automatically entered into our monthly drawing. Just do it and see what happens: 2010 prizes included $100 Amazon gift certs, Dean & Deluca steaks, and Keurig coffee machines ...

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Position Overview:

• Manage the ongoing operations of Le Creuset of American (LCoA) e-commerce website. Ensure that the website's availability, performance, security, and customer experience maintain the company's standards of excellence.
• Develop and manage proactive maintenance procedures for all systems and ensure high reliability of ecommerce customer experience.
• Manage the relationship with all third party vendors who are part of the LCoA ecommerce solution (hosting, reviews, analytics, etc.)
• Coordinate with LCoA IT the 24/7 availability of all interfaces with the IT infrastructure.
• Maintain the list of all bugs and defects in the site and manage their mitigation.
• Maintain the integration with LCoA all ecommerce business practices including (Order integration, Payment processing, Shipping and Logistics, Security, ERP/Accounting, and Analytics)
• Continuously improve the retail and wholesale user experience on the company’s web properties.
• Maintain master backlog of desired improvements the customer experience of Le Creuset's retail and wholesale websites.
• Prioritize all backlogs against projected cost to implement vs. perceived return on investment.
• Coordinate the implementation of all improvements.
• Serve as Project Manager and center of expertise for the development and deployment of new web properties within the LCoA group, such as www.lecreuset.ca.
• Partner with the Digital Merchandising Manager to insure execution of all content updates and marketing plans.
• Serve as the subject matter expert for all ecommerce issues within the LCoA team.
• Manage all costs and budget activities to insure that LCoA web properties achieve their performance goals.
• Serve as member of the LCoA management team and participate in various marketing and planning activities.

Position Requirements:

• BA/BS, MBA preferred.
• 5+ years’ experience overseeing the operations of an e-commerce website. B-to-C experience preferred.
• Expertise in all ecommerce technologies (web servers, application servers, databases, IT integration, hosting, performance, and security).
• 2 – 3 years Web Sphere experience.
• Strong project management skills. Certification in a project management methodology is desired.
• Strong leadership skills to get the best performance out of employees and vendors.
• Must have superior written and verbal communication skills and be able to achieve objectives from working with others.
• Development and execution of a budget.
• Execution against ecommerce performance and availability KPI’s (site availability, page load times, peak loads)
• Execution against ecommerce KPI’s (traffic, transaction, revenue)
• All execution issues related to maintaining and operating the LCoA e-commerce websites.
• Selection of vendors and partners.
• Recommendations as to staff composition and responsibilities.
• Recommendations around enhancements to the website customer experiences and business user services.
• Self-starter, willing to demonstrate superior work ethic to consistently deliver on position requirements.
• Must be innovative, and able to move thrive in a highly dynamic environment.
• Able to work with various stakeholders in a matrix environment and build consensus.
• Must be able to travel (between LCOA offices, LCOC office and world wide as required.)

Applications for this position are being coordinated by Harry Joiner. To apply, CLICK HERE.  Candidates, please be sure to email Harry Joiner for a packet of market research and company / competitive intel 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.

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