Associate Director, CAM

OUR COMPANY

Initiative celebrates diversity in an inclusive environment where all of our 6,000+ strong talent across 90+ markets feel seen, heard, and valued. Our vision is to create not only a better media company, but also a better media industry, and maybe even a better world.

We believe in the power of media to reshape our industry and orchestrate a brand’s entire consumer experience, by balancing both what unites people and what makes them different. When brands unite people in culture, they build Fame, and when brands connect individuals to their unique journeys, they build customer Flow. Media responsibility is at the forefront of everything we do, whether it’s creating media plans that reflect the diversity of our communities, promote brand safety, and foster sustainability.  
 
Our agency celebrates diversity in an inclusive environment where all of our 6,000+ strong talent across 90+ markets feel seen, heard, and valued. Our vision is to create not only a better media company, but also a better media industry, and maybe even a better world. 

 
We make a promise to our people that we double down on seeing, celebrating & elevating all the things that make you, uniquely you. And just as we do for our brands and clients, we connect our people to the journeys that matter in building a meaningful career. 

 
There are four I’s in Initiative, and these represent our core values and behaviors. 

➢ INDIVID[YOU]ALITY – you bring your genuine and unique self to and into the work, every day. 

➢ INSTINCT – you’re tuned in and armed with intelligence; you have a bias for action – shit happens when you’re around. 

➢ IMAGINATION – your ability to imagine and bring to life the ideas, solutions, and the future of Initiative, makes us THE create media agency in the world. 

➢ IMPACT! – you care deeply about the impact you have on our clients, their customers, our community, the media landscape and our world at large. 

DISCIPLINE OVERVIEW: COMMUNICATIONS DESIGN 

Communications design is the discipline and practice of crafting how a brand idea will be delivered through communications across an owned, earned and paid ecosystem in order to achieve a desired behavioral outcome.  

Initiative’s Communications Design team is creating the future of planning.  Borrowing skills from User Experience, Digital, Public Relations and Content, these media professionals are responsible for curating how people connect and participate with brands through culturally rich ideas.  Instead of considering the experience of a brand in components (media / channel planning), Communications Designers think about brand experience in totality (ecosystem planning) ensuring every encounter is useful and impactful.   

The Communications Design team dynamically brings brands to life through their actions.  They: 

• Are experts in consumer and communications behavior, and how changes in behaviors are creating new opportunities for connection 

• Lead the creation of the dynamic ecosystem approach to deliver a strategy 

• Work with partners (media, creative, technology, platforms, Specialty Business Units) to curate how a brand should connect within culture  

• Lead the identification of the right audiences to address how to meet business goals, and guide the quantification of connection encounters holistically 
• Champion innovative, forward-thinking activities that help brands create value with their audience. 

ROLE OVERVIEW: EMEA ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR, COMMUNICATIONS DESIGN  

The Associate Director, Communications Design, supports their Line Manager in their mission to deliver business-appropriate, best-in-class solutions for Initiative clients.  You partner with the integrated Initiative team and across Mediabrands SBUs to ensure brilliant strategy, design, flawless execution and most importantly, delivery on KPIs and business results for your client. 

You are the day-to-day contact and lynchpin for the client and the internal team. You will ensure everything is operating smoothly, accurately, and on deadline. Your daily insights will keep your Line Manager ahead of the game with your category expertise, status updates and proactive guidance. You have excellent knowledge of your clients’ business and are an authority on Initiative and the SBUs to your clients, colleagues and staff. You identify challenges and opportunities, both internally and externally, and seek solutions that achieve the client’s goals. 

In this role, you are responsible for the management of junior team members including appraisals, goal setting and performance management, ensuring that the next generation of brilliant communications designers are effectively supported, trained and developed. 

As a leader, you are a strong and nurturing manager, able to ensure your support design talent are able to produce high quality inputs that result in effective, culturally resonant, highly connected solutions.  

THE CLIENTS:  

In 2022 Initiative became the Agency of Record for Amazon Web Services (AWS) Digital, globally. The AWS is one of our leading B2B tech client accounts at Initiative.   

As an Associate Director, you will be a pivotal player in the planning and execution of innovative media strategies for Amazon Web Services (AWS). You will be an energetic and collaborative team member, contributing to brilliant strategy, flawless execution, and the delivery of awareness and demand generation campaigns for AWS.  

You are a gifted planner who has had solid exposure to digital channels such as paid social, programmatic, digital direct partnerships and content syndication. You will understand how these channels complement each other ideally within the context of a B2B media landscape to meet our client's needs. As such, you will have excellent communication and time management skills to be the glue that brings everything together. 

You are the main POC for your clients, although supported heavily by the channel specialist teams (paid social, programmatic, content syndication). This role will be responsible for any RTBs relating to digital direct buys too. We are the glue that brings everyone together, so it is important you have experience in digital media, and if possible, exposure to B2B as we often act as the strategic voice in the room for both our clients and channel teams. Also to be confident with taking the lead and getting stuck in. 

This is an account where with the right energy you will learn quickly. The work can be challenging but we have a great team mentality; the clients are collaborative and human and the way we work truly feels like an extension of AWS. 

ROLE AND RESPONSIBILITIES:  

Client  

• Relationship Management: Act as the main point of contact for AWS, building strong, strategic partnerships with client stakeholders and specialist teams. 

• Strategic Advisory: Provide expert B2B digital media guidance aligned with client goals, acting as a trusted advisor on strategy and innovation. 

• Campaign Planning: Lead the development and execution of EMEA-focused digital media campaigns, with the channel teams and responsible for recommending premium partnerships and direct buys. 
• Communication & Reporting: Present performance updates and actionable insights in a clear, data-driven, and compelling way. 

Internal  

• Strategic Input: Guide internal teams with a strong B2B lens, contributing to partner strategy, campaign planning, and RTB development. 

• Team Collaboration: Work closely with Paid Social, Programmatic, and Content Syndication teams to act as the voice for the client to ensure alignment on client briefs, cohesive responses to brief, timely delivery of media plans across channels, guiding the team in line with SLAs and ensuring activation deadlines are met. 

• Responsible for end-to-end process for digital direct: Overseeing end to end execution for digital direct activities such as briefing media partners, media plan creation in line with client KPIs. Seamless activation such as reviewing client assets, trafficking, working with AdOps for tag creation and tag delivery to partners and monitoring performance in DCM as well as providing channel reporting insights.  

• Leadership & Culture: Foster a collaborative "One Team" culture, supporting peers across disciplines to achieve shared client outcomes. 

• People Development: Mentor junior team members, upskilling them in best practices in digital media planning and digital execution operations (trafficking, bookings etc) 
• Process and Operational Excellence: Oversee internal project management processes to drive efficiency, timely delivery, and high-quality output. 

Commercial 

• Financial Management: Oversee end-to-end financial processes, including POs, budget tracking, billing, and reconciliation. 

• Booking Accuracy: Ensure timely and accurate media bookings in systems (e.g Prisma), aligned with approved media plans. 

• Monthly Reconciliation: Lead monthly finance checks for owned campaigns to confirm alignment between campaign delivery and media partner invoices. 

• Commercial Accountability: Maintain strong financial stewardship, ensuring transparency, accuracy, and compliance with client requirements. 
• Process Oversight: Collaborate with finance teams to resolve discrepancies and support smooth financial operations across campaigns. 

Prioritization: 

• 50% Client 

• 40% Internal 
• 10% Commercial 

Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s):  

Client 

• Client Satisfaction Score / Client Health Rating (targeting sustained or improved scores YoY) 

• Effectively manage day-to-day client relationships via communications platforms and actively participating in client status meetings virtual or face to face.  

• Accurately capturing and communicating launch timelines and ensuring clients are clear on their deliverables for launch e.g. delivery of assets in line with approved media plans.  

• Frequency and quality of clear engagement with AWS teams (e.g. regular strategic check-ins, closing feedback loops, visibility at key goals and deadlines) reducing back-and-forth and increased clarity in campaign briefs and media plans 
• Operational efficiency - Reduction in feedback delays or turnaround time for client requests. Process adoption (e.g. use of trackers, onboarding frameworks, or reporting standards across teams) 

Internal 

• Building strong working relationships with channel teams fostering an environment of team collaboration to create more effective and efficient workflows. 

• Adherence to process mandated by the Initiative Global AWS team  

• Accuracy trafficking accuracy for digital direct campaigns following taxonomy guidelines  

• Skilling up digital media knowledge across key channels where there may be gaps to increase expertise 

• Contribute to streamlining processes and improving the overall quality of work produced by the team. 

• Mentor and develop junior team members, providing guidance, support, and opportunities for growth. 

• Demonstrate proficiency in using agency tools and adhering to established work processes. 

Commercial 

• Accuracy in campaign bookings and monthly reconciliations input into booking platform  

• Accuracy in updating monthly forecasting trackers  
• Collaborate with Line Manager to develop recommendations on understanding and improving billings, revenue, margins on managed clients 

QUALIFICATIONS:  

• Solid experience in digital: marketing, advertising, media and experience in B2B desired  

• Proven ability to develop and maintain strong professional relationships with clients, colleagues and vendors 

• Strong project management skills with the ability to drive initiatives from conception to completion in complex, fast-paced environments. 

• Ability to work successfully within a team, handling multiple projects and meeting tight deadlines under pressure 

• Confident leader and communicator — skilled at presenting ideas, packaging strategic opportunities, and influencing stakeholders at all levels. 

• Strategic thinker with a hands-on, solutions-oriented approach and a passion for delivering impact through integrated planning and execution. 

• Experience in utilising campaign booking platforms such as Prisma –can be taught and trained 

• Experience in trafficking, working with AdOps, troubleshooting and exposure to DCM –can be taught and trained 

• Ability to help coach more junior members of the team 
• Required PC proficiency and solid working knowledge of Microsoft Office (MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc.) strong excel skills desired but this can be taught and trained. 

Employee Transparency 

At IPG Mediabrands, we celebrate differences and believe this makes us stronger. IPG Mediabrands are equal-opportunity employers committed to championing an inclusive culture that provides a sense of belonging for all our employees. We do not discriminate against any applicant based on age, disability, race, colour, ethnicity, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, belief, marital status or any other characteristic protected by law. 

Please reach out to our Talent Inclusion Specialist Jess at [email protected] if you would like to have a confidential conversation regarding any adjustments that would ensure our recruitment process is accessible for you. Please note requesting a reasonable adjustment will not affect your application. 

The Perks 

We aim to provide all our people with a supportive and fun work environment where you can develop your full potential and benefit from the broad range of opportunities within the agency. When you join us, we want to make sure you feel valued – and that you are rewarded for your fantastic work. So, we also offer a range of benefits:

• Flexi–leave, with 25 days annual leave to be taken as minimum. In addition to your holiday entitlement, the office usually closes between Christmas & New Year 
• Free breakfast and free lunch
• Early finish Fridays
• Core Hours (Mon-Thurs, flexible start/finish times)
• Retail discounts
• Electric vehicle salary sacrifice car scheme 
• Wellbeing programme, including Headspace & flu jabs 
• Interest free season ticket loan
• Paid time off for Volunteering
• Group Income Protection
• Life Assurance
• Private Medical Insurance or Health Cash Plan (dependent on level)
• Group Personal Pension Plan with matched contributions from 3-6%
• Generous Parental Leave & Pay
• Independent mortgage advice
• Financial education
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Free eye tests
• Flexible benefits including Dental, Travel insurance, Cycle to Work, Gym Discounts and many more!