Operations Manager (Finance, Systems, & Scale)

Company: NordStick
Location: Remote
Type: Full-Time
Reports to: Founder

About NordStick
NordStick is a fast-growing DTC fitness equipment brand built around premium, functional products like the NordBench Pro. We’ve grown 400%+ year over year and are scaling aggressively.

Operations at NordStick is not admin work — it’s cash flow management, inventory intelligence, execution speed, and margin protection.

We’re looking for an elite Operations Manager who can think like a CFO, execute like an operator, and build systems that scale.

What This Role Is (and Is Not)

This role is not:
--Updating spreadsheets without context
--Reacting to problems after they happen
--Overbuying inventory “just in case”
--Managing ops without understanding cash flow

This role is:
--Owning the 13-week cash flow forecast
--Making inventory decisions tied to demand and capital
--Using Shopify + data + AI to stay ahead of issues
--Coordinating across multiple 3PLs for speed and margin
--Turning CX signals into product and instruction improvements

Core Responsibilities
1. Cash Flow & Financial Planning
• Build and own a rolling 13-week cash flow model
• Forecast:
Inventory buys
Marketing spend impact
Loan repayments
Shipping and fulfillment costs
• Ensure NordStick stays in stock without overbuying
• Model best-, base-, and worst-case scenarios

2. Inventory & Demand Forecasting
• Forecast demand using:
Shopify sales data
Growth rates
Seasonality
Marketing plans
• D ---------- when and how much to reorder
• Prevent:
Stockouts that kill ---------- ntum
Overstock that locks up cash

3. Working Capital & Growth Financing
• Leverage tools like:
Shopify Capital
Working capital loans
Supplier terms
• Ensure capital is used strategically, not emotionally
• Balance growth speed with financial safety

4. Shopify & Systems Ownership
• Be deeply fluent in Shopify
• Own operational data:
Orders
Refunds
Shipping costs
Inventory
• Build and maintain:
Dashboards
Google Sheets models
Custom reports
• Bonus: Ability to code custom dashboards or internal tools

5. 3PL & Shipping Optimization
• Manage 2–3 third-party logistics providers
• Route orders from the closest warehouse to reduce:
Shipping cost
Transit time
• Monitor shipping zones, rates, and delivery performance
• Negotiate and optimize continuously

6. CX ? Ops ? Product Feedback Loop
• Work closely with Customer Support to:
Identify repeat product issues
Spot confusion points
Track returns and complaints
• Fix problems at the source by:
Improving instructional videos
Updating setup guides
Recommending product changes
• Reduce tickets, refunds, and friction over time

7. AI & Efficiency Leverage
• Use AI to:
Automate reporting
Summarize operational data
Flag anomalies
Speed up analysis
• Improve team efficiency and reduce manual work
• Follow the principle: AI handles repetition, humans make decisions

What We’re Looking For
Must-Haves
--Proven experience in DTC operations or supply chain
--Strong financial literacy (cash flow, forecasting, margin)
--Advanced Google Sheets / Excel skills
--Shopify fluency
--Experience managing inventory and fulfillment
--Systems thinker — you prevent problems, not chase them
--Strong Bonus Points
--Built 13-week cash flow models before
--Experience scaling fast-growing DTC brands
--Coding experience (Python, SQL, JS, or similar)
--Dashboard building (Looker, custom tools, Sheets + scripts)
--Experience working with multiple 3PLs
--AI workflows for ops efficiency

How We Measure Success
--In-stock rate without cash strain
--Clean, accurate cash flow visibility
--Lower shipping cost per order
--Fewer CX issues caused by ops failures
--Faster decisions with less chaos