Head of Performance Marketing

We are seeking a commercially sharp, analytically rigorous, and battle-tested Head of Performance Marketing based in South Africa to take full strategic and operational ownership of our paid acquisition engine. Reporting directly to the Chief Operating Officer (COO), you will drive scalable, profitable DTC revenue across multiple international territories, with a core focus on Google Ads and Meta Ads.

This is a senior, hands-on leadership mandate. You will inherit established Google and Meta teams, conduct a comprehensive audit of current performance and external agency partnerships, systematically transition externally managed accounts in-house, and institute an elite culture of scientific testing, bidding optimization, and creative experimentation.

Key Responsibilities

Performance Marketing Strategy & Global DTC Scale

* Holistic Acquisition Ownership: Architect and execute paid media strategies across Google Ads (Search, Shopping/Performance Max, YouTube) and Meta Ads (Facebook/Instagram) across our portfolio of international DTC sites.
* Country-Specific Growth Plans: Formulate localized market playbooks focused on top-line revenue, blended CAC, customer lifetime value (LTV), contribution margin, and net profitability.
* Capital Allocation & Scaling: Optimize multi-million-pound monthly budgets across campaigns, territories, and channels to maximize commercial return on ad spend (ROAS) and net margin.
* Full-Funnel CRO & Creative Testing: Partner with Design, Content, and Web Development teams to lead rapid creative testing frameworks, landing page CRO, and frictionless checkout funnels.
* Cross-Functional Synergy: Align closely with CRM, Retention, and Marketplace teams to optimize full-lifecycle customer journey efficiency.

Team Leadership, In-Housing & Operational Rigor

* In-House Transition: Take direct ownership of repatriating externally managed agency campaigns back in-house, ensuring zero downtime, data loss, or performance dips.
* Team Leadership & Development: Lead, mentor, and elevate existing Google and Meta managers and media buyers; conduct skill-gap analyses and recruit specialized talent to build an elite internal unit.
* Hands-on Technical Leadership: Maintain deep operational fluency—diving into accounts to inspect negative keyword trees, PMax asset groupings, CBO/ABO structures, bid caps, pixel integrations, and Conversions API (CAPI) setups.
* KPIs & Performance Governance: Establish rigid reporting cadence, weekly performance sprints, attribution tracking, and commercial scorecards for executive leadership.

Requirements

Required Skills & Experience

* Proven Large-Scale Spend Track Record: Demonstrable, referenceable experience managing multi-million-pound annual paid acquisition budgets in fast-paced e-commerce or DTC retail environments.
* Deep Mastery of Google & Meta Ecosystems: Expert technical command of Google Ads (PMax, Search, Shopping, YouTube, Smart Bidding) and Meta Ads Manager (Advantage+ Shopping, dynamic creative testing, manual bidding strategies).
* Proven In-Housing Experience: Hands-on experience transitioning accounts away from external agencies into an efficient, self-sustaining internal performance department.
* P&L & Commercial Literacy: Deep fluency in contribution margin economics, attribution modeling (first-click, data-driven, post-purchase surveys, Triple Whale/Northbeam/GA4), CAC:LTV ratios, and cash flow impact.
* Senior People Leadership: Track record of recruiting, mentoring, and holding technical media buyers and campaign managers accountable.
* Executive UK Communication: Flawless English verbal and written communication skills with the executive presence to present strategic roadmaps to C-level stakeholders.

Nice to Have:

* Direct exposure to high-volume Amazon Ads / Amazon Marketplace ecosystems.
* Hands-on experience scaling e-commerce brands in multiple languages and international markets across the UK, Europe, and the US.

What Success Looks Like

Within the first 90 days, externally managed accounts are successfully transitioned in-house without operational disruption or efficiency dips. The existing media buying team operates under clear weekly testing and reporting frameworks, attribution visibility is unified across international markets, and contribution profitability improves across both Google and Meta portfolios.