At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead a dynamic team to drive global trading performance and revenue growth.
- Company: Join ASOS, a leading global fashion retailer with a vibrant culture.
- Benefits: Enjoy employee discounts, generous leave, bonuses, and private medical care.
- Other info: Be part of a transformative journey with opportunities for personal and professional growth.
- Why this job: Shape the future of global trading and make a real impact in a fast-paced environment.
- Qualifications: Proven leadership in e-commerce and strong analytical skills required.
The predicted salary is between 80000 - 100000 £ per year.
The Head of Global Trading (excluding US) is one of the most important commercial leadership roles at ASOS. This role leads a team of c.25 across Market Trading, Digital Trading, and Onsite Content & Marketing, with accountability for driving a step change in trading performance and supporting the acceleration of topline revenue. It is a transformation role, requiring a leader who can combine strong commercial instinct with operational grip, move at pace, and simplify how the organisation works. You will be responsible for setting the global trading direction, creating a high‑performance operating rhythm, and ensuring ASOS shows up in a way that is commercially sharp, locally relevant and relentlessly focused on the customer. You will work across Commercial, Buying, Merchandising, Marketing, Finance, Product, Data and Operations to unlock growth, improve execution and raise standards. This is not a role for someone who simply reports performance. It is for someone who can diagnose issues quickly, make clear calls, align teams behind the right actions, and build a more scalable trading model for the future. A key part of the remit will be reducing duplication, embedding smarter ways of working, and leaning into automation and AI to free up capacity for higher‑value commercial work. This is an opportunity to lead one of the most critical commercial agendas in the business at a defining moment. You will have the chance to shape the future of Global Trading at ASOS, lead a broad and high‑impact team, and play a central role in improving performance, modernising how we work and creating a stronger platform for growth. You will join a business with global reach, distinctive brand relevance and meaningful headroom for improvement, where strong leadership, pace and fresh thinking can make a visible difference.
Responsibilities
- Define and lead the global trading strategy, translating company goals into a clear commercial plan that improves revenue performance, customer relevance and trading effectiveness.
- Own the trading agenda across markets, digital execution, and onsite content & marketing, ensuring these areas operate as one joined‑up function rather than in silos.
- Set clear priorities and make high‑quality trade‑off decisions at pace, balancing customer, topline, margin, and brand considerations.
- Act as a senior commercial voice within the organisation, bringing clarity, challenge and momentum to business‑critical decisions.
- Lead the trading response to improve revenue trajectory, identifying the biggest value pools and mobilising teams quickly behind the actions that matter most.
- Build and execute a clear plan to improve trade performance through stronger commercial planning, sharper in‑season management, better onsite execution and tighter performance governance.
- Create a culture of accountability around performance, ensuring opportunities are acted on decisively and underperformance is addressed quickly.
- Use customer, market and competitor insight to shape actions that improve both short‑term trading output and longer‑term customer value.
- Establish a best‑in‑class trading rhythm across weekly, monthly and seasonal cadences, with clear KPIs, strong decision forums and faster follow‑through.
- Improve the quality and consistency of trading decisions through stronger performance visibility, sharper prioritisation and disciplined execution.
- Ensure plans are grounded in commercial logic, supported by data and linked clearly to financial outcomes.
- Raise the bar on forecasting, target setting, trade reviews and action tracking so the function operates with greater control and fewer surprises.
- Partner closely with Buying, Merchandising, Marketing, Finance, Product, Data and Operations to ensure trading priorities are reflected across the end‑to‑end customer journey.
- Influence senior stakeholders effectively, using insight, judgement and conviction to align teams and move decisions forward.
- Challenge constructively where needed, bringing backbone and commercial perspective to conversations on priorities, investment, ways of working and execution quality.
- Define Geo‑Strategies and ensure local market insight is brought into global decision making in a way that is practical, timely and commercially useful.
- Simplify processes, remove low‑value activity and redesign ways of working to improve speed, focus and scalability.
- Apply an AI‑first and innovation‑led mindset to transform how trading decisions are made, using agentic tools and automation to augment commercial judgement, redesign workflows and unlock step‑change improvements in speed, precision and scalability.
- Build a culture of curiosity and continuous improvement, encouraging the team to test, learn and evolve how trading is done.
- Partner with Product, Data and Technology teams to embed scalable solutions rather than short‑term workarounds.
- Lead, coach and develop a large, multi‑layered team through a period of change, creating clarity, pace and high standards.
- Build an organisation with strong talent density, clear accountability and roles designed for future‑fit trading.
- Foster a culture that is customer‑first, commercially curious, resilient and action‑oriented.
- Support the team through transformation with clear communication, visible leadership and a strong focus on growth and development.
Qualifications
- Significant senior ecommerce or digital retail leadership experience, ideally within a scaled, fast‑paced consumer business.
- A strong track record of leading trading, commercial or digital performance teams with accountability for meaningful revenue outcomes.
- Experience leading through transformation, including simplifying structures, redesigning processes and raising execution standards.
- Deep commercial instinct combined with strong analytical judgement; able to move comfortably between strategic direction and operational detail.
- Proven ability to operate with commercial rigour at scale, bringing pace, control and clarity to complex trading environments.
- Strong backbone and judgement; willing to make difficult calls, challenge constructively and hold a high bar on execution.
- Exceptional cross‑functional influencing skills, with experience aligning multiple senior stakeholders behind shared outcomes.
- A customer‑first mindset, with the ability to translate customer insight into practical commercial action.
- A strong interest in innovation, automation and AI, with a clear point of view on how technology can reduce duplication and improve performance.
- Experience building, leading and developing high‑performing teams through periods of change.
- Excellent communication skills, including the ability to distil complex performance stories into clear recommendations for senior and executive audiences.
Benefits
- Employee discount (hello ASOS discount!)
- Employee sample sales
- 25 days paid annual leave + an extra celebration day for a special moment
- Performance related bonus
- Private medical care scheme
- Opportunity for personalised learning and in‑the‑moment experiences that enable you to thrive and excel in your role.
Head of Global Trading employer: We're Asos
ASOS is an exceptional employer that fosters a dynamic and innovative work culture, particularly for the Head of Global Trading role. With a strong emphasis on employee growth, you will have access to personalised learning opportunities and a supportive environment that encourages curiosity and continuous improvement. Located in a vibrant setting, ASOS offers competitive benefits including generous annual leave, private medical care, and an employee discount, making it an attractive place for those seeking meaningful and rewarding employment.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Head of Global Trading
✨Tip Number 1
Network like a pro! Reach out to people in your industry, especially those at ASOS. A friendly chat can open doors and give you insights that might just land you an interview.
✨Tip Number 2
Prepare for the interview by researching ASOS's trading strategies and recent initiatives. Show us you know your stuff and can bring fresh ideas to the table!
✨Tip Number 3
Practice your pitch! Be ready to explain how your experience aligns with the Head of Global Trading role. We want to hear how you can drive performance and lead a high-impact team.
✨Tip Number 4
Don’t forget to apply through our website! It’s the best way to ensure your application gets noticed. Plus, it shows you’re serious about joining the ASOS family.
We think you need these skills to ace Head of Global Trading
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show Your Passion:When you're writing your application, let your enthusiasm for the role shine through! We want to see how excited you are about leading global trading and making a real impact at ASOS.
Tailor Your Experience:Make sure to highlight your relevant experience in ecommerce or digital retail. We’re looking for someone who can demonstrate their commercial instinct and operational grip, so connect your past roles to what we need!
Be Clear and Concise:Keep your application straightforward and to the point. We appreciate clarity, so avoid jargon and focus on how your skills align with our goals. Remember, we want to see your ability to communicate effectively!
Apply Through Our Website:Don’t forget to submit your application through our website! It’s the best way for us to receive your details and ensures you’re considered for this exciting opportunity at ASOS.
How to prepare for a job interview at We're Asos
✨Know Your Numbers
As the Head of Global Trading, you'll need to demonstrate a strong grasp of trading performance metrics. Brush up on key figures related to revenue, margin, and customer engagement. Be ready to discuss how you've used data to drive decisions in previous roles.
✨Showcase Your Leadership Style
This role requires leading a diverse team, so be prepared to share your leadership philosophy. Discuss how you’ve successfully led teams through transformation, simplified processes, and fostered a culture of accountability and high performance.
✨Be Ready to Diagnose Issues
The ability to quickly identify and address trading issues is crucial. Prepare examples of past challenges you've faced in trading environments and how you mobilised teams to implement effective solutions. Highlight your analytical skills and commercial instinct.
✨Emphasise Cross-Functional Collaboration
You'll be working closely with various departments like Marketing, Finance, and Product. Share experiences where you aligned multiple stakeholders towards common goals. Show how your influencing skills have helped drive successful outcomes in complex environments.