Chief Subscription Officer

About the Role

Slate is looking for a C‑level leader to drive company growth through subscriptions. Work with the editorial team to broaden Slate’s appeal, establish new subscription products and update existing ones, and bring new readers and listeners through the funnel to paid subscriptions.

This position reports to the Chief Executive Officer and will work closely with the Editor in Chief and Chief Financial Officer. It will directly oversee the subscription team, paid acquisition, and acquisition‑related metrics, working closely with editorial and product leadership.

We're looking for someone with strong product opinions who has built habituation loops and mid‑funnel infrastructure erience could come from:

• Consumer subscription businesses (media, fitness, learning, gaming)
• Product/growth roles at companies with freemium‑to‑paid models
• Retention‑focused roles at streaming or membership platforms

Ideal candidates will have demonstrated experience moving users from casual engagement to habitual usage before asking for money.

• Set the long‑term strategy for subscriptions and subscription growth across text, audio, and games, with a 3‑to‑5‑year horizon.
• Lead the subscription team, identify gaps, and build capabilities around paid acquisition and other opportunities.
• Partner with the Editor in Chief to sharpen content strategy to better drive subscription growth.
• Map and measure the entire user journey from first touch to subscription.
• Establish mid‑funnel metrics and teach the organization how to impact them.
• Connect existing investment initiatives (video, games, newsletters, features) into a coherent growth strategy.
• Expand paid promotion to scale acquisition, leading to subscription growth.
• Improve retention by better understanding the causes of churn and how to combat them.

• Proven experience building and optimizing mid‑funnel/habituation metrics at a subscription business.
• Track record of transformational change.
• Experience establishing shared goals with creative leadership.
• Specific examples of moving users from casual to habitual usage.
• Deep knowledge of email marketing, retention loops, and habit formation.
• Data fluency with modern analytics tools (e.g., Amplitude).
• Experience navigating a creative culture with business needs.

Slate, founded in 1996, is a daily online magazine and podcast network that helped invent the voice of the web. The company has won numerous awards, including the National Magazine Award for General Excellence Online.

Slate offers a comprehensive benefits program that gives eligible employees the flexibility to choose the right benefits for themselves and their families. The benefits include three subsidized medical plans and two dental plans, provided by Aetna, which can be paired with flexible spending accounts.