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About the Role
The Associate Director role at The Goat Agency, a WPP Media brand, is instrumental in helping global brands leverage social and creator-led content for measurable impact. This senior, hands-on leadership position focuses on owning and growing the programmatic proposition, primarily in the UK and US, contributing to the Influence Everywhere vision.
Responsibilities
- Accountable for the quality and performance of programmatic campaigns delivered by the team.
- Run and execute campaigns directly when needed.
- Act as the go-to expert for programmatic strategy and technology.
- Help shape and broaden the programmatic offering, including influencer-led programmatic solutions and integrated responses to briefs.
- Lead and develop the programmatic team, acting as the escalation point for complex work.
- Drive integration and utilization of programmatic across the wider business.
- Own the vision, roadmap, and day-to-day leadership of programmatic at Goat.
- Take responsibility for the team's output, ensuring high standards, strategic alignment, and commercial impact.
- Line manage and/or coach senior and junior programmatic team members.
- Champion programmatic within Goat, building strong relationships with client services, strategy, influencer, paid social, and creative teams.
- Lead programmatic strategy for key clients and new business, including proposal and pitch work.
- Personally plan, build, and optimize campaigns where needed, from briefing through to reporting.
- Integrate programmatic with influencer and social activity to extend reach, frequency, and performance.
- Identify opportunities to evolve the programmatic product, including influencer-driven programmatic, new formats, data partnerships, and measurement approaches.
- Oversee and directly manage end-to-end campaigns across formats and platforms, including display, video, YouTube, CTV, online video, Amazon/retail media, digital OOH, and other emerging programmatic channels.
- Use DSPs such as The Trade Desk, DV360 for campaign setup, optimization, and reporting.
- Optimize towards agreed KPIs, managing budgets, pacing, bidding, and audience strategies.
- Ensure brand safety, viewability, and fraud prevention standards are consistently met.
- Produce clear, actionable performance reports and post-campaign analyses.
- Present insights and recommendations to internal stakeholders and clients in a commercially meaningful way.
- Use historic data and platform insights to inform planning, forecasting, and future proposals.
- Share best practice with other markets and support global or multi-market clients.
Requirements
- Strong experience planning, executing, and optimizing programmatic campaigns, ideally in an agency or digital media environment.
- Hands-on proficiency with key DSPs (e.g., The Trade Desk, DV360) and audience/data tools.
- Experience leading or overseeing programmatic specialists (formal line management or clear senior escalation responsibility).
- Solid understanding of programmatic fundamentals: targeting, bidding, inventory buying, optimization, and measurement.
- Comfortable working across multiple formats and environments (e.g., display, video, YouTube, CTV, Amazon/retail media, digital OOH).
- Strong analytical skills, with the ability to turn data into clear, practical recommendations.
- Proven ability to manage budgets and deliver against performance and ROI targets.
- Confident communicator, able to educate and influence internal teams and clients on programmatic best practice.
- Willingness to work on cross-market projects, with the bulk of work focused on the UK and US.
- Requires individuals to have the right to work in the UK.
Skills
- Programmatic strategy
- Programmatic technology
- Influencer-led programmatic solutions
- Programmatic campaign delivery
- Programmatic team leadership
- Programmatic strategy for clients and new business
- Campaign planning, building, and optimization
- Programmatic product evolution
- DSP usage (The Trade Desk, DV360)
- Campaign optimization
- Budget management
- Pacing
- Bidding strategies
- Audience strategies
- Brand safety
- Viewability
- Fraud prevention
- Performance reporting
- Data analysis
- Forecasting
- Cross-market collaboration
Location
- UK
- US
Work Type
- Hybrid
Experience Level
- Associate Director
- Senior
Benefits
- Competitive medical insurance
- Group retirement plans
- Vision insurance
- Dental insurance
- Significant paid time off
- Preferential partner discounts
- Employee mental health awareness days
About the Company
- WPP is the trusted growth partner for the world’s leading brands, helping clients navigate change, capture opportunity, and deliver transformational growth.
- WPP Media is WPP's AI-driven media operating unit, bringing together media, data, and partnerships to deliver creative personalization at scale.
- The Goat Agency is a leading brand within WPP Media, recognized as a global leader in social and creator-led content.
- WPP Media is committed to Be Extraordinary, Lead Optimistically, and Champion Growth and Development.
- WPP Media creates an Open environment built on trust and respect, fostering inclusivity and opportunities for progression.
- Benefits may vary by office/country.
Equal Opportunity
- WPP Media is an equal opportunity employer and considers applicants for all positions without discrimination or regard to characteristics.
- We believe the best work happens when we're together, fostering creativity, collaboration, and connection in this open and supportive environment.