Sr. Strategy & Growth Manager

Be essential at Cars Commerce

At Cars Commerce, we’re fanatical about simplifying everything about car buying and selling. We do right by our customers and consumers to better connect the industry with simplified and tierless technology to enhance, measure and drive local automotive retail. Whether through our No.1 most recognized marketplace, Cars.com, our industry-leading digital experience, Dealer Inspire, our trade and appraisal technology, AccuTrade, our reputation-based digital wholesale auction marketplace, Dealerclub, or our new Cars Commerce Media Network, Cars Commerce is essential for success in the automotive industry.

No one ever travels alone here: at its core, Cars Commerce is collaboration. In fact, it’s built into the very fabric of our shared values. We like to say we Rise Together – putting people at the center of what we do, from consumer to customer to community. Life at Cars Commerce makes it easy when we share the ethos to be Open to All, encouraging open-minded communication because we know diverse thinking yields better outcomes. But critical to our success is Caring to Challenge and Taking Ownership, fueling a competitive spirit in a respectful environment where we think about tomorrow but act today. At our foundation, we have integrity, Doing the Right Thing, even when it’s hard. It’s our shared commitment to these values that makes Cars Commerce a place where growth becomes not only possible, but downright unavoidable.

But don't take our word for it. We are proud to be named one of Built In's 2026 Best Places to Work in Chicago and across the U.S. Ready to make your mark? Join a team that's driving real change in the automotive industry.

The Opportunity

Cars Commerce (NYSE: CARS) is a $700M+ platform powering U.S. automotive retail. Under new CEO leadership, the company is at an inflection point - reshaping its strategy, product portfolio, and operating model in a market being reshaped by AI, consolidation, and shifting consumer behavior. The Strategy & Growth function sits within the Office of the CEO: small team, high autonomy, direct CEO and ELT access. The problems are hard: how does a marketplace build durable advantage when AI is commoditizing search? How do you restructure a product portfolio mid-flight while protecting revenue? We need a senior who operates with the breadth of a chief of staff and the depth of a senior strategist. You run workstreams end-to-end, drive cross-functional execution, and deliver work that shapes the company’s trajectory. No analyst layer - you build the model, write the memo, run the meeting, and follow through.

What You’ll DoCross-Functional Execution & Operating Cadence

• Drive forward progress on the CEO’s most critical initiatives - ensure decisions get made, owners are accountable, nothing falls through the cracks across Product, Engineering, Commercial, Finance, and Legal.

• Assist with building and running the operating cadence: weekly operating  reviews, monthly strategic reviews, initiative tracking. You are the system that surfaces exceptions before they become problems.

Strategic Planning & Analysis

• Help  annual and long-range strategic planning: market sizing, competitive analysis, scenario modeling across business units.

• Build analytical frameworks and business cases underpinning resource allocation, pricing, packaging, and GTM decisions for ELT and Board.

• Aid with strategic planning coordination - work with BU leaders to develop frameworks, synthesize across the portfolio, manage cadence of readouts and decisions.

• Help prepare Board pre-reads, investor narratives, and decision memos that directly inform Board-level conversations.

Growth Levers & Execution

• Drive execution on near-term growth and efficiency levers: marketplace monetization, pricing optimization, customer retention, marketing spend efficiency, cost structure.

• Build the evidence package - track progress, quantify impact, construct the narrative that demonstrates the transformation is working.

• Frame trade-offs between near-term execution and long-term positioning to inform leadership decisions.

Who You Are

• 8-10 years total experience, including 2-4 years at a top-tier firm: strategy consulting (McKinsey, BCG, Bain, LEK, Oliver Wyman, Kearney, EY-Parthenon, Strategy&), investment banking (Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Lazard, Evercore, Centerview), PE portfolio ops (KKR Capstone, Bain Capital, Apollo), or corporate strategy at a public company.

• Demonstrated ability to operate, not just advise. You’ve been accountable for outcomes, not just recommendations. Ideally you have experience driving cross-functional execution, not just presenting to those who do. Deliver work products ready for the most senior leaders in the company.

• Influence without direct authority: outcomes through quality of thinking, strength of relationships, and relentless follow-through.

• Hold your own with C-suite audiences, with confidence, not arrogance. You build credibility quickly across functions, levels, and personalities.

• Exceptional analytical rigor paired with strong business judgment. You know when the model matters and when the conversation matters more.

• Operator mentality: default to action, follow through relentlessly, comfortable with ambiguity and context-switching.

• Intellectually curious with a strong point of view. Drawn to hard problems: AI disruption, marketplace dynamics, competitive positioning in commoditizing industries.

• Technology, marketplace, or subscription model experience is a plus. Automotive not required.

Why Join

• $700M+ public company at an inflection point - decisions being made now determine the trajectory for the next decade.

• Direct CEO and ELT access. More strategic exposure and executive access than peers at companies this size and larger.

• Full workstream ownership on a lean team. No bureaucracy - you own it and run it. Chief of Staff your strongest advocate, not your micro manager.

• Hard problems at the intersection of marketplace economics, AI, data monetization, and competitive strategy in an industry undergoing structural change.

• Chicago-based. Medical, dental, vision, 401(k) match, PTO.

Cars Commerce is an equal opportunity employer committed to building a diverse and inclusive workplace.
 

In the spirit of pay transparency, we are excited to share the base salary range for this position. In addition to base salary, some roles are eligible for our bonus and/or equity programs, depending on level and role. Regular full-time positions are eligible for our comprehensive benefits package. If you are hired at Cars Commerce, your final base salary compensation will be determined based on factors such as skills and/or experience. If the salary range is close to what you're seeking, then we encourage you to apply and learn more about the total compensation package for this position.

Salary Range

$154,200.00-192,750.00

Our Comprehensive Benefits Package includes:

• Medical, Dental & Vision Healthcare Plans

• New Hire Stipend for Home Office Set-Up

• Generous PTO

• Paid Holidays, Floating Holiday, Volunteer Day, Recharge Day

Learn more about our Benefits, Perks, & Culture on our LinkedIn Life Pages!

For US-based Positions: Applicants must be authorized to work in the United States. Please note that we are unable to sponsor employment visas at this time.
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