Manager, Media Activation Retail Search

About WPP Media

WPP is the trusted growth partner for the world’s leading brands. With exceptional talent, trusted data and intelligence, and world‑class partnerships – all united by our pioneering agentic marketing platform, WPP Open – we help clients navigate change, capture opportunity, and deliver transformational growth.

WPP Media is WPP's AI‑driven media operating unit, bringing together media, data, and partnerships to deliver creative personalisation nected through WPP Open and powered by Open Intelligence, clients see exactly where, how, and why their media investment is working.

The Manager, Media Activation Retail Search role will have a deep interest and appreciation for the uniqueness of retail and marketplaces, and use their retail expertise to deliver excellence in biddable retail media channels: search and programmatic. They will ensure seamless integration of performance‑led retail media efforts into a holistic commerce strategy, delivering best‑in‑class results across WPP Media agencies. This role will work as a member of a cross‑functional team and inform, shape, and implement the most advanced performance‑led strategies and solutions to unlock new growth opportunities across biddable channels for clients.

The role will be responsible for partnering with agency teams to translate our client’s business briefs into jobs, ensuring collaboration across biddable channels to maximize client outcomes, and assisting in creating frameworks for teams working with retail media networks to develop performance projections and scenarios based on campaign parameters. An entrepreneurial spirit with a bias for action and problem‑solving is necessary to be successful in this role.

• Manage a team of direct reports and their career development.
• Oversee search and programmatic media activations across several retailer media networks, including Amazon, Citrus Ad, Criteo, The Trade Desk, Walmart, etc.
• Execute campaign setup, bid recommendations, and budgeting to ensure overall client goal attainment, including the use of retail bid management technologies such as Pacvue, Skai, and Epsilon.
• Maintain excellent relationships with key account stakeholders to maximize promotional opportunities and assist them in navigating the commerce activation landscape.
• Ensure on‑going campaign compliance to WPP Media's established guidelines and best practices.
• Lead the incorporation of cross‑channel testing and optimization strategies.
• Prepare campaign performance reports on a weekly, monthly, and quarterly basis.
• Synthesize key data points, identify trends, and recommend activities to maximize business results and deliver an optimal customer experience.
• Address technical issues with media campaign serving.
• Stay up to date on changing marketplace dynamics surrounding ad products, technology, and measurement across search and programmatic partners.
• Manage reconciliation, invoicing, billing, trafficking, and mapping data to our internal media campaign management platform.

• Bachelor’s Degree in Business, Analytics, Marketing, Communications, Advertising; or equivalent professional work experience.
• 3+ years of experience in biddable performance media execution, with a strong preference for retail media execution.
• Experience managing a team of direct reports.
• Experience across the Microsoft Office Suite, including Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook.
• Deep understanding of retail commercial elements such as profit margin, inventory levels, forecasting, and demand planning to inform media decisions.
• Deep understanding of how different media channels work together and how retail media fits within the wider ecosystem.
• Strong drive to understand the retail landscape and latest trends in commerce media.
• Experience with retail bid management platforms such as Pacvue or Skai.
• Experience in campaign management and optimization across multiple retail platforms (Amazon, Instacart, Walmart, Target, Kroger, Criteo, Google, Meta).
• Ability to collaborate and work effectively with internal teams and external partners.
• A self‑starter attitude that thrives in a fast‑paced environment.
• Excellent project‑management skills;…