Manager, Strategy

UM is a global media agency committed to Futureproofing our clients' businesses. We leverage the transformational power of rich business analytics and real-time intelligence to maximize growth and activate the full consumer journey across content and connections. As a leading global media network, UM operates in over 100 countries, with more than 3,000 people innovating on a roster of global clients including Accenture, American Express, GoPro, Johnson & Johnson, Levi Strauss & Co, Mattel, Sony, and Spotify. UM is globally headquartered in New York, with North American offices in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Dallas, Chicago, Birmingham, Detroit, Montreal, and Toronto.

At UM, we know our employees are our greatest asset. We are committed to fostering a culture rooted in Diversity, Equity & Belonging, where everyone feels they belong, and their contributions are valued. We prioritize personal and professional growth, encourage an entrepreneurial spirit to pursue passion projects, and celebrate our people and community with moments of joy and spontaneity. Our leadership is dedicated to building a culture of care that permeates every element of the company from work flexibility to career planning to regular talent reviews, and more. Our DNA, for UM, helps guide us in all that we do:

• Fearless: We bring our authentic selves to work and put our whole selves into the work
• Optimistic: We approach challenges with empathy and curiosity, infusing joy into everything we do
• Relentless: We're unwavering in our pursuit of the right solution, eager to reimagine what's possible
• Unified: We band together to accomplish what we could not otherwise do alone
• Masterful: We're constantly growing in our craft, setting new standards for our industry and our world

We are proud to be named an AdAge Best Place to Work several times over, a Top Workplace in the US by Great Places to Work, a top 10 FORTUNE 2022 Best Workplaces in Advertising & Marketing and She Runs It's 2021 Outstanding Company for Working Mothers. But feedback is most meaningful when it comes from our own people: over 90% of our employees say the agency is a great place to work and 95% say they are proud to work at UM.

This proactive and enthusiastic individual is responsible for developing truly integrated, cross-channel strategic communications strategies. By focusing on why people think, feel and act the way that they do, the Manager, Strategy helps create media strategies and award-winning ideas that influence perceptions and encourage engagement.

• Maintain a deep understanding of the business, target audiences and wider communications environment
• Identify and build target audiences, test their viability, and determine scalability using syndicated and proprietary tools (i.e. MRI-Simmons, Helixa, primary research)
• Understand and integrate client and creative agency research
• Write POVs on topics relevant to our key clients and agency
• Enter industry competitions (i.e. Young Lions) to represent UM and grow as a strategist; Attend technology and emerging media presentations to stay on top of trends
• Apply syndicated and proprietary data to develop key insights across culture, the category, and customers with actionable media implications
• Support the translation of complex concepts into simple, powerful narratives and present strategic recommendations to the client; Package strategic ideas with clarity for presentation
• Develop the strategic positioning for a given product by considering category, consumer, and competitive context
• Develop effective and inspiring relationships with UM teams, including strategy, research, analytics, planning, activation, and digital teams
• Work closely with the Planning Team to translate the campaign strategy and ideas into actionable media implications
• Ability to manage and develop the skillsets of junior strategy team members

• Proficient in Powerpoint, Word, and Excel
• Great written and oral communication
• Great relationship skills

• 3+ years of media strategy, strategic communications, or related role
• Experience with research and analyzing data
• Enthusiastic, curious, and strategic
• Independent, efficient, and prospers in a fast-paced environment
• Great written and oral communication
• Great relationship skills

Business Overview

KINESSO is the technology-driven performance marketing agency that provides actionable growth for both our agency partners and clients. We turn 'action' into 'outcome' for our clients, leveraging our unique capabilities in optimization, analytics, AI, and experimentation. KINESSO has brought together the collective power of what was formerly Matterkind, Reprise, P3, and Kinesso under one collective entity that will serve as the most powerful delivery engine in the industry. We have extensive offerings spanning across performance marketing and data and technology. Fueled by a deep understanding of consumer behavior, we offer an end-to-end engine of planning and optimization while also delivering on data-driven strategy for social platforms, actionable growth in e-commerce, and creating curated marketplaces specific to each client's function and needs. The company has more than 6,000 employees operating in more than 60 countries. Learn more at www.KINESSO.com.

Position Overview

The Associate Director, Paid Social is a strong strategic contributor with ability to provide social thought leadership, strategic and data-driven recommendations and manage a team of social buyers across a complex client with multiple lines of business or multiple clients. The Associate Director, Paid Social will strengthen andbroadeningclient relationships by applying paid socialexpertiseto the client's business to drive results and ensure the client is up to date with the social industry. In this position, you will drive the social process across teams and clients, ensuring all paid social recommendations and strategy isclosely integratedwith other disciplines and the social team is working together in support of the business. The Associate Director should have a mastery of the paid social industry and how this channel integrates and influences other channels.

Responsibilities

• Understands client goals and business needs and acts as a strategic partner toprovideinsightful, innovative, and data-driven paid social recommendations; Provides strategic recommendation for media budget allocation and managing partner endeavors, negotiation deals or ensuring agency rates are applied.
• Oversees all elements of social campaigns to ensure executional excellence, implementation of best practices, and channel innovation.
• Provide guidance on new Paid Social opportunities as the subject matter expert for all assigned clients, translating industry jargon and concepts for clients and internal stakeholders to understand and champion.
• Evolves team process and aligns and ensures the paid social strategy and team is working with other channel disciplines in support of the assigned clients; Key participant in strategic media planning and execution.
• Plays an active role in conflict resolution.Identifies, manages, and resolves problems before they escalate.
• Budget and Financial:Ultimately responsibleto ensure billing and budgetaccuracytroubleshooting issues and escalating if needed.
• Serve as a resource for Managers, SeniorAssociates and Associatesfor advice and counsel as well as career development, training and motivating the team
• Oversee Asana for task management and team collaboration
• Responsible for QA ofinitialcampaign build outs (ensure tracking, budgets, audiences, creatives, and timing are correct)
• Oversee client budgets to ensure plans do not exceed Media Authorizations; Responsible for reporting budget plans and commissions to internal finance teams

Supervisory Responsibilities:

• Directly managesManagersas well asSr. Associatesand Associates,dependingonteam structure.
• EnsuresManagersnew to managing employees are providing actionable feedback and help set goals andidentifygrowth opportunities for the team.
• Provides mentorship, client managementguidanceand ensures a positive working environment across the team.
• Shares best practices and shortcuts learned through industry experience.
• Delegate and manageworkloadto ensure fairness and growth opportunities. Helps other members of the team and lets juniormembers'shine.
• Share input for promotions, oversee performance improvement plans/on track plans, keep department leads updated with wins and watchouts.

Qualification - Required Skills

• Software:Proficiencyin MS Office applications (Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, Word, etc.)
• Knowledge of all social platformsa must. This includes understanding of buying& reportingwithin platforms at this level for QA and training for teams.Previousexperience executing multiple campaigns in Meta (Facebook and Instagram) and one other platform. (X (formerlyTwitter), Snapchat, Pinterest, TikTok, Reddit and LinkedIn)
• Mastery of said social platform capabilities across campaign type.
• Communication: Comfortable providing feedback and direction through various forms of communication (video, email,etc.). internally and externally.
• Soft Skills: Strong organizational skills, ability to multitask in a fast-paced environment,
• Ability to prepare presentations andmaintaina level of professionalism suitable for senior client leadership, including executive and C-Suite
• Strong analytics skills, thorough understanding of paid social measurement and experienceutilizingmultiple native measurement tools.
• Ability to oversee a team in a fast-paced environment and manage multiple deadlines.
• Team player, willing to jump in where needed to get the job done and manages paid social as part of the broader media strategy and avoids channel siloes.
• Stay informed of the latest developments in paid social and changes to the broader media landscape. Understandimplicationsof data and privacy regulations and when to consult with experts across the organization.

Qualifications - Desired Skills

• 5+years of experience of paid social experience
• Experience managing 2+ direct reports.
• Agency experience preferred
• Passion for social media and advertising
• Proven ability to collaborate and work well with others in a high-pressure environment.

Wage and Benefits

We offer a Total Rewards package that includes medical and dental coverage, 401(k) plans, flex spending, life insurance, disability, employee discount program, employee stock purchase program and paid family benefits to support you and your family.

The salary range for this position is posted below. Where an employee or prospective employee is paid within this range will depend on, among other factors, actual ranges for current/former employees in the subject position, market considerations, budgetary considerations, tenure and standing with the Company (applicable to current employees), as well as the employee's/applicant's skill set, level of experience, and qualifications.

Employment Transparency

It is our policy to provide equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, ethnicity, gender, age, religion, creed, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, citizenship, genetic information, veteran status, disability, or any other basis prohibited by applicable federal, state, or local law.

Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties, or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

The employer will make reasonable accommodations in compliance with the American with Disabilities Act of 1990. The job description will be reviewed periodically as duties and responsibilities change with business necessity. Essential and other job functions are subject to modification. Reasonable accommodations may be provided to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

For applicants to jobs in the United States: In compliance with the current Americans with Disabilities Act and state and local laws, if you have a disability and would like to request an accommodation to apply for a position, please emailaccommodation@mbww.com.