Head of Ads Platform Product & Operations

About Clapper Clapper is a short-form video and livestream social platform built around authentic connection and community. With a large and growing U.S. audience, Clapper is building its own advertising platform. We are looking for a senior, hands-on leader with deep experience across ads product and Ad Operations to take the platform from architecture and demand integration to launch, optimization, and scaled advertising revenue. What You Will Own - Ads platform strategy and roadmap: Define the ads platform product roadmap and phased operating plan, from third-party ad-network integrations, mediation, and auctions toward deeper first-party ad-serving capabilities. - Zero-to-one ads products: Design and launch native feed, short-form video, and livestream ads; progressively develop ad requests, inventory management, traffic routing, auctions, targeting, frequency controls, creative review, and reporting. - Ad Operations and yield: Establish a rigorous Ad Ops and yield-management cadence and improve net eCPM, fill rate, ad load, impressions, Ad ARPDAU, and advertising revenue. - Advertising demand integrations: Own the evaluation, technical integration, and performance management of DSPs, SSPs, ad networks, programmatic platforms, and measurement providers to improve U.S. demand quality and auction density. - Data and experimentation: Build the KPI framework, revenue dashboards, and A/B testing program needed to optimize by audience, geography, content surface, ad format, and demand source. - User experience and platform health: Partner with Growth, Recommendation, Content, Trust& Safety, and Support to establish clear guardrails across retention, watch time, content quality, latency, and user feedback. - Measurement, privacy, and brand safety: Advance attribution, viewability, invalid-traffic controls, ad quality, privacy, and brand-safety capabilities so the platform can scale responsibly. - Team and cross-functional execution: Lead delivery with Engineering, Data, Design, Recommendation, Trust & Safety, and Legal; build the core Ads Product, Ad Operations, and Ads Analytics functions as the platform grows. First 12-Month Outcomes - First 90 days: Assess traffic, ad inventory, user experience, and technical readiness; deliver the ads platform blueprint, demand-integration plan, KPI framework, and MVP launch plan. - Months 3-6: Launch the first scalable advertising products and operating cadence; establish yield management, monitoring, and experimentation while validating retention and experience guardrails. - Months 6-12: Scale premium demand and eligible ad inventory, improve net eCPM and fill, define the roadmap for first-party and self-serve advertising capabilities, and hire the core team. What We Are Looking For - 8+ years in internet product or ad tech, including at least 5 years directly owning ads platform products, publisher advertising, or Ad Operations, plus experience leading a team or complex platform initiative. - A track record of building advertising products from zero to one or scaling an existing ads business to meaningful revenue, with clear ownership of metrics, decisions, and results. - Strong knowledge of the mobile and content advertising ecosystem, including ad serving, auctions, DSPs/SSPs, ad networks, targeting, frequency, measurement, attribution, and yield management. - Experience operating advertising products in the U.S. or other international markets, with a practical understanding of advertiser demand, programmatic ecosystems, and geographic differences in traffic value. - Excellent quantitative and operational judgment, with the ability to translate advertising revenue targets into product, inventory, demand, and operating initiatives. - A hands-on operating style: able to set strategy and personally drive partner integrations, product details, metric reviews, and cross-functional problem solving. - Strong English communication skills and the ability to work effectively across U.S. and APAC teams and partners. Preferred Experience - Ads platform product and operations experience in short-form video, livestreaming, social, UGC, gaming, or another scaled consumer application. - Experience on both the publisher/supply side and within demand platforms, ad networks, or programmatic advertising. - Experience building self-serve advertiser products, campaign-management tools, or brand advertising solutions. - Familiarity with ad quality, fraud prevention, privacy, brand safety, and content-ecosystem governance. How Success Will Be Measured - Net advertising revenue, Ad ARPDAU, and achievement against revenue targets - Net eCPM, fill rate, auction density, and eligible ad impressions - The balance between ad load and retention, watch time, and negative user feedback - Ad latency, invalid traffic, ad quality, and brand-safety performance - Product delivery, partner performance, and progress in building the team Why Join - Own a high-potential ads platform end to end, from architecture and product design through Ad Operations, optimization, and advertising revenue. - Build for a scaled and growing U.S. audience with the ability to test, learn, and compound results quickly. - Work directly with the CEO and executive team, with the mandate to build Clapper's advertising organization.