What's next after finally landing that VP of Ecommerce role?

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Let's talk about careers in ecommerce — what it takes to reach the top and finally get that VP or 'Head of Amazon' role, and what comes after that.

I saw two LinkedIn posts last week, one from a Director of Ecommerce and one from a recruiter, about navigating a career path that’s still being written. The skills required to get one of these top jobs, which may require a decade of various roles and projects. And then — once you’ve finally gotten into a VP ecomm role, what’s next?

Whether you’re at the start of your career or already in one of these top positions, its worth thinking 1 or 2 steps ahead, because you generally need a couple of years to put a plan into action.

Step 1. Muscling your way into a “Head of Amazon” role

Let’s start with the demands of these senior roles. Jamie Roller, Director of Ecomm at Dr Squatch shared a post on LinkedIn about the challenges of hiring for a Head of Amazon position. She says the role is demanding—it requires strategic, analytical, and operational expertise while managing lean teams responsible for up to 75% of ecommerce revenue.

It’s a lot to ask, and many candidates simply don’t check all the boxes.

She says she is seeing more brands place position descriptions for a “Head of Amazon” role. But getting the right candidate is uniquely challenging. Jamie says that the "Head of Amazon" role requires not just operational expertise, but also the ability to influence cross-functional teams and executive leadership. Simply having agency-side experience is not enough - direct Amazon experience is critical.

One comment on her post I really liked was from Bob Ludeman, a recruiter. He said:

“Strategic + Analytical + Operational + Managing a Brand P&L = exceptionally rare. If you have to acquiesce in one area, the question would be in which discipline does the org have particular strengths (i.e. Analytical) where can you afford time for the individual to learn/upskill. The biggest candidate skill/experience gaps I see in roles like this are proven Strategic and Operational competency.”

This provides a helpful framework for evaluating candidates for the "Head of Amazon" role, whether you're the hiring manager or a potential applicant.

Step 2: Life after VP

Now lets talk about what happens when you finally assemble all the background you need for this Head or VP role, you finally get the promotion or get hired away for it. You’re a VP now. Ahh. So what next?

This is where Harry Joiner’s recent poll comes in.

He said:

He had 405 votes on this question.

Let’s unpack the reasons behind these choices. A key theme from Harry’s post was how personal circumstances—like family responsibilities and financial stability—play a huge role in career decisions.

One commenter, Eric Brandt, owner of a digital marketing agency, called steady paychecks and benefits ‘golden handcuffs,’ saying the risks of entrepreneurship are not just individual but collective—your family takes them too. And this is a big reason for people not taking the leap to business ownership or consulting.

For others, consulting offers a balance between freedom and stability. One commenter shared how they transitioned from VP roles to consulting, finding joy in working with smaller businesses.

And the case for staying VP can be very strong too. One take from Timothy Peterson, now president at his own digital tech firm, was that he was a VP of eComm 5 times, and it worked out marvellously!

He says,
“I think I was a VP of Ecommerce 5 times. After that, the world was my oyster. Here’s why:

1. Marketing expertise;
2. Deep tech knowledge;
3. Data, analytics, and BI;
4. Content;
5. Warehousing and logistics;
6. Product and merchandising;
7. Management, leadership, and;
8. The confidence — and ability — to do just about anything else!

Since then, I have been an agency President and Chief Consultant, a Chief Client Officer, a startup CMO and CDO, a fractional COO and CMO, run my own businesses, and a few other things. If I didn’t have all those Ecommerce roles, I doubt the rest would have been possible.”

Its a tough road, but there’s reason for optimism.

With burnout rates among senior leaders at 72% and the average VP tenure at six years, it’s clear these roles are intense.

BUT we are obviously on the precipice of a huuuuge wave in this industry.

Retail media ad spend will double in the next 3 years.

I want to refer back to my episode last week about the career trajectories of the folks leading RMNs at retailers. This is another career path and I think a natural path to the C-Suite.

A retailer RMN is highly likely to be the single biggest profit center of a retailer. And ad spend is doubling. You are immediately a hero to the org. The game will be about internal influence and securing investment in technology to attract more media dollars, and also understanding advertiser needs and being a great B2B marketer.

This is the killer role I think more people in this space should be aspiring to. Check off your agency experience, check off your brand experience, build the functional skills, then get over to a retailer’s media network.

The takeaway is this: reaching the top in ecommerce is an accomplishment, but it’s also a crossroads. And the rules are still being written.

So, I’ll leave you with this question: What’s your next rung? Are you ready to climb higher, or will you chart a new course?