VP, Investment and Activation

Chicago, IL (Hybrid)

$176K/yr – $225K/yrSenior Level15+ years expFull time

Posted 2 months ago

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Job Summary

Own and optimize cross-functional media engagements for Rise and Quad clients, aligning strategy, contracts, budgets, and vendor negotiations with delivery excellence and team leadership.

  • Ownership: define media goals, craft strategies within budget, and advise on practical implementation for client success.
  • Partnerships and delivery: collaborate with directors and partners to expand offerings, test new partners, and steward joint business plans.
  • Operations and team leadership: manage a remote/hybrid team, ensure on-time delivery, and improve processes with AI-enabled workflows.

Job Description

Responsibilities

  • Participate in the new business process, helping to sell prospects on the Rise value proposition, products and services; likewise, support business development efforts that grow current accounts organically and leverage both the Rise and Quad suite of services
  • Work with other department VPs and directors to collaborate and sell cross-functionally; detect and problem solve any issues that arise re: same
  • Evolve the media offering (ongoing) to keep pace with changes in the media landscape and in response to changing client objectives; ensure Rise leverages vendor relationships, talent and resources as appropriate
  • Contribute to delivery of corporate financial commitments related to agency P&L; review the financial performance for the prior month and for YTD ongoing; participate in annual corporate financial planning, analysis and expense management
  • Develop contracts / pricing / Scope of Work documents, together with internal legal / contract teams and / or the client, that appropriately define each client engagement and benefit both Rise and the client; steward executed Scope of Work details, and manage team to the successful, error-free execution of every media engagement (ongoing)
  • Work with clients to establish media goals, objectives and strategies within budget; advise client management on relevancy and practicality of recommended media strategies, tactics and recommended alternatives
  • Partner with the Director, Partnerships to identify new partners, develop testing strategies and cultivate strong relationships across partner portfolio, including responsibility for JBP stewardship and fulfillment, as assigned
  • Lead teams in successful vendor negotiations to ensure optimum use of budgeted funds and long-term contracts
  • Responsible for managing a team of direct reports (remote and across all Rise locations) with accountability for all aspects of team oversight, including employee onboarding, employee training, employee performance (accountability and behavior), employee retention
  • Effectively motivate and lead team while fostering accountability and ownership; marshal onshore / offshore resources to ensure proper team structure, staffing levels and budget performance

Requirements

  • Bachelor’s degree (communications, marketing, advertising, or business)
  • Ability to speak, read and write the English language
  • 15+ years of marketing / media / channel experience (corporate or agency) in client-facing roles
  • 10+ years developing and managing high performance teams
  • Exceptionally strong verbal and written communication skills to effectively interact with clients (including C-suite), vendors and all levels of the organization
  • Experience managing offshore teams a plus
  • High degree of business acumen and sound decision-making abilities
  • Deep experience working with performance-based and brand-based clients, including retail
  • Ability to identify / recruit / retain top talent; experience positively managing personnel issues
  • Proven ability as a creative problem solver
  • Proven ability to manage multiple, simultaneous short- and long-term projects
  • Track record of demonstrating strong judgment and prioritization capabilities
  • Ability to implement change quickly to support evolving / changing client initiatives
  • Possess superior knowledge of the media industry, demonstrating depth in media strategy and full funnel (brand + demand) marketing across all channels, media analytics / ROI, and planning and buying local and national media
  • Demonstrated ability to grow and expand the agency’s offering at the channel level, specifically demonstrating deep knowledge of search, social and programmatic
  • Influential and persuasive communicator with strong interpersonal skills; exceptional ability to grow and foster internal / external relationships
  • Strong presentation and impeccable written and verbal communication skills
  • Expert ability to create strategic, compelling and thoughtful written and visual strategic proposals / presentations with rationale
  • Demonstrated ability to learn and understand each client’s business; act as an extension of the client with working knowledge of issues that could influence media decisions
  • Proven ability to lead and develop high-performing, cross-functional teams

Nice to have

  • Experience managing offshore teams a plus
Quad logo

Quad

Quad (NYSE: QUAD) is a global marketing experience company that helps brands make direct consumer connections, from household to in-store to online. Supported by state-of-the-art technology and data-driven intelligence, Quad uses its suite of media, creative and production solutions to streamline the complexities of marketing and remove friction from wherever it occurs in the marketing journey. Quad tailors its uniquely flexible, scalable and connected solutions to clients’ objectives, driving cost efficiencies, improving speed to market, strengthening marketing effectiveness, and delivering value on client investments.Quad employs approximately 13,000 people in 14 countries and serves approximately 2,700 clients including industry leading blue-chip companies that serve both businesses and consumers in multiple industry verticals, with a particular focus on commerce, including retail, consumer packaged goods, and direct-to-consumer; financial services; and health. Quad is ranked as the 14th largest agency company in the U.S. by Ad Age (2023), and the second-largest commercial printer in North America, according to Printing Impressions (2023).For more information about Quad, including its commitment to ongoing innovation, culture and sustainable impact, visit quad.com.

Founded in 1971
Sussex, Wisconsin, USA
10K employees (1,327 in marketing)

Traffic Signals

Monthly Visitors
55.7K
Monthly Google Ads Budget
$6.5K
Traffic Source Mix
Search
34.2%
Direct
53.8%
Referral
9%
Social
1.6%
Paid
1.2%

Headcount Trend

Current headcount: ~10.2K

Marketing Team

Marketing Team Size
676 (7% of company)
Median Career Experience
13 years
Median Tenure
9.4 years

Funding

Total Funding
$1.9B
Last Raise
$35M
Post IPO Debt, 7 months ago

Funding History

  • Aug 2025
    Post IPO Debt • $35M
  • Apr 2014
    Post IPO Debt • $1.9B

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