Associate Director, Integrated Media Planning

Responsibilities

• Leads integrated media planning across multiple, significant, or complex accounts, ensuring plans connect audience insights, client objectives, channel roles, investment strategy, measurement, and optimization.
• Provides strategic direction and quality oversight throughout the planning process, including brief development, audience and consumer target definition, objectives, strategies, channel architecture, recommendations, and presentations.
• Oversees account planning workflows and deliverables; establishes priorities, monitors progress, resolves barriers, and ensures work is strategically sound, accurate, timely, and client-ready.
• Serves as a senior planning advisor to assigned clients and internal partners; anticipates business needs, facilitates strategic decisions, and takes ownership of complex media issues, growth opportunities, and test-and-learn initiatives.
• Leads development and presentation of integrated media recommendations and points of view; ensures the strategic rationale, investment choices, tradeoffs, and measurement approach are clear and defensible.
• Partners with SPARQ, Client Leadership, Creative, MAA, and other agency teams to ensure planning, activation, measurement, and optimization are cohesive and accountable.
• Maintains oversight of campaign performance, budgets, media spend, pacing, billing, deliverables, and strategic optimization; ensures significant variances and risks are communicated and resolved or escalated appropriately.
• Guides planning across digital and offline media channels and ensures channel recommendations work together within an integrated campaign strategy.
• Uses syndicated research, audience data, market intelligence, and planning tools to shape insights, strategies, and recommendations.
• Evaluates vendor, partner, and publisher capabilities and proposals; leads or provides guidance during negotiations; and ensures recommendations reflect client needs, investment considerations, and sound strategic rationale.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited four-year college or university preferred.
• 8+ years of progressive media planning experience, including experience leading complex integrated planning assignments.
• Broad knowledge of offline and online media channels, audience insights, and performance analytics.
• Demonstrated experience with shopper marketing and the development of integrated media solutions.
• Strong knowledge of digital disciplines, including display, online video, CTV, programmatic, social media, influencer media, SEM, digital coupons, and ad operations.
• Advanced understanding of media strategy, planning, negotiation, implementation, budget stewardship, measurement, and performance analysis.
• Demonstrated experience developing and presenting integrated media proposals, plans, and recommendations to clients.
• Demonstrated experience leading teams, developing talent, reviewing work, and coordinating resources across multiple assignments.
• Experience contributing to new business strategy, proposals, or presentations.

Benefits

• Hybrid Work Environment
• Medical, Dental & Vision Benefits
• 401K Contributions
• Flexible PTO Policy & Generous Holiday Schedule
• Rewards & Recognition Program
• Bonus Eligibility
• Summer Hours
• Parental Leave