Chief Operations Officer

Chief Operating Officer (COO)

Company type: E-commerce (sales, purchase, inventory, shipping, data, accounting, team problem solving operations) 

Location: Surat, Gujarat (on-site) 

Reports to: CEO

Direct reports: Operations, warehouse and dispatch, purchase, customer support, data-entry and IT/automation team members, team timing, team leadership 

Employment type: Full-time, senior leadership

1. Role Summary

The COO is the owners' right hand for running the business. The owners set the direction and share ideas; the COO turns those ideas into working plans, builds the systems and team to deliver them, and makes sure daily operations run smoothly without needing the owners' constant involvement.

The COO owns operational performance end to end: sales fulfilment, purchase, inventory, logistics, finance operations, process automation and team performance. When a system or process breaks, the COO makes sure it is fixed quickly and permanently.

2. Key Responsibilities

A. Operations Management

* Take full ownership of daily operations: order processing, purchase, inventory, packing, shipping, returns and customer support.

* Create and enforce SOPs (standard operating procedures) for every department.

* Set clear targets (KPIs) for each team and review performance daily, weekly and monthly.

* Handle escalations so the owners do not have to.

B. Process Improvement and Automation

* Design and build integrations between marketplaces, website, ERP/inventory software, accounting software, courier systems and Google Sheets.

* Monitor all automated systems and fix breakages quickly, finding the root cause so the problem does not repeat & Daily team problem solving. 

* Document every system & hiring, workflow and fix so the business does not depend on one person.

* Evaluate and implement tools (ERP, WMS, CRM, automation platforms) with a clear cost-benefit case.

C. Financial and Cost Control

* Work with the accountant and owners on budgeting, cash flow and margin tracking.

* Monitor key costs: shipping, packaging, purchase cost, manpower and software.

* Analyse product-wise and channel-wise profitability and recommend actions.

* Control inventory investment: reduce dead stock, avoid stock-outs, improve stock turnover.

* Support GST, reconciliation and audit readiness through clean data and processes.

D. Strategy and Execution of Owner Ideas

* Convert owners' ideas into a clear plan with owner, timeline, cost and expected result.

* Run improvement projects and report progress regularly.

E. Data, Reporting and Decision Support

* Maintain dashboards for sales, orders, dispatch time, returns, inventory, margins and team productivity.

* Deliver a weekly summary to the owners with problems, actions and results.

F. People and Team Leadership

* Hire, train, evaluate and, when needed, replace operations staff.

* Define roles and responsibilities and build a culture of accountability.

* Set up a performance review and incentive structure linked to results.

3. Required Skills and Competencies Core Business Skills

* Deep understanding of e-commerce operations: marketplaces (Amazon, Flipkart, Meesho, etc.), own website, inventory, fulfilment and returns.

* Strong knowledge of supply chain, logistics, courier management and warehouse operations.

* Financial awareness: P&L, margins, cash flow, costing and budgeting.

* Strategic and analytical thinking, with the ability to prioritise.

Technical and Systems Skills

* Advanced Excel / Google Sheets (formulas, pivot tables, dashboards; Apps Script is a strong plus).

* Experience with automation tools such as Zapier, Make, Power Automate or similar.

* Ability to troubleshoot broken workflows or coordinate quickly with technical resources.

4. Qualifications and Experience

* Graduate in Business, Commerce, Engineering or a related field. MBA in Operations or Supply Chain is preferred but not mandatory.

* 2 to 4+ years in operations, with at least 1 to 2 years in a leadership role.

* Proven experience in e-commerce or retail operations, ideally managing teams.

* Demonstrated track record of process improvement and automation, with measurable results (time saved, cost reduced, errors cut).

5. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

* Gross and net margin improvement

* Number of processes automated and hours saved

* System uptime and time taken to fix breakdowns

* Team productivity and staff attrition

* Delivery of owner-assigned projects on time

6. First 90 Days Expectations

Days 1 to 30: Understand

* Study all current processes, systems, teams and pain points.

* Meet owners, staff, key vendors and courier partners.

* Deliver a written assessment of problems and quick wins.

Days 31 to 60: Stabilise

* Fix the top operational bottlenecks.

* Set up daily and weekly reporting and team KPIs.

* Begin documenting SOPs and automating the first priority process.

Days 61 to 90: Improve

* Complete at least two automation or process-improvement projects.

* Present a 6 to 12 month operations and growth roadmap to the owners.

* Establish a regular review rhythm with the owners.

7. Important Note for the Owners

A COO is a senior role, and it is rare to find one person who is strong in operations, finance, leadership and hands-on automation. If the budget or candidate pool is limited, consider one of these approaches:

* Hire a COO or Head of Operations for management, finance and strategy, and add an Automation / Systems Executive (or a freelancer) for technical work.

* Start with an Operations & Automation Manager and promote them to COO as the company grows.

Whichever route you choose, define authority clearly (what the COO can approve alone and what needs the owners' sign-off) and set a probation period of 3 months with measurable targets.