Our mission is to reinvent the way people learn, starting with language. We begin by teaching the next billion people English, Spanish, and French.
English is the global language of business, culture, and communication, and over 1.5 billion people around the world are actively trying to learn right now. Others dream of communicating with the half-billion native Spanish speakers across the globe. The problem is that it's nearly impossible to learn to speak a language without constant access to a speaking partner. Grammar and vocab apps don't really help – you need to actually converse with someone.
Speak is on a journey to fix this. We're creating an AI-powered experience that replicates the flow of a conversation, without needing a human on the other end. The goal is to make it radically more accessible to be able to have conversations in a foreign language and eventually help hundreds of millions of people gain fluency who otherwise wouldn't be able to.
We started on this journey over five years ago and we've still got a long ways to go. We're thoughtfully adding new team members only when we think they can truly play a big role in our mission.
Speak launched first in South Korea where we have quickly grown to become the top grossing education app in the country. We have now delivered this winning product to more than 40 countries globally and are continuing to expand to more markets in the coming months. The company is well funded, and as of December 2024, we've reached a $1B valuation with our Series C round, through key partners like Accel, OpenAI, Founders Fund, Y Combinator, Khosla Ventures, Lachy Groom, Josh Buckley, and more. We’re a team of more than 90 based throughout San Francisco, Seoul, Tokyo, Taipei, and Ljubljana.
About This Role
We’re hiring a Growth Marketing Manager to lead WEB-based paid acquisition for the Japan market and play a pivotal role in accelerating Speak’s next stage of growth. This is a senior individual contributor role for someone deeply hands-on with paid marketing - owning everything from strategy and execution to experimentation and analytics.
You’ll join our Tokyo team at a critical inflection point as we scale our user acquisition efforts in Japan across APP, WEB, and Affiliates. Working alongside existing members, you’ll take full ownership of WEB performance marketing - driving strategic channel expansion, deep experimentation, and efficient growth.
This role has a direct impact on one of Speak’s most important markets and will help shape our conversion playbook in Japan.
What you’ll be doing
Paid Campaigns: lead WEB-focused paid media campaigns from strategic planning to hands-on execution to maximize LTV growth and LTV:CAC efficiency
Testing and iterations: systematically test and refine paid media creatives, driving continuous improvement in campaign performance and LTV:CAC (audience segmentation, ad placements, retargeting, etc.)
Marketing analytics: analyze performance data daily to make real-time adjustments to campaigns, ensuring targets are consistently met
Strategic growth initiatives: testing, discovering, and managing new growth channels/approaches to drive user acquisition
Work cross-functionally: with product, data, and design to influence conversion strategy, creative pipeline, and user journey optimization
What we’re looking for
7+ years of experience managing and optimizing paid user acquisition (UA) campaigns, with a strong track record in hands-on media buying and performance-driven strategy
Proficiency in both in-app and web-based campaigns and productions
Strong track record of working with marketing analytics & data to conduct necessary A/B tests and insight-based improvements, especially in real-time for active campaigns to maximize ROI
Ability to partner with creative/designers to produce on-brand assets for paid channels (creatives and landing pages), optimizing for maximum conversion rates and LTV efficiency
Proactive problem-solver who can thrive in a fast-paced, cross-functional team
Fluency in Japanese and English, with the ability to communicate clearly and effectively
Join a fantastic, tight-knit team at the right time: we're growing very quickly, we've most recently raised our Series C from some of the top investors in the valley, and we've achieved product-market fit in our initial markets. You'd join at a magical time when a single person could significantly change the course of the company.
Do your life's work with people you’ll love working with: we care strongly about our craft and want every person at Speak to feel like they're growing every day. We believe in the idea that working with people you both enjoy and have respect for makes everything better. We hire thoughtfully and only work with people we admire deeply.
Global in nature: We're live in over 40 countries and launching in a number of new markets soon. We have dedicated offices in San Francisco, Ljubljana, Seoul, and Tokyo, and you’ll have the opportunity to talk to users in each of these regions on a regular basis as well as travel.
Impact people's lives in a major way: Learning a language is one of the single most life-changing skills one can learn, and right now 99% of people never achieve their goal because the process is broken. We’re helping millions of people achieve their goals and improve their lives.
Speak does not discriminate based upon race, religion, color, national origin, gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, or other applicable legally protected characteristics.
