Associate Director, Platform in London

Company Description

Who We Are in the UK? 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 they need to accelerate, from short-term goals to long-term transformation. We’ve proven our approach during the most difficult year on record. Now we’re using it to provide a launchpad for their future. 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 uncovers 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 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.

Job Description

The Audience Design team is at the core of what we do at Spark Foundry. The Data & Platforms team of data and marketing technology specialists have deep expertise in the ever-changing universe of ad technology, data management, data-driven marketing, and enable a data-first strategy throughout our planning and buying process. The Associate Director will be integral in driving ad/mar tech and data integration conversations and strategies on behalf of our clients and then implementing these strategies with the Strategy, Activation, and Operations teams as well as clients themselves. The Associate Director will become an expert in the data landscape and will consult with internal teams and clients on partner/vendor selection, data onboarding, platform integrations, audience activation and testing framework, and audience reporting/insights. This highly motivated, detail-oriented individual will work with both the client and internal stakeholders to educate them on the myriad uses of data and to drive innovation in the use of data and technology for the client, think things like clean rooms, CDPs, advanced audience strategies, full-funnel measurement, etc. They will also generate insights and audience profiles to align with strategic planning and will work with third-party data vendors and publishers to maximize the data opportunity for the client and go beyond what is currently available. Successful candidates will have a well-rounded knowledge base of the digital advertising and data landscape and a passion for working with marketers to drive advertising value.

Role Objectives:

• Manage data strategy for advertising clients, communicating strategies/recommendations to clients using a consultative approach.
• Understand how platform/data technologies work and offer the ability to explain technical concepts in ordinary terms (be technically savvy - understand the opportunities and limitations).
• Identify opportunities – industry learning, meet with vendors and provide a POV, with a client lens and in desired format -- education/evangelize the findings.
• Oversee relationship with the Identity Resolution platforms, CDPs, or other AdTech solutions and project manage the deployment and activation of data technology solutions.
• Partner with internal Programmatic and media investment arms to support campaign activation as well as advanced data use cases.
• Oversee, author and/or constructively edit and review the writing of media documents (timelines, POVs, RFPs, plans, agreements, client memos, and correspondence from within and outside the agency).
• Share knowledge with client and internal teams regarding audience insights and results to impact business needs.
• Provides input to client business-related decisions.

Client Responsibilities:

• Ownership of day-to-day client relationship (mid-level).
• Anticipates risks and prepares multiple resolutions.
• Actively manages client care strategies.
• Builds strong client relationships.

Management Responsibilities:

• Accountable for manager and associate level deliverables.
• Provides clear and concise direction and messages.
• Has “Intellectual Capital”, understands people want to hear a point of view.
• Showcases the ability to manage & mentor others.
• Accountable for onboarding and team readiness.

Qualifications:

• 5+ years of prior digital advertising experience in a client-services capacity.
• 2+ years managing 2+ direct reports.
• In-depth technical knowledge of ad and marketing technology, including ad servers, rich media, dynamic creative, streaming video, OBA, ad verification, customer data management platforms, identity resolution solutions, DSPs, etc.
• Strong project management skills and keen ability to delegate.
• Strong understanding of digital media planning and management processes.
• Expert knowledge and experience with Identity Solution tools (e.g. Epsilon, Liveramp, Neustar).
• Expert understanding and usage of CDP (e.g. Salesforce, Adobe, Treasure Data).
• Expert understanding data flow within adtech/martech ecosystem.

Spark Foundry 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.

Publicis Groupe works primarily from the office or our clients' office four days per week. At Spark Foundry, 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.