Associate Director, Strategy and Planning

Hearts & Science

Media

Media Planning and Buying

As an Associate Director, Performance Marketing, you will play a key leadership role in driving performance across digital media channels for a large, fast-paced retail client. This role requires deep performance marketing expertise, a foundation of hands- on platform experience, a strong analytical mindset, and the ability to translate complex performance trends into clear, actionable strategies and recommendations.

You will co-lead cross-functional performance management across channel activation teams, agency partners, and clients, driving day-to-day strategic direction, budget stewardship, reporting, and optimization initiatives. The ideal candidate is comfortable operating in a dynamic environment where priorities can shift quickly and is confident leading complex work streams, influencing stakeholders, and independently driving recommendations from insight through execution.

As an Associate Director, Performance Marketing, you will report directly to the Senior Director and serve as a strategic partner in developing and executing cross-channel performance strategies, while independently leading key client work streams and cross-functional initiatives.

• Lead the day-to-day management of cross-channel performance marketing initiatives, partnering closely with Paid Search, Paid Social, Digital/Google Demand Gen, Affiliate, and other channel teams to drive performance against client objectives
• Provide strategic direction to channel activation teams by evaluating performance, surfacing optimization opportunities, aligning pacing and budget priorities, and ensuring timely execution against broader client and business objectives
• Lead channel and cross-channel performance analysis to identify trends, opportunities, risks, and strategic optimization recommendations that improve overall business performance
• Lead the development of clear, compelling performance insights, executive-ready narratives, and strategic recommendations for recurring reports, presentations, and client communications
• Partner closely with Planning, Budget Management, Marketing Science, Digital/Google Demand Gen, and channel activation teams to develop holistic media recommendations, guide investment decisions, and ensure alignment with broader client and business objectives
• Lead cross-functional work streams by setting priorities across channel teams, assigning and managing deliverables, communicating performance updates, and driving timely execution of optimizations, budget changes, strategic initiatives, and client requests
• Own day-to-day budget stewardship and forecasting across assigned work streams, proactively identifying risks, opportunities, and investment recommendations while partnering with channel teams on execution
• Independently export, synthesize, and analyze data from media platforms and reporting sources to investigate performance trends, answer complex business questions, and inform strategic recommendation
• Translate complex channel and cross-channel performance data into clear takeaways and recommendations for clients, internal stakeholders, and the Senior Director
• Serve as a primary client contact for assigned work streams, independently leading meetings, presentations, and day-to-day communications while partnering with the Senior Director on broader strategic initiatives and senior-level client engagements
• Lead cross-channel projects and strategic initiatives, establishing clear ownership, timelines, and accountability across internal and external stakeholders to ensure successful delivery against client objectives
• Drive continuous improvement across campaign performance, reporting, workflows, and cross-functional ways of working, identifying opportunities to increase efficiency and effectiveness
• Develop a deep understanding of the client’s business, promotional calendar, product priorities, and broader ecommerce landscape to provide relevant performance context and forward-looking recommendations
• Apply and help interpret measurement frameworks and methodologies, including Multi-Touch Attribution (MTA), Marketing Mix Modeling (MMM), incrementality testing, and other performance measurement solutions

• 4+ years of experience in performance marketing, digital media, or a related field, preferably within an agency environment
• Previous hands-on experience managing and optimizing Paid Search campaigns is strongly preferred;…