VP of Financial Products & Marketplace

<p>Espresa is the only personal benefits platform that delivers a global and all-in-one experience for HR, people teams, and employees. With a core focus on Lifestyle Spending Accounts (LSAs) and a complimentary, modular suite of solutions focused on total wellbeing, recognition, and community, Espresa powers Great Places to Work® while making heroes out of HR teams.</p> <p>Join our growing team of tenacious builders, designers, and people igniters, and help transform the industry of personal benefits for good.</p> <h3>The role</h3> <p class="p1">We are looking for a VP of Marketplace to join Espresa's executive team and own the full strategic vision, commercial performance, and operational evolution of the Espresa Marketplace. This is a high-impact, cross-functional leadership role for someone who thinks like a general manager, operates with a merchant's instincts, and thrives at the intersection of partnerships, product, and business development.</p> <p class="p1">The Marketplace is one of Espresa's most significant growth opportunities. This leader will be responsible for transforming it from a functional catalog into a curated, dynamic, and commercially successful ecosystem that creates meaningful value for employees, vendor partners, and our clients.</p> <p class="p1">This role sits on the executive team and collaborates closely with Product, Engineering, Customer Success, Marketing, Sales, Finance, and senior leadership.</p> <p><strong>What you'll own</strong></p> <p class="p1"><strong>Marketplace Strategy &amp; Vision</strong></p> <ul class="ul1"> <li class="li2">Define and execute a long-term marketplace strategy aligned with Espresa’s overall product and business goals</li> <li class="li2">Develop a clear point of view on assortment, curation, and merchandising that reflects Espresa’s wellness philosophy</li> <li class="li2">Establish the marketplace as a differentiator for Espresa — something prospective clients see as evidence of platform quality and innovation</li> </ul> <p class="p1"><strong>Vendor Partnerships &amp; Ecosystem Development</strong></p> <ul class="ul1"> <li class="li2">Source, negotiate, and manage strategic vendor relationships across wellness, retail, services, experiences, and more</li> <li class="li2">Build a partner ecosystem where vendors see Espresa as a high-quality distribution channel that delivers meaningful engagement and revenue</li> <li class="li2">Develop exclusive promotions, preferred partnerships, and long-term commercial agreements that create competitive advantage</li> </ul> <p class="p1"><strong>Financial Performance</strong></p> <ul class="ul1"> <li class="li2">Own marketplace revenue, margin, and contribution to overall company financial performance</li> <li class="li2">Establish a clear path to sustainable fintech revenue, targeting approximately 10% gross margin over time</li> <li class="li2">Define, track, and report on key performance metrics; continuously optimize economics across the partner and employee ecosystem</li> </ul> <p class="p1"><strong>Operational Excellence &amp; Scalability</strong></p> <ul class="ul1"> <li class="li2">Partner with internal teams to drive automation across vendor onboarding, catalog management, fulfillment, reporting, and reconciliation</li> <li class="li2">Ensure that operational complexity does not scale linearly with marketplace growth</li> <li class="li2">Build processes, systems, and team structures that allow the marketplace to expand efficiently</li> </ul> <p class="p1"><strong>Cross-Functional Leadership</strong></p> <ul class="ul1"> <li class="li2">Serve as the internal champion for marketplace priorities, influencing product investment decisions and roadmap</li> <li class="li2">Align stakeholders across Product, Engineering, CS, Marketing, Sales, and Finance around marketplace goals</li> <li class="li2">Build and lead a high-performing marketplace team, including a senior operational hire and existing operational staff</li> </ul> <p class="p1"><strong>What We're Looking For</strong></p> <ul class="ul1"> <li class="li2">8+ years of experience in marketplace, platform, or two-sided business models — ideally including vendor/partner management and P&amp;L ownership</li> <li class="li2">Demonstrated success building and scaling a marketplace or curated product ecosystem</li> <li class="li2">Strong commercial instincts with the ability to structure and negotiate partnership agreements</li> <li class="li2">Deep understanding of marketplace economics, unit economics, and fintech or payment-adjacent revenue models</li> <li class="li2">Excellent cross-functional collaborator who can influence without authority and drive alignment at the executive level</li> <li class="li2">Strong merchandising taste and the ability to make clear curatorial decisions about what belongs in the marketplace and what does not</li> <li class="li2">Comfortable going into operational detail while maintaining strategic perspective</li> <li class="li2">Experience in HR tech, benefits, wellness, or consumer platforms is a plus</li> </ul> <p class="p3">Espresa is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.</p> <p><strong>Espresa’s benefits</strong></p> <p>Espresa offers a comprehensive benefits package that is competitive with Silicon Valley/Bay Area employers, including health, retirement, a Lifestyle Spending Account, generous PTO, and more.</p> <p>We are an equal opportunity employer and do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, veteran status, disability or any other legally protected status.</p> <p>For US Based Candidates: Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.</p> <p>We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities.</p> <p>Show us you and how our mission and vision shine in you. We welcome wonderful, kind, and bright humans!</p>