Head of Payments Operations

At CREEM, payments are not a back-office function. They are the core of our business model. As a Merchant of Record for indie hackers and bootstrapped founders, payment optimization directly impacts GMV, profitability, and merchant success. You will own a critical function that directly affects company growth and economics. You will work directly with product, engineering, and leadership to shape the future of our payment stack and build strategic advantages through operational excellence.

As Head of Payments Operations at CREEM, you will own the entire payments infrastructure that powers our Merchant of Record business. You will manage critical Payment Service Provider (PSP) relationships, optimize transaction acceptance rates, mitigate risk through disputes and chargebacks management, and make strategic routing decisions across our payment orchestration layer. This role is approximately 70% operational excellence and 30% strategic. You will be hands-on optimizing the payments funnel while also evaluating new PSPs, designing orchestration strategy, and building the roadmap for payment partner expansion.

• Manage day-to-day PSP relationships and SLAs. Monitor uptime, incident response, and technical escalations.

• Oversee disputes and chargeback management. Build workflows, respond to disputes, identify patterns, and work with PSPs to reduce chargeback rates.

• Own acceptance rate optimization. Analyze transaction declines, work with PSPs on improved approval rates, test routing strategies, and implement improvements.

• Manage payment orchestration operations. Execute routing decisions, monitor fallback flows, and ensure robust payment processing in production.

• Monitor and report on payment health metrics. Track conversion rates, success rates, failure modes, and PSP performance trends.

• Evaluate and onboard new PSPs. Assess market options, negotiate terms, manage implementation, and integrate new payment partners.

• Design payment routing strategy. Determine optimal networks for different merchant segments, regions, and payment methods.

• Build the payment partner roadmap. Identify gaps, prioritize new integrations, and drive expansion into new regions and payment methods.

• Collaborate with Product and Engineering on payment feature roadmap. Inform technical decisions with operational insights and business impact.

• 3+ years in payments operations, fintech, or payment processing. Hands-on experience managing payment flows at scale.

• Deep expertise in payment service providers (Stripe, Adyen, Checkout, etc.) and their operations.

• Experience with dispute and chargeback management. Proven ability to reduce rates and improve outcomes.

• Familiarity with payment orchestration, payment routing logic, and multi-PSP strategies.

• Strong analytical skills. Comfort with payment metrics, A/B testing acceptance strategies, and data-driven decisions.

• Negotiation and relationship management. Ability to work effectively with payment partners, product teams, and internal stakeholders.

• Merchant of Record (MoR) or complex payment orchestration experience.

• Global payments experience. Multi-currency, regional PSP differences, and compliance nuances.

• Technical background or strong partnership with engineers. Comfort reading payment logs, understanding failure modes, collaborating on technical optimization.

• Startup experience. Ability to move fast, wear multiple hats, and optimize for early-stage business priorities.

• Exceptional Compensation: We offer a highly competitive salary package that reflects your expertise and the impact you'll have on our mission.

• Relocation Support: We provide comprehensive relocation assistance, handle your visa process if needed, and cover your first month of rent to ensure a smooth transition.

• Equity Ownership: Join our journey with meaningful equity that gives you real skin in the game as we build something extraordinary together.

• Learning & Development: Dedicated budget for continuous growth through courses, conferences, and resources that expand your horizons.

• Flexible Time Off: We trust you to manage your energy and take the time you need to recharge and perform at your best.

• Team Adventures: Regular team gatherings in exciting locations to strengthen bonds, share ideas, and envision our collective future.

• Creative Freedom: A fast-paced environment where you'll have the autonomy to experiment, innovate, and make meaningful decisions that shape our product.