Job Description

The Vermont Teddy Bear Company has been hand-crafting Bears in Vermont for more than 25 years (www.VermontTeddyBear.com). Along with its sister companies The PajamaGram Company (www.PajamaGram.com) and Calyx Flowers (www.CalyxFlowers.com), Vermont Teddy Bear has grown to become one of the most recognizable direct-to-consumer companies in the world. This position is located in beautiful Shelburne, Vermont, just outside of Burlington, America’s Healthiest City. We are perfectly positioned on the shores of Lake Champlain and at the base of some of the best Ski Resorts New England has to offer.

We are searching for our Vice President of IT and E-Commerce. The right candidate will maintain a strong balance of talent in Technology, E-Commerce and Leadership.

SUMMARY
This executive position will lead the vision and implementation of the transformation of Vermont Teddy Bear and all its affiliated companies (Pajamagram and Calyx Flowers) to becoming a leader in e-commerce and technology in New England. Leads all aspects of E-Commerce and information technology at VTBC; key member of executive committee (E-Comm). Requires a balance of strategic insight, planning, current technology expertise, systems implementation, architecture and design and leadership. This role will require extensive online marketing knowledge including identifying, planning, building and evolving sales and marketing strategies for key online initiatives such as customer acquisition and retention. Continually evaluate the effectiveness and cost efficiency of current technology platforms, recommends upgrades and new technology, manages large and small scale migrations, and analyzes information needs of the Company and design hardware and software systems to meet these needs. E-Commerce includes business development and support of both front end and back end systems and propose new improvements and enhancements to the functionality and effectiveness of the site to meet revenue generating and ROI goals set by the company. Information technology includes networks and telecoms, legacy applications and architecture, development and maintenance supporting all operational departments.

REPORTING
Reports to the president & CEO.

SYSTEMS IN USE

• E-Commerce platforms – Microsoft E-Commerce Server and Yahoo! Store (phasing out)
• SEO & Web analytics – Omniture, Google Analytics
• PBX – Nortel Meridian with Symposium
• Order Management – Avexxis (with Citrix) running on HP/UX
• Payment settlement – PaymenTech
• GL/AR/AP – Platinum for Windows
• Back office accounting and inventory – Windows 2000
• Payroll – ADP
• Job fulfillment & control – IndustriOS
• POS in retail store – Fusion
• Cross-system integration – PERL scripts, Visual Basic for GUIs, MS Access, HTML, web forms

ESSENTIAL DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES

• Manage e-commerce and IT teams and day-to-day website and IT operations.
• Develop and manage the E-Commerce and Information Technology Department operations and capital expenditure budgets.
• Participate in marketing meetings and strategic discussions to ensure that online marketing develops as a driver of profitable revenue growth in concert with the Company’s multi-channel strategies.
• Take ownership of e-commerce platform architecture and functionality; identify needs, scope solutions (build/buy) and acquire new components for the platform as necessary.
• Coordinate, execute and analyze the company’s e-commerce projects, including but not limited to online inventory management, search engine optimization and content management.
• Maximize organic search traffic, order conversion and ROI for online revenue.
• Recommend and implement analytics tools to allow effective measurement of E-Commerce performance. Make strategic revisions to E-Commerce sites based on metrics obtained.
• Keep current with Internet technologies, looking for opportunities to leverage new technologies for site enhancements where appropriate. Drive improvements in people, process and technology.
• Create a platform strategy roadmap that will provide an environment in which to build new functionality, while maintaining redundancy and scalability.
• Analyze and report competition’s e-marketing activities and recommend course of action to achieve and maintain competitive advantage.
• Identify and implement opportunities in word-of-mouth buzz marketing, social media and community building.
• Manage the departmental budget. Adhere to all related budget management responsibilities as set by the Finance Department.
• Responsible for adherence to VTBC’s inventory control policies and procedures.
• Assist with the development, maintenance, dissemination and adherence to departmental Action Plans on a year-round basis.
• Monitor and maintain the operation of existing software applications/processes and hardware infrastructure.
• Coordinate the design, implementation and integration of new software applications working closely with relevant business managers

QUALIFICATIONS
Minimum 15 years in IT and/or E-Commerce, at least 10 years in a managerial role.
Individual must possess an extremely high level of multiple technological skills; have a high level of attention to detail, excellent follow-through skills and analytical and problem solving capabilities. Individual must have project management experience and the ability to negotiate with vendors in the interest of VTB; the ability to absorb new technology rapidly and understand business issues; self-direction and the ability to work effectively in a team environment; be flexible and react positively to change.

• Technology—knowledge of major platforms and systems for e-commerce
• Content—must have experience in designing web site layout, aesthetics
• Marketing-demonstrated experience in developing tactics to drive traffic to the site, implementing site enhancements, and continuous improvement in usability
• Fulfillment-effective fulfillment of orders, sometimes from multiple sites
• Leadership – must demonstrate superior leadership skills

EDUCATION / EXPERIENCE

• Minimum 15 years related experience
• B.S. degree in CS or related field
• Knowledge of relational database theory, systems analysis methodologies and project management practices
• Excellent technical project management skills required coupled with the ability to coordinate, motivate and troubleshoot multi-team projects
• Must possess familiarity with e-commerce concepts, practices and procedures, have strong knowledge of back-end operations, and be familiar with ecommerce platforms such as Microsoft Commerce Server and Yahoo!Store and tools such as Omniture and GoogleAnalytics
• Web programming experience (JavaScript, Perl, PHP or ASP/ASP.Net) desired

TO APPLY: Please send resume and cover letter, with salary requirements; apply online at:
https://home.eease.com/recruit/?id=171142