Planning Director in London

With a history that dates back over 80 years, Starcom is a global communications planning and media leader. We are an agency still grounded in our founding principle that people are at the centre of all we do. Each day, we apply this belief to harness the transformative power of data and technology to inspire and move people and business forward. With more than 7,000 employees in over 100 offices around the world, we are the flagship Publicis Media agency that uses our ‘Power of One’ business model, with teams that span multiple disciplines across clients such as Aldi, P&G, Primark, Samsung, Stellantis, and Visa.

We place a huge focus on our People, and have driven flagship D&I and L&D programmes within Publicis Media; our goal is to help every individual reach their fullest potential, and we encourage everyone to make “Brave Plays” in how they approach their work and their own career development. As a result, we have an exceptionally energised and committed talent base, all of us proud of our welcoming and supportive culture, as evidenced by our recognition as one of Campaign’s Best Places to Work for five years in a row, Media Week's Agency of the Year 2025 and one of the Sunday Times Best Places to Work 2025.

We are hiring a Planning Director to lead media planning for one of the world’s most recognised and creatively ambitious toy brands. You’ll bring together strategic thinking, human insight, data and technology to shape integrated campaigns across an exciting mix of audiences, partnerships and cultural moments. Working as a trusted partner to the client, you’ll turn business challenges into clear media recommendations while helping a talented team produce their best work. This is an opportunity to influence both the day-to-day account and its longer-term direction within a collaborative, supportive agency.

Responsibilities

• Lead the day-to-day account, maintaining high standards across media planning, client service and strategic delivery.
• Build trusted relationships with senior clients, creating an open and collaborative partnership grounded in clear advice.
• Own the end-to-end planning process, ensuring every recommendation has a strong strategic foundation and responds to the client’s priorities.
• Guide integrated campaigns across channels including out-of-home, audio-visual media, partnerships and wider Publicis Media capabilities.
• Support annual planning and the client growth plan, identifying opportunities to strengthen the work and grow the partnership.
• Coach and support planning managers, creating clarity, encouraging learning and helping the team deliver consistently strong work.
• Oversee timelines, budgets, forecasting, reporting and invoicing so campaigns run effectively and commercial commitments remain on track.

Qualifications

• A strong understanding of media strategy, planning principles and the role different channels can play within an integrated plan.
• Experience building credible, collaborative relationships with senior clients and communicating recommendations clearly.
• The ability to translate audience, business and performance insight into focused strategies and compelling stories.
• Clear written, verbal and presentation skills, with the confidence to facilitate discussions and explain complex thinking simply.
• A supportive leadership approach that gives colleagues direction, constructive feedback and room to develop.
• Strong organisation and judgement, with the ability to coordinate connected workstreams, priorities and stakeholders.
• A curious, solutions-focused mindset and an interest in improving the work, contributing to agency life and building positive industry relationships.

Additional Information

Starcom offers a wide range of benefits to support our employees. Full details are shared when you join, but highlights include core benefits such as Pension, Life Assurance, and Private Medical cover, alongside enhanced policies like Reflection Days and Shared Parental Leave. You’ll also have access to a range of additional initiatives, including: Publicis Groupe works primarily from the office or our clients' office four days per week.

At Starcom, we are proud to be an equal opportunities employer. We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds, and do not discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, nationality, religion or belief, disability, age, citizenship, relationship status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other protected characteristic. We are committed to providing a fair, accessible, and inclusive recruitment process. If you have any access needs - for example, related to disability, neurodivergence, or a health condition - please let us know. We’ll work with you to ensure the process works for you. Sharing this information will never impact your application.

Guided by our values, we listen with empathy, uplift each other, take responsibility, and embrace change - building a culture where everyone feels seen, respected, and genuinely included.