Traffic (User Acquisition) Team Lead

This position is listed on behalf of a partner company, who manages all applications and next steps. Our partner is looking for a Traffic (User Acquisition) Team Lead based in Canada.
Are you a data-driven performance marketing leader passionate about scaling user acquisition and building high-performing teams? This fully remote opportunity offers the chance to lead multi-channel growth strategies across paid search (PPC) and affiliate marketing in a fast-paced, technology-driven environment. You will combine strategic ownership with hands-on execution, optimizing acquisition budgets, improving campaign performance, and maximizing profitability across the entire marketing funnel. As a player-coach, you will mentor PPC and Affiliate Managers while remaining directly involved in campaign analysis, tracking infrastructure, and partner negotiations. You will use advanced analytics to strengthen attribution accuracy, identify traffic quality issues, and uncover new opportunities for scalable growth. This role is ideal for an analytical, commercially minded professional who thrives on accountability, experimentation, and measurable business impact while working with a globally distributed team.
Accountabilities
Team leadership and coaching:
Lead, mentor, and develop PPC and Affiliate Managers, establish clear performance expectations, define KPIs, and create structured testing roadmaps that drive accountability and continuous improvement.
Performance management:
Conduct regular performance reviews, clarify individual responsibilities, monitor progress against objectives, and ensure team members maintain ownership of priorities and deliverables.
Acquisition strategy and budget ownership:
Develop and execute user acquisition strategies across PPC and affiliate channels, allocating and adjusting budgets based on campaign performance, customer acquisition costs, return on advertising spend, and lifetime value.
PPC campaign optimization:
Oversee paid acquisition activities, including keyword bidding, campaign structure, audience targeting, creative testing, account troubleshooting, and ongoing performance optimization.
Affiliate marketing and partnerships:
Guide affiliate acquisition strategies, negotiate commercially advantageous partnerships, evaluate partner economics, and identify opportunities to expand and diversify traffic sources.
Growth channel development:
Discover, test, validate, and scale new acquisition channels while assessing their profitability, sustainability, and contribution to overall growth objectives.
Unit economics and forecasting:
Monitor full-funnel conversion rates, customer acquisition cost (CAC), cost per acquisition (CPA), return on advertising spend (ROAS), customer lifetime value (LTV), and payback periods to evaluate performance and produce accurate weekly forecasts.
Analytics and performance reporting:
Analyze campaign and funnel data to identify trends, diagnose performance changes, uncover inefficiencies, and translate findings into actionable recommendations for growth.
Tracking and attribution integrity:
Maintain reliable tracking and attribution across platforms such as GA4, Mixpanel, and affiliate tracking systems, ensuring performance data is accurate and actionable.
Traffic quality and fraud prevention:
Identify and address click fraud, bot traffic, attribution hijacking, low-intent traffic, poor targeting, and other sources of wasted acquisition spend.
Stakeholder communication:
Provide transparent updates to adjacent team leaders and stakeholders on campaign results, budget allocation, risks, emerging opportunities, and changes to performance forecasts.
Hands-on execution and troubleshooting:
Remain actively involved in campaign mechanics, reporting, data investigation, and account optimization while balancing strategic leadership responsibilities.
Process automation and experimentation:
Improve reporting workflows, implement structured testing frameworks, and leverage automation and AI-powered tools to increase operational efficiency and accelerate growth.
Strategic prioritization:
Challenge assumptions, identify underperforming initiatives, discontinue unprofitable activities when necessary, and redirect resources toward higher-value opportunities.
Requirements
Professional experience:
At least three years of relevant experience in performance marketing or user acquisition, including a minimum of one year in hands-on PPC management, one year in hands-on affiliate management, and one year leading or managing a growth or traffic team.
Player-coach leadership:
Demonstrated ability to balance team management, coaching, and strategic planning with direct involvement in campaign execution, reporting, analysis, and troubleshooting.
Budget management:
Proven experience managing substantial acquisition budgets and making disciplined, data-driven investment decisions to maximize profitability and growth.
PPC expertise:
Strong practical knowledge of paid search campaign management, keyword bidding, creative testing, targeting strategies, and paid media optimization.
Affiliate marketing expertise:
Deep understanding of affiliate partnership models, commercial negotiations, partner economics, traffic acquisition strategies, and the broader user acquisition ecosystem.
Performance marketing analytics:
In-depth understanding of CAC, CPA, conversion rates, payback periods, ROAS, LTV, and other full-funnel performance metrics.
Traffic quality and fraud detection:
Experience identifying and investigating click fraud, bot traffic, attribution manipulation, poor-quality traffic sources, and inefficient acquisition spending.
Tracking and analytics platforms:
Hands-on experience with affiliate tracking and traffic management platforms such as TUNE, Affise, or Everflow, alongside analytics tools such as GA4 and Mixpanel.
Quantitative and investigative skills:
Strong analytical reasoning and numerical proficiency, with the ability to independently investigate datasets, segment campaign performance, identify hidden patterns, and uncover incremental growth opportunities.
Communication and transparency:
Excellent communication skills and the ability to explain complex performance data clearly, report results honestly, and address missed targets constructively.
Decision-making and prioritization:
A calm, objective, and curious approach to unexpected performance changes, combined with the ability to challenge assumptions and discontinue low-value initiatives when appropriate.
Technical and data skills:
SQL proficiency for querying and analyzing raw data is an asset. Basic programming or scripting skills and experience building custom dashboards or automated reporting solutions are also advantageous.
Advanced measurement capabilities:
Familiarity with multi-touch attribution models, structured experimentation frameworks, and data-driven testing methodologies is desirable.
AI and automation tools:
Experience using AI-powered prospecting, research, and workflow tools, such as Clay, automated web scrapers, or large language models for copywriting and data analysis, is a plus.
Multi-channel growth experience:
A proven track record of managing PPC and affiliate acquisition simultaneously while scaling a user acquisition function is highly desirable.
Industry knowledge:
Experience in EdTech, freemium subscription businesses, lead generation, or consumer marketplaces targeting Gen Z is an advantage.
Industry network:
An established network of affiliate partners, traffic brokers, and direct publishers, along with experience attending industry conferences and developing commercial partnerships, is beneficial.
Education:
A degree or professional qualification in Marketing, Business, Economics, Statistics, Data, or a related field is an asset. Demonstrated practical experience and measurable results are prioritized over formal education.
Remote collaboration:
Ability to work independently, communicate effectively across distributed teams, and maintain a high level of ownership and accountability in a fully remote environment.
Benefits
Fully remote work:
Work from anywhere in the world, while collaborating with an international team.
Flexible paid time off:
Unlimited paid time off, with an emphasis on outcomes, trust, and personal responsibility.
Computer upgrade budget:
Up to $1,600 to invest in a primary work computer suited to your needs.
Home office allowance:
Up to $800 to improve your home workspace and create a productive working environment.
Monthly coworking allowance:
$200 per month toward coworking desks or workspace passes, providing flexibility to work outside your home.
Employee recognition:
Participation in a monthly recognition and awards program celebrating outstanding contributions and achievements.
Continuous learning and development:
Support for professional growth, curiosity, experimentation, and the development of new skills.
Global team off-sites:
Annual opportunities to meet colleagues in person at international destinations, strengthen relationships, and collaborate beyond the virtual workplace.
Meaningful mission:
Contribute to technology that helps students discover scholarship opportunities and reduce financial barriers to education.
High ownership and business impact:
Take direct responsibility for acquisition strategy, channel profitability, team performance, and measurable growth outcomes.
Innovation-driven culture:
Work in an environment that encourages experimentation, data-informed decision-making, automation, and the adoption of emerging technologies.
Career growth opportunities:
Develop your leadership capabilities while shaping acquisition strategy, improving team processes, and expanding multi-channel marketing performance.
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