---
title: 'Director, Business Operations at Upshop'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/director-business-operations-upshop-mississauga-kn91sn19r6ay'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-10-16'
---

# Director, Business Operations at Upshop

- **Company:** Upshop
- **Location:** Mississauga, Canada
- **Posted:** 2026-10-01
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-10-16
- **Apply:** https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/upshop/jobs/5253556007

## Job description

Director, Business Operations

Location: Mississauga, Ontario

## Role Summary

Upshop is hiring a senior operator to own the strategic half of how our Product & Engineering organization runs — the methodology, the traceability, and the executive visibility layer that sits above day-to-day program cadence. This role picks up and expands the operating model currently run by the VP, Business Operations, while day-to-day PDLC cadence continues to be owned at the program-manager level, which reports into this role. As the operating model matures, the role takes on more of the operational ownership that sits with the VP, Business Operations today — vendor & contract management, and budget and headcount planning input — becoming the primary owner of how the Product & Engineering org plans, tracks, and reports, not just the operator of it.

This is a player-coach role. We need someone who can set direction and manage a direct report, but who is also still hands-on — someone who will personally get into Jira, PagerDuty, Zendesk-Exalate, Asana, and our reporting/dashboard stack to fix, build, or rework a process or tool when that's what's needed to move the needle, not just spec it for someone else to build. That includes using AI as a default part of how the work gets done — automating dashboard builds, synthesizing delivery data, and speeding up documentation — not treating it as a side experiment.

Note on scope: this seat's seniority comes from what it owns — strategic operating-model ownership across the entire Product & Engineering org — not from team size. It currently has one direct report, with room to grow as the function matures.

## Key Responsibilities

- Own PDLC methodology and maturity across the Product & Engineering org — the framework everyone plans, tracks, and reports against.
- Own the design of Product & Engineering planning cadences — PI/quarterly planning structure, ceremonies, and calendar — with the Product Operations Lead executing against it.
- Own resource and capacity planning across the org — headcount allocation, suite coverage, and hiring/backfill sequencing — partnering with the VP, Business Operations for final sign-off.
- Drive cross-department scaling of the operating model, extending what works in one suite or team to the rest of the org.
- Own OKR/Rocks traceability strategy — how goals connect to execution, and how that gets measured and reported.
- Own KPI and executive dashboard strategy — the metrics and standards leadership relies on to judge delivery health across the org.
- Own org structure and role documentation as the definitive record of how Product & Engineering is organized, keeping it current as the org evolves.
- Own the tooling strategy and architecture behind how Product & Engineering operates — Atlassian/Jira, PagerDuty, Zendesk-Exalate, Asana — including the integrations and process solutions the org needs as it scales, executed directly or through the Product Operations Lead.
- Identify and implement AI-assisted automation across reporting, dashboards, and process documentation — reducing manual overhead as the org scales rather than adding headcount to absorb it.
- Partner with the CPO, VP of Engineering, and Directors of Engineering to keep the operating model aligned with how Product and Engineering actually work.
- Partner with the 3 suite Program Managers for the delivery data that feeds OKR/Rocks traceability and the KPI/exec dashboards — this role depends on their input but doesn't manage them directly.

What Success Looks Like in the First 90 Days

- Full visibility into current PDLC, OKR/Rocks, and dashboard state across all suites; a documented point of view on what's working and what needs to change.
- Clear delineation established between what this role owns strategically and what the Program Manager owns operationally.
- At least one concrete tooling or process improvement shipped hands-on (not just proposed).
- A roadmap for methodology/traceability maturity presented to leadership.

Measures of Success / KPIs

- OKR/Rocks traceability is complete and current across all suites — leadership can trace goal to execution without manual reconciliation.
- KPI/exec dashboards are trusted as the single source of truth for delivery health, not rebuilt in spreadsheets before leadership meetings.
- PDLC and methodology standards are documented, versioned, and consistently followed across suites — not just referenced.
- Org structure documentation stays current within days of any change, rather than drifting until someone flags it as stale.
- Vendor & contract management and budget/headcount planning input transfer cleanly from the VP, Business Operations to this seat, on a defined cadence, without loss of accuracy.
- The Product Operations Lead runs the tactical cadence independently — this role sets direction and standards, and only steps in hands-on when that's the fastest path to unblocking something.

## Requirements

- 8–12+ years in business operations, chief of staff, technical program management, or product operations roles at a fast-growing company — SaaS strongly preferred, but comparable scaling experience in adjacent industries will be considered.
- Demonstrated success building or maturing an operating model or PDLC framework — not just operating within one that's already mature.
- Proven people-management experience, with a track record of developing and scaling operations or program-management talent, not just staying hands-on personally.
- Comfortable getting hands-on with tooling — dashboards, workflow automation, integrations (Jira, Asana, PagerDuty, or comparable) — beyond just requirements-gathering for someone else to build.
- Experience managing process documentation, internal knowledge bases, and change communication well enough that new standards actually stick, not just get published.
- Strong written and verbal communication; comfortable presenting to executive leadership (CPO, VPs).
- Experience with OKR/goal-traceability frameworks ("Rocks" or equivalent).

## Nice to Have

- Prior chief-of-staff or business-operations experience reporting directly into a VP/C-level.
- Experience in a multi-suite or multi-product organization with distributed engineering/product leadership.
- Background in defining or scaling program-management functions (i.e., has hired/managed PMs before).
- Experience evaluating or integrating AI/automation into operational workflows to reduce manual effort and scale process without adding headcount.
- Familiarity with change-management methodologies for rolling out new ways of working across multiple teams.

The estimated pay ranges for this role are as follows:

- $140,000 - 160,000 CAD

The successful candidate’s starting salary will be determined based on permissible, non-discriminatory factors such as skills, experience, and geographic location.

## About Upshop

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: Upshop provides an AI-powered, SaaS-based Total Store Operations platform that helps food retailers streamline forecasting, ordering, production, and inventory optimization across fresh, center-store, DSD, and eCommerce departments.
- **Entity Type**: Private (part of Invafresh following a 2024 merger)
- **Headquarters**: Austin, Texas, United States
- **Founded**: 1989 (as Application Development Consultants, Inc.)
- **Founders**: Not publicly available (evolved through multiple acquisitions and a merger)

## Core Business
- **Primary industry**: Food retail technology / Grocery technology
- **Target customers**: B2B – grocery retailers, convenience stores, and food retailers (serving 450+ retailers in 50,000+ stores across 35+ countries)
- **Mission or purpose statement**: To deliver a simplified, smarter, more connected store experience that helps retailers improve sales, reduce waste, enhance food safety, and empower associates.

## Products & Services
- **Total Store Operations Platform**: An AI-powered SaaS platform that synchronizes Fresh, Center, DSD (Direct Store Delivery), and eCommerce operations. Includes modules for:
  - **Fresh Operations (FreshIQ®)**: Forecasting, ordering, production planning, and inventory management for fresh departments.
  - **eCommerce Fulfillment (ShopperKit)**: Omnichannel order management and fulfillment orchestration.
  - **Center Store**: Inventory optimization for shelf-stable goods.
  - **DSD Management**: Direct store delivery reconciliation and management.
  - **Date Check Pro**: Food safety and freshness date management.
  - **Magic Inventory Intelligence**: AI-driven inventory visibility and shrink reduction.
- **Total Store Ordering** (launched July 2025): A unified replenishment solution ending fragmentation across departments.

## Market Standing
- **Valuation/Market Cap**: Not disclosed (private company)
- **Key Metric**: Annual revenue of approximately $12.3 million (based on 2024 estimates); Total funding not publicly available (funded via Invafresh parent entity)
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: Invafresh (parent company after 2024 merger), ReposiTrak (strategic partnership for FSMA 204 traceability), Inmar Intelligence (marketing and eCommerce fulfillment partnership), Heritage Grocers Group, Gelson’s Markets (recent customers)
- **Growth Signals**:
  - Headcount of 178 employees (+14.3% YoY growth)
  - Operates in 10 countries with offices in the US, Canada, Sweden, Colombia, UK, and Denmark
  - 2024 merger with Invafresh created the “first global retail operations platform” serving 35+ countries
  - Recent customer wins: Heritage Grocers Group, Gelson’s Markets
  - New product launch: Total Store Ordering (July 2025)
  - 19 active job postings; job postings up 111% year-over-year

## Competitive Advantages
- **Market Leadership**: Positioned as the first total store operations platform specifically built for food retailers, unifying previously fragmented department-level solutions.
- **AI-Powered Predictions**: Uses machine learning for demand forecasting, shrink reduction, and production planning, giving retailers a data-driven edge.
- **Scale & Trust**: Serves 450+ retail chains in 50,000+ stores across 35+ countries, including major grocery names.
- **End-to-End Coverage**: Covers fresh, center, DSD, and eCommerce on one platform — a rare integration in the grocery tech space.
- **Recent Merger Scale**: The 2024 merger with Invafresh combined complementary technologies to create a global leader with deeper R&D and customer support capabilities.

## Strategic Focus
- **Global Expansion**: Expanding reach across 35+ countries, with dedicated sales roles for Europe (Account Executive: Europe currently hiring).
- **Product Innovation**: Launching new modules like Total Store Ordering and predictive analytics for fresh prepared foods.
- **Partnership Ecosystem**: Building strategic integrations with partners like ReposiTrak (traceability) and Inmar Intelligence (marketing/fulfillment) to offer a more comprehensive solution.
- **Customer Growth**: Targeting non-grocery retail segments (convenience stores) and large strategic accounts.
- **Operational Excellence**: New CEO Mike Sanders (appointed April 2025) focused on accelerating customer innovation and operational excellence.

## Why Work Here
- **Growth Trajectory**: High growth phase with 14.3% headcount increase YoY and 111% increase in job postings year-over-year, indicating strong hiring momentum.
- **Global & Remote-Friendly**: Offers remote roles across North America and Europe, with offices in Austin (HQ), Tampa, Mississauga (Canada), and Sweden.
- **Engineering Culture**: Technical team of 52 people (24% of workforce) working with a modern stack including AWS, Kubernetes, React, Python, Databricks, and microservices. Key engineering leaders include Dan Larsson Wåssén (Head of Engineering) and RJ A Seoud (Sr. Director, Engineering Operations).
- **Mission-Driven Work**: Directly impacts food waste reduction, sustainability, and food safety — meaningful work with tangible environmental and social benefits.
- **Diverse Team**: Workforce spans 10 countries with employees from diverse backgrounds; talent sourced from companies like Invafresh, Albertsons, Kaseya, and others.
- **Employee Ratings**: Mixed reviews on Glassdoor (3.1/5.0 overall) with work-life balance rated 2.8/5.0 and culture rated 2.7/5.0 — potential areas for improvement in company culture and work-life balance.
- **Notable Perks**: Not explicitly listed; remote/hybrid flexibility appears available for many roles.

## Sources
1. [Upshop Website](https://upshop.com/)
2. [Upshop About Page](https://upshop.com/about/)
3. [Upshop Careers Page (Greenhouse)](https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/upshop)
4. [Upshop LinkedIn Company Page](https://www.linkedin.com/company/upshopretail)
5. [Business Wire: Upshop Appoints Mike Sanders as CEO](https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250430916622/en/Upshop-Appoints-Mike-Sanders-as-CEO-to-Accelerate-Customer-Innovation-and-Operational-Excellence)
6. [Business Wire: Upshop Launches Total Store Ordering](https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250715498817/en/Upshop-Launches-Total-Store-Ordering-to-Optimize-Customer-Service-and-Revenues-while-Ending-the-Fragmentation-of-Grocery-Replenishment)
7. [Business Wire: Upshop and Invafresh Unite to Transform Global Food Retail Technology](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/upshop-and-invafresh-unite-to-transform-global-food-retail-technology-302192585.html)
8. [Business Wire: Heritage Grocers Group Elevates Fresh Prepared Foods Strategy](https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250812005899/en/Heritage-Grocers-Group-Elevates-Fresh-Prepared-Foods-Strategy-with-Predictive-Analytics-to-Serve-Diverse-Communities-at-Scale)

## Other roles at Upshop

- [Data Scientist](https://feeny.ai/job/data-scientist-upshop-mississauga-ddf2k6dvjej3) — Mississauga, Canada
- [Customer Support Specialist](https://feeny.ai/job/customer-support-specialist-upshop-los-angeles-abwhw30nbp56) — Los Angeles, CA / Seattle / Vancouver
- [Customer Support Specialist II](https://feeny.ai/job/customer-support-specialist-ii-upshop-los-angeles-california-united-states-1m4p6qxwpj7y) — Los Angeles California United States Seattle Vancouver, NV
- [Senior Quality Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-quality-engineer-upshop-austin-texas-united-states-miami-florida-united-03k4smtw019r) — Austin Texas United States Miami Florida United States Mississauga Ontario, Canada
- [Implementation Consultant](https://feeny.ai/job/implementation-consultant-upshop-north-t9cztb7pazx2) — North, United States
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- [Solutions Consultant](https://feeny.ai/job/solutions-consultant-upshop-austin-j4njx52j1cy7) — Austin, TX