Programmatic Lead

Location: Manchester - Hybrid, 2 days a week in the office, with occasional travel to Leeds

Reporting to: Head of Paid Media

The Opportunity

We're working with an established digital agency in Leeds that’s investing heavily in developing its wider paid media offering. They’ve already got a strong reputation and an experienced team, but programmatic is an area they see huge potential in.

They’re now looking for a Programmatic Lead to help shape and grow this part of the business.

This is a great opportunity for someone who’s already got solid, hands‑on programmatic experience but wants to take the next step. You’ll have the freedom to influence strategy, explore new platforms and develop the agency’s offering, whilst still being closely involved in delivering campaigns for clients.

Importantly, they’re not expecting someone to know everything. They’re looking for someone with the right foundations, plenty of curiosity and the ambition to help build something.

What You’ll Be Doing

• Taking ownership of programmatic activity across the agency, from planning and activation through to optimisation and reporting.
• Helping shape the future programmatic offering, including recommending platforms, technologies and opportunities for clients.
• Planning and delivering campaigns across channels such as display, online video, CTV, audio, retail media and digital out-of-home, depending on your experience and client needs.
• Managing campaign set‑up, trafficking, targeting, budgets and performance to deliver measurable results.
• Working closely with the wider paid media, creative and data teams to develop joined‑up campaigns.
• Building relationships with clients, helping them understand the opportunities programmatic offers and how it can support their wider marketing objectives.
• Testing new approaches, sharing insights and helping develop the knowledge and capabilities of the wider team.
• Supporting pitches and new business opportunities as the agency continues to grow its offering.

What You’ll Bring

• A few years’ solid experience working in programmatic advertising, ideally within an agency environment.
• Strong hands‑on experience planning, activating and optimising programmatic campaigns.
• A good understanding of DSPs, trafficking, targeting and the wider programmatic ecosystem. Experience with platforms such as DV360, The Trade Desk or StackAdapt would be useful, but they’re completely open‑minded about which platforms you’ve worked with.
• A commercially minded approach, with an understanding of how programmatic campaigns contribute to wider client objectives.
• Strong analytical skills and the ability to turn campaign performance into meaningful recommendations.
• The confidence to communicate with clients and colleagues, sharing ideas and challenging thinking when appropriate.
• A genuine interest in the wider digital media landscape and an appetite to develop your expertise.

You don’t need experience across every programmatic channel, and you certainly don’t need to have done this exact role before. If you’ve got strong programmatic fundamentals and feel ready for more responsibility, they’d love to hear from you.

Why This Role?

What makes this opportunity particularly interesting is the chance to genuinely influence the direction of a growing part of an established agency.

You’ll be joining a business that’s making a significant investment in expanding beyond its traditional paid search strengths, with programmatic playing an important role in that development.

Rather than stepping into a rigid structure, you’ll have the opportunity to help decide which platforms to prioritise, how the agency approaches programmatic and where the biggest opportunities lie for its clients.

You’ll also have the support of an established paid media team, with plenty of opportunity to collaborate, learn and develop as the offering grows.

The role offers a salary of up to £50,000, with hybrid working and ideally two days a week in the Leeds office. They may also consider someone based in Manchester who can spend regular time with the Leeds team.

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