Manager, Search and AI Discovery

Kendra Scott•Austin, TX

About The Position

The Manager of Search and AI Discovery will lead Kendra Scott’s organic visibility strategy across search engines, AI-powered answer platforms, local discovery ecosystems, and emerging conversational commerce experiences. This role owns the evolution of search from a rankings channel into a discoverability and demand-generation system that influences customer acquisition, brand authority, and omnichannel revenue growth. This leader will partner across Product, Engineering, Marketing, Analytics, and Retail to improve technical discoverability, structured commerce data, content systems, and AI-readable brand authority. Success in this role requires strong technical SEO expertise, experimentation mindset, cross-functional influence, and the ability to translate emerging AI search behaviors into measurable business impact.

Requirements

5-7 years of progressive experience in technical SEO, organic growth, or digital discoverability, with at least 2 years in a leadership capacity.
Proven experience driving measurable organic growth for a large-scale ecommerce or omnichannel retail brand.
Deep expertise in technical SEO, structured data, site architecture, indexing systems, and modern search infrastructure.
Experience influencing cross-functional roadmaps across Product, Engineering, Analytics, and Marketing organizations.
Strong understanding of AI-powered search experiences, conversational discovery trends, and emerging search ecosystems.
Experience managing large product catalogs, faceted navigation, and ecommerce discovery complexity.
Familiarity with platforms and tools such as GA4, Google Search Console, Screaming Frog, Ahrefs, SEMrush, and emerging AI search analytics solutions.
Strong analytical and communication skills with the ability to translate technical insights into business impact and executive-level recommendations.

Nice To Haves

Strategic Systems Thinking: Understands search and discoverability as interconnected systems spanning content, technology, structured data, user behavior, and platform ecosystems.
Cross-Functional Influence: Builds strong partnerships across Product, Engineering, Marketing, Retail, and Analytics to drive aligned execution.
Technical & Analytical Depth: Uses data, experimentation, and technical expertise to identify opportunities and prioritize high-impact initiatives.
Innovation & Adaptability: Anticipates shifts in search behavior, AI interfaces, and platform ecosystems while translating emerging trends into practical business strategies.
Leadership & Team Development: Develops team capability through coaching, mentorship, and operational excellence while creating a culture of curiosity and accountability.
Strategic Agility: Anticipates shifts in search technology and positions the brand for leadership.
Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partners effectively across Marketing, Product, and IT.
Data-Driven Leadership: Uses insights and experimentation to inform decisions.
Innovation & Curiosity: Actively explores how emerging AI ecosystems impact digital discoverability.
Team Development: Builds capability, confidence, and growth pathways within a small team.

Responsibilities

Define and lead Kendra Scott’s enterprise organic discovery strategy across search engines, AI-powered answer experiences, local discovery platforms, and emerging commerce interfaces.
Establish a scalable roadmap that connects organic visibility initiatives to revenue growth, customer acquisition, and omnichannel engagement goals.
Partner with Product, Engineering, and Marketing leadership to embed discoverability principles into digital roadmap planning and platform decisions.
Lead, mentor, and develop a high-performing SEO function while fostering a culture of experimentation, technical rigor, and continuous learning.
Serve as an internal subject matter expert on changes in search behavior, AI-powered discovery, and evolving platform ecosystems.
Own technical SEO strategy including crawlability, indexation, site architecture, internal linking, rendering performance, faceted navigation, and structured data implementation.
Partner with Engineering and Product teams to improve discoverability infrastructure across ecommerce and merchandising systems.
Develop and operationalize structured data governance and machine-readable product/content frameworks across digital properties.
Improve product, brand, and content signals across search engines, AI assistants, and retrieval-based discovery systems.
Oversee feed optimization strategies supporting organic search, local visibility, shopping surfaces, and AI-driven commerce experiences.
Develop Kendra Scott’s AI search visibility strategy across conversational interfaces, answer engines, and generative search experiences.
Evaluate emerging search technologies, AI discovery tools, and conversational commerce trends to identify scalable growth opportunities.
Partner with paid, content, PR, and brand teams to strengthen entity authority, citation visibility, and trusted brand signals across AI ecosystems.
Build frameworks to measure visibility, engagement, and conversion impact within zero-click and AI-assisted search environments.
Lead experimentation initiatives related to AI-driven search behavior, retrieval experiences, and conversational commerce optimization.
Lead local discoverability initiatives including store locator optimization, Google Business Profile strategy, and “near me” search visibility.
Partner with Retail and Marketing teams to improve localized search experiences and strengthen omnichannel customer acquisition.
Optimize location-based discovery strategies that connect digital engagement with in-store traffic and conversion opportunities.
Define KPIs and reporting frameworks that connect discoverability efforts to traffic quality, engagement, revenue contribution, and customer growth.
Partner with Analytics teams to measure incremental impact across organic search, local discovery, and AI-assisted search experiences.
Monitor algorithmic changes, platform shifts, and competitive visibility trends to proactively identify risks and opportunities.
Establish testing frameworks to validate technical, content, and AI-search optimization initiatives.