General Manager, Lead Generation

We're launching a new lead generation business to diversify our revenue streams beyond Google. This is a true startup opportunity within an established company—you'll be building from absolute zero: no revenue, no team, no playbook. We're looking for an entrepreneurial leader to serve as the founding GM of this business line, with full ownership to define strategy, build operations, and scale to profitability.

Think of this as being a CEO of your own company, but with the backing of our existing technology infrastructure, financial resources, and organizational support. If you've ever wanted to build something from scratch while having enterprise-level resources at your disposal, this is it.

This position is an onsite role requiring you to work in our headquarters located at 4235 Redwood Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90066.

What You'll Own

• Strategy & Vision:
• Define and execute the complete go-to-market strategy for a lead generation business
• Identify target verticals, pricing models, and competitive positioning
• Build financial models and set ambitious but achievable growth targets
• Make all key strategic decisions on product direction and market approach
• Business Operations:
• Operationalize every aspect of the business from the ground up—sales, operations, technology implementation, vendor relationships, compliance, and more
• Design scalable processes and systems before you have a team to run them
• Manage full P&L responsibility with targets for profitability and growth
• Establish metrics, reporting frameworks, and operational dashboards
• Team Building & Leadership:
• Recruit and build your team as the business scales and warrants investment
• Define roles, responsibilities, and organizational structure from scratch
• Create a culture of accountability, experimentation, and rapid iteration
• Develop your future leaders as the business grows into a substantial organization
• Scale from solo contributor to managing a team that could quickly become significant in size
• Product & Market Development:
• Shape product strategy based on market feedback and competitive landscape
• Work with existing engineering and tech teams to leverage company infrastructure
• Identify and evaluate partnership opportunities (supply and demand side)
• Iterate quickly based on what's working and what's not
  
  

Who You Are

• Experience:
• 7 years in lead generation, performance marketing, or related digital businesses
• Proven track record building or scaling businesses from early stage (ideally $0-$10M revenue)
• Deep understanding of lead gen economics: CPL, CPA, margin structures, quality metrics
• Experience managing P&L and achieving profitability targets
• Background in both strategy formulation and hands-on execution
• The Operator Mentality:
• You're comfortable with ambiguity and building when there's no roadmap
• You can do the work yourself before you have a team to delegate to
• You move fast, make decisions with incomplete information, and course-correct quickly
• You've worn multiple hats before—you're not afraid of work outside your job description
• You think like an owner, not just an operator
• Skills That Matter:
• Strategic thinking with the ability to see around corners and anticipate market shifts
• Financial acumen—you can build models, understand unit economics, and make data-driven decisions
• Strong network in the lead generation ecosystem (buyers, sellers, technology providers)
• Excellent communication skills for securing buy-in from leadership and cross-functional partners
• Technical fluency to work effectively with engineering and product teams
• The Intangibles:
• Entrepreneurial fire—you're energized by building, not just managing
• Resilience and grit—you've failed before and learned from it
• High bias for action—you'd rather test and learn than analyze forever
• Creative problem-solver who finds unconventional solutions
• Self-awareness to know when to ask for help or bring in expertise
  
  

Why This Role is Unique

• True Ownership: You're not inheriting someone else's strategy or fixing a broken business—you're creating from scratch
• Resource Backing: Unlike a traditional startup, you have access to enterprise technology, legal, finance, and operational support
• Speed to Market: Leverage existing infrastructure to move faster than you could at a standalone startup
• Upside: Build something valuable with the resources of an established company and the autonomy of a founder
• Career Acceleration: Successfully building a new business line positions you for senior executive roles (VP, C-suite)
  
  

Reporting & Organizational Context

• Reports to: President & COO
• Cross-functional Partnerships: Engineering, Finance, Legal, Compliance, existing business unit leaders
• Direct Reports: You'll build your team as needed (initially 0, scaling to 5-10 over first 18 months)
  
  

The U.S. base salary range for this full-time position is $220,000 - $280,000 bonus equity benefits. Our salary ranges are determined by role, level, and location. The range displayed on each job posting reflects the minimum and maximum target for new hire salaries for the position across all US locations. Within the range, individual pay is determined by work location and additional factors, including job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for your preferred location during the hiring process. Please note that the compensation details listed in U.S. role postings reflect the base salary only, and do not include bonus, equity, or benefits.

System1’s headquarters is located in Marina del Rey, CA with an additional office in Bellevue, WA.

Employees near office locations are returning to the office.

Equal Employment Opportunity

System1 provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.

This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.