Director, Selection Operational Excellence
Location: Seoul, South Korea
About Coupang
Coupang is reimagining the shopping experience with the goal of wowing each customer from the moment they open the Coupang app to the moment an order is delivered to their door.
Powered by an end-to-end e-commerce and logistics network and a culture of customer obsession, Coupang has redefined tradeoffs between speed, selection, and price. We provide fast delivery on millions of items, including fresh groceries, delivered within hours nationwide, 365 days a year.
South Korea represents one of the most dynamic and fast-growing e-commerce markets globally, and Coupang continues to lead through innovation and operational excellence.
Role Overview
As Director of Selection Operational Excellence, you will lead the strategy and execution of Coupang’s selection identification and onboarding operations. This role sits at the forefront of the customer experience—defining what products we should sell and ensuring we deliver the most relevant, high-demand, and differentiated selection.
You will own a multi-year roadmap, drive data-backed decision making, and build scalable, tech-enabled processes. This is a highly cross-functional leadership role requiring strong business judgment, deep analytical thinking, and the ability to influence senior stakeholders.
What You Will Do
Selection Strategy & Identification
- Lead selection identification across multiple retail categories (e.g., Electronics, Home, Consumables, Baby, Sports).
- Identify non-obvious selection gaps, including variants, bundles, niche brands, and emerging customer demand.
- Develop data-driven perspectives leveraging customer signals, reviews, trends, and market insights.
- Translate insights into actionable strategies to improve selection coverage and relevance.
Strategic Leadership
- Define and execute a 2–3 year roadmap for selection planning and onboarding.
- Partner with Category, Product, Engineering, and Catalog teams to accelerate selection expansion.
- Align selection strategy with customer experience and broader business goals.
Operational Excellence
- Design and scale SOPs, SLAs, and quality frameworks to ensure consistent and efficient execution.
- Introduce automation, tooling, and process improvements to reduce defects and manual effort.
- Establish feedback loops, audits, and continuous improvement mechanisms.
Data-Driven Execution
- Analyze internal metrics and external market trends to identify opportunities and root causes.
- Drive initiatives that improve catalog quality, onboarding speed, and operational efficiency.
- Ensure selection decisions are tied to commercial outcomes and customer impact.
Stakeholder Management
- Act as a key influencer across teams, using data-backed insights to challenge assumptions and drive alignment.
- Present recommendations and strategies clearly and effectively to senior leadership.
Team Leadership
- Build and lead a high-performing organization.
- Foster a culture of ownership, innovation, and continuous improvement.
- Mentor leaders and develop strong succession pipelines.
Basic Qualifications
- 10+ years of experience in operations, strategy, e-commerce, retail, or catalog/selection management.
- Proven experience leading large teams and complex cross-functional initiatives.
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with a data-driven mindset.
- Demonstrated ability to drive process improvements and measurable business impact.
- Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience in selection or catalog operations, including SOP/SLA design and process optimization.
- Familiarity with operational excellence frameworks (e.g., defect detection, feedback loops, automation).
- Knowledge of AI/ML applications in selection planning or catalog optimization.
- Experience in global or regional e-commerce environments.
- Bilingual proficiency in Korean and English preferred.
Leadership Qualities
- Customer Obsession: Deep commitment to improving customer experience through better selection.
- Ownership: Takes end-to-end accountability for strategy and execution.
- Dive Deep: Ability to uncover root causes and solve complex problems.
- Invent & Simplify: Drives scalable solutions through innovation and automation.
- Bias for Action: Operates effectively in a fast-paced, ambiguous environment.
Why This Role Matters
This role directly impacts Coupang’s growth and customer experience by ensuring we offer the most relevant selection at scale. You will shape how we identify opportunities, influence business decisions, and build the future of selection strategy at Coupang.
Recruitment Process
Application Review - Phone Interview - Onsite (or Virtual Onsite) Interview – Offer
The exact nature of the recruitment process may vary depending on the role and may change due to scheduling or other circumstances.
Interview schedules and results will be communicated via the email address provided at the time of application.
Things to Consider
This job posting may close prior to the stated deadline if all positions are filled.
Coupang reserves the right to rescind an offer of employment if a candidate is found to have provided false information during the application process.
Coupang is committed to equal opportunity employment and does not discriminate against applicants based on disability or veteran status.
Job titles and responsibilities may be adjusted based on the candidate’s experience and qualifications. This will be communicated prior to the offer stage.
Privacy Notice
Your personal information will be collected and managed by Coupang in accordance with the Application Privacy Notice.
For more details, please visit: https://www.coupang.jobs/en/privacy-policy/
Document Return Policy
This notification is provided in accordance with Article 11 (6) of the Fair Hiring Procedure Act.
Applicants who have applied but were not selected may request the return of submitted hiring documents, except where such documents were submitted via the company website or email, or voluntarily without company request.
If documents are lost due to natural disaster or other circumstances beyond the company’s control, they will be considered returned.
Applicants wishing to request the return of documents must submit the prescribed “Request for Return of Hiring Documents” form (Annex Form No. 3 of the Enforcement Rule of the Fair Hiring Procedure Act) to:
Coupang Recruiting Team, Tower 730, 570 Songpa-daero, Songpa-gu, Seoul
Upon request, documents will be returned within 14 days via registered mail, with postage costs borne by the applicant.
Submitted documents will be retained for 180 days after the recruitment process concludes and will be destroyed thereafter in accordance with applicable data protection laws.
쿠팡은 고객 감동 실현을 위해 존재합니다. 고객들이 "쿠팡 없이 그동안 어떻게 살았을까?" 라고 말할 때, 비로소 우리의 미션을 실현하고 있음을 알 수 있습니다. 고객들의 쇼핑과 식사, 생활 전반을 편하게 만들겠다는 유일한 집념으로 쿠팡은 수억 달러 규모의 커머스 산업 전반의 혁신을 이끌고 있습니다. 쿠팡은 가장 빠르게 성장하는 리테일 기업 중 하나로, 국내 커머스 업계에서의 독보적인 입지와, 고객 신뢰를 구축했습니다.
쿠팡은 스타트업 문화를 기반으로 한 글로벌 대형 상장사라고 자부합니다. 이것이 창립 당시의 기민함을 유지하며, 신규 서비스를 끊임없이 출시하며 비즈니스를 확장해 나가는 우리의 성장 동력입니다. 쿠팡의 모든 임직원에게는 기업가 정신을 갖추고 새로운 혁신과 이니셔티브를 추진할 수 있는 기회가 주어집니다. 주저없이 일에 뛰어들어 성과를 이루고자 하는 과감성이, 바로 쿠팡이 일하는 방식의 본질입니다. 쿠팡에서는 여러분 자신, 동료, 팀 그리고 회사 전체가 매일 성장하는 모습을 목격할 것입니다.
쿠팡의 모든 직원은 커머스의 미래를 만들겠다는 쿠팡의 미션에 진심입니다. 우리는 고객의 문제를 해결해 나가고, 전통적인 관념과 통념에 맞서며 실현가능한 한계를 뛰어넘고 있습니다. 고가용성(Always-on) 과 최첨단의 앞선 기술(High-tech), 초연결사회(Hyper-connected world) 에서의 놀라운 업무 경험을 원하신다면, 지금 바로 쿠팡에 합류하세요.
