General Manager (Agency)

Read This Before Applying

This is a high-bar leadership role.

We are not looking for a traditional agency operator who simply manages day-to-day execution. We are looking for a builder of operational leverage.

Given how quickly AI is moving, your job is to transform the agency into a high-leverage organization capable of generating $300K–$400K in revenue per employee, while reducing operational dependency on the CEO.

This role is not a fit if your experience is primarily:

• Managing teams without improving systems
• Coordinating projects rather than building infrastructure
• Relying on founder involvement to resolve operational issues
• Growing headcount without improving efficiency

Strong candidates typically have:

• Operated or scaled a performance marketing agency or service business
• Built operational systems that significantly improved productivity
• Demonstrated strong financial discipline
• Built leadership teams capable of operating independently
• Used AI or automation to increase operational leverage

All candidates must complete the COO Operations Challenge before interview consideration:

https://github.com/ericosiu/beat-claude/blob/main/challenges/ops-coo-009/brief.md

About Single Grain

Single Grain is a digital growth company operating at the intersection of services, software, and AI.

Our portfolio includes:

Single Grain (Agency)
Enterprise growth services including:

• SEO
• Paid media
• Creative
• CRO
• AI-driven growth strategy

ClickFlow
An AI-powered content optimization platform that unlocks growth from existing content.

Karrot
An AI-powered performance marketing system that generates ads, landing pages, and campaign assets instantly.

We are evolving into a tech-enabled services company, where software, automation, and services combine to create leverage.

Our CEO, Eric Siu, hosts the Leveling Up podcast and co-hosts Marketing School, reaching millions of marketers every month.

But brand alone does not build great companies.Operational systems do.

The Role

We are hiring a General Manager to operate the agency business and build the systems required to scale efficiently.

The GM acts as the operational leader of the company, responsible for:

• Translating strategy into execution
• Enforcing accountability across teams
• Building scalable operational infrastructure

The GM functions as:

• The execution engine of the company
• The operational buffer for the CEO
• The leader responsible for operational discipline

Core Responsibilities

Operational Leadership

• Run day-to-day agency operations
• Align departments around company priorities
• Remove cross-team bottlenecks
• Maintain strong execution cadence

Financial Discipline

• Manage profitability and cost structure
• Enforce disciplined hiring decisions
• Align operational decisions with financial outcomes

Talent Leadership

• Hire and develop strong operators and managers
• Coach department leaders
• Address underperformance quickly
• Maintain a culture of accountability

Founder Leverage

Serve as the operational buffer for the CEO by handling:

• Performance management

• People conflicts

• Cross-team coordination

• Operational decision-making

Systems & AI Infrastructure

Build the infrastructure required for scale:

• Standardized operating processes

• KPI dashboards and reporting systems

• Performance management systems

• AI-enabled workflows

Single Grain expects leaders to design workflows where:

• Humans focus on judgment and leadership

• Systems handle coordination, analysis, and repetitive work

Key Outcome (12–18 Months)

Primary KPI

Increase Revenue per Employee

• From: $180K

• To: $300K–$400K

This must be achieved through:

• Operational efficiency

• Stronger systems

• Disciplined hiring

• AI-enabled workflows

Not by artificially shrinking the company.

Additional Success Indicators

Operational improvements must maintain business health:

• Stable or growing revenue

• Strong client retention

• Improved productivity across teams

• Strong leadership bench across departments

Success also means CEO leverage improves, allowing the CEO to focus primarily on strategy, partnerships, and growth.

Candidate Profile

Strong candidates typically come from backgrounds such as:

• Former agency GMs or COOs

• Operators from performance marketing agencies

• Founders who scaled service businesses

The ideal candidate combines:

• Operational discipline

• Strong hiring judgment

• Financial rigor

• Systems thinking

• AI-forward mindset

First 6-Month Success Indicators

Within six months the General Manager should:

• Fully understand the economics of the agency

• Identify operational inefficiencies

• Implement operational dashboards

• Address leadership gaps

• Improve financial discipline

• Begin improving revenue per employee

Benefits

• Medical, dental and vision insurance after your first month of employment

• 401k with 100% match up to 4% of your salary

• $50K life insurance policy paid 100% by the company

• 12 weeks of paid family leave after one year of employment

• Flexible unlimited PTO

• $100 utilities stipend ($50 per paycheck)

• $60 UberEats credit monthly

• MacBook, keyboard and mouse

• $500 work-from-home office reimbursement

Compensation:

• $185,000 - $225,000 DOE