Paid Search Account Director

Company Description

Spark Foundry, the Acceleration Agency. We help brands to identify, learn and respond to opportunities faster than the competition. Every client has an area of their business that needs to accelerate, from short‑term goals to long‑term transformation. We’ve proven our approach during the most difficult year on record and are now using it to provide a launchpad for future success. Come be an accelerator with us.

How we accelerate

• Planning – an approach that works in practice rather than theory, arming planners with the ability to create cutting edge campaigns.
• Intelligence – a suite of tools that give definitive answers to big questions, and uncover actionable insights about real people.
• Trading – a model built on flexibility and trusted relationships, underpinned with bold guarantees.
• Relationships – a culture of asking challenging questions to better understand the brief – we are not a ‘yes’ agency.
• People – a strong history of recruiting talent from diverse backgrounds and accelerating their careers.

Our Commitment

We are diverse through our experience, people and the clients we look after, and we celebrate that diversity. Our people hold us accountable to our beliefs and, via regular surveys and our Grass‑Roots D&I team, The Collective, and the internal next‑generation board, Firestarters, we hold regular events and work continually towards generating ideas, initiatives and educating our people to ensure we are a diverse and inclusive agency. As part of our dedication to create an inclusive and diverse workforce, Spark Foundry is committed to equal access to opportunity for people without regard to race, age, sex, disability, neurodiversity, sexual orientation, gender identity or religion.

Overview

The Paid Search Account Director is a key leadership role that will oversee the strategic growth and development of our LinkedIn account within the Paid Search team. You will be a trusted advisor to senior clients as well as your colleagues within the agency. With your team of channel specialists and support from across the agency your primary goal will be to develop client strategy and work closely with your Business Director to ensure that you are bridging client business goals with Publicis’ strategic direction. This includes protecting existing revenue and driving growth.

Responsibilities

• You will be responsible for:
• Operational excellence – you will be accountable for ensuring you and your team deliver the brilliant basics including QA processes through mandating the use of QA systems to mitigate errors and accurate planning and optimisation. These should be continuously assessed in line with changes in platforms and industry updates to maintain relevance. You will ensure absolute financial accuracy and adhere to all processes including team training, query management, compliance with SLAs as set by the business, PO management, finance tracking via relevant dashboards and ensuring supplier invoices are cleared within required timelines. This will all be achieved by developing and maintaining best‑practice guidelines and creating additional material enabling the team to deliver excellence from planning through to optimisation, reporting and financial reconciliation.
• Media planning excellence – you will manage and coordinate a team of channel specialists who create complex media plans and deliver campaigns across a range of Paid Search platforms. You will champion our best‑in‑class approach to delivering campaigns, strategy coordination, communication and driving innovation in media planning. You will challenge data partners based on team and client feedback to drive best‑in‑class results, using data to create privacy‑first solutions to client business challenges.
• Revenue tracking – your contribution in shaping a client’s Paid Search strategy through a commercial lens and spearheading innovation will be a critical component of your role. You will work closely with the Performics teams to ensure our efforts within the Paid Search channel continuously deliver on our investment strategy and targets for Publicis Media. You will ensure revenue is tracked accurately and in a timely manner.
• Client sophistication – working with your Business Director and Head of Paid Search you will surface product innovation from a client need, consider potential product development that will add to our Paid Search prowess and has the promise to drive organic growth. Innovation should also be viewed as driving efficiencies and enabling our teams to deliver complex media plans with the use of automated solutions. Build a test‑and‑learn culture among your team, delivering on Paid Search innovations, measurement and other transformational approaches.
• Awards – identify market‑leading work that has been delivered by you and your team. Proactively track upcoming award entry opportunities and draft submissions to play your part in the Paid Search team becoming recognised for award‑winning work.
• Commercial strategy – elevate and promote Publicis Media’s in‑house solutions to deliver revenue growth for our business with a particular focus on Performics T&I (Technology and Intelligence). You will be measured on the adoption of these products and services as part of your success metrics.
• Team management – manage a team of specialists across a client portfolio. You will be a leader who creates an environment where all members of the team have an opportunity to fulfil their potential and deliver exceptional work.
• New Business – effectively represent your area of expertise within new business pitches where required.

Qualifications

• Relevant experience within a digital agency, specifically in Paid Search key suppliers (Google Ads, Microsoft Ads, and Apple Search Ads).
• Extensive knowledge and experience working with campaign & bid management software, in particular SA360.
• Extensive experience managing teams, inclusive of individuals with 4+ years’ experience.
• Effective at people management and compliant with talent‑team policies and practices.
• Good knowledge around recruitment, performance management best practice, motivation, development plans and issue resolution.
• Ability to offer consultative advice to large‑budget advertisers about their Paid Search campaigns and deliver holistic attribution of value relating to the client’s business and marketing success measures to report cross‑channel marketing outcomes.
• Strategic experience in identifying & delivering commercial growth – not just in media billings but in new emerging revenue streams.
• Delivers high‑value client business strategies and translates these into team actions and outputs.
• Champions equal opportunities and creates supportive ways of working for teammates with equity requirements by working with the Talent team.
• Promotes a culture of diversity, equity and inclusion within the team.
• Strong analytical thinking, mathematical skills and attention to detail.
• Excellent communication and writing skills.
• Web analytics understanding, particularly Google Analytics or Adobe Analytics.

Base location: White City, London.

Additional information

• WORK YOUR WORLD – opportunity to work anywhere in the world, where there is a Publicis office, for up to 6 weeks a year.
• REFLECTION DAYS – two additional days of paid leave to step away from your usual day‑to‑day work and focus on your well‑being and self‑care.
• HELP@HAND BENEFITS – 24/7 helpline to support you on a personal and professional level. Access to remote GPs, mental health support and CBT. Well‑being content and lifestyle coaching.
• FAMILY FRIENDLY POLICIES – we provide 26 weeks of full pay for the following family milestones: Maternity, Adoption, Surrogacy and Shared Parental Leave.
• FLEXIBLE WORKING, BANK HOLIDAY SWAP & BIRTHDAY DAY OFF – you are entitled to an additional day off for your birthday from your first day of employment.
• GREAT LOCAL DISCOUNTS – membership discounts with Soho Friends, local restaurants and retailers in Westfield White City and Television Centre.

Full details of our benefits will be shared when you join us!

Publicis Groupe operates a hybrid working pattern with full time employees being office‑based three days during the working week. We are supportive of all candidates and are committed to providing a fair assessment process. If you have any circumstances (such as neurodiversity, physical or mental impairments or a medical condition) that may affect your assessment, please inform your Talent Acquisition Partner. We will discuss possible adjustments to ensure fairness. Rest assured, disclosing this information will not impact your treatment in our process. Please make sure you check out the Publicis Career Page which showcases our Inclusive Benefits and our EAG’s (Employee Action Groups).