Biddable Account Director

Publicis Groupe UK; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 70,000 - 110,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Pension

Life Assurance

Private Medical Cover

Reflection Days

Shared Parental Leave

Job summary

Starcom UK is seeking a Biddable Account Director to lead Paid Search, Paid Social and Programmatic for Mars brands, shaping cross-channel strategies that drive meaningful business outcomes.

You will inspire and manage a growing team, partner closely with clients and specialists across media, data and activation, and own budgets to ensure delivery aligns with client KPIs and the broader Publicis Media ambition.

Qualifications

• Strong experience in biddable media across Paid Search, Paid Social and Programmatic.
• Ability to translate client objectives into media strategies with clear KPIs.
• Experience leading and developing teams within a multi-disciplinary environment.

Responsibilities

• Own and lead the overarching biddable strategy across Paid Search, Paid Social and Programmatic.
• Build trusted client relationships and act as a strategic partner delivering clear recommendations.
• Translate client objectives into actionable plans with measurable performance outcomes.
• Collaborate across planning, data, activation and other specialist teams to deliver integrated solutions.
• Lead and mentor a growing team of biddable specialists with feedback and development opportunities.
• Drive innovation across biddable media and optimize for client outcomes.
• Take ownership of budgets and scopes and ensure high-quality delivery.

Skills

Biddable media expertise

Strategic thinking

Client relationship management

Team leadership

Budget & scope management

Cross-disciplinary collaboration

Job description

Company Description

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.

Overview

What will you be doing?

We are hiring a Biddable Account Director to lead biddable media for Mars, working across some of the world’s most recognised brands in Petcare, Snacking, and Food & Nutrition. You’ll shape how Paid Search, Paid Social and Programmatic come together to drive meaningful business outcomes, combining strategic thinking with brilliant execution. This is an opportunity to lead at scale, inspire a talented team and work closely with clients and specialists across media, data and activation. You’ll play an important role in pushing the work forward through collaboration, innovation and a shared ambition to build a better today, for tomorrow.

Responsibilities

• Own and lead the overarching biddable strategy, ensuring Paid Search, Paid Social and Programmatic activity connects to wider business goals and client KPIs.
• Build trusted relationships with key clients, becoming a valued strategic partner who brings clarity, confidence and fresh thinking to their challenges.
• Turn client objectives into clear, actionable biddable plans that deliver measurable performance and support long-term growth.
• Bring together planning, data, activation and other specialist teams to create integrated media solutions and connected experiences.
• Lead and develop a growing team of biddable specialists, creating clear development opportunities, meaningful feedback and an engaging team environment.
• Champion innovation across biddable media, identifying opportunities to evolve strategies, ways of working and performance for the client.
• Take ownership of budgets and scopes, balancing commercial responsibility with high-quality delivery for the client.

Qualifications

What are we looking for?

• Strong experience in biddable media, with expertise across Paid Search, Paid Social and/or Programmatic.
• Strategic thinking and the ability to translate business and client objectives into focused media strategies that deliver against KPIs.
• A strong understanding of the major biddable platforms and how they can be used effectively to achieve different client outcomes.
• Confidence building collaborative, trusted client relationships and communicating strategic recommendations clearly.
• Experience leading, mentoring and developing teams, with a genuine interest in helping people grow and do their best work.
• A collaborative mindset and the ability to bring different disciplines together to solve problems and create stronger integrated solutions.
• Commercial awareness, including experience managing budgets and scopes, combined with curiosity, adaptability and an appetite for innovation.

Additional Information

Starcomoffers 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:

Please check out thePublicis Career Pagewhich showcases our Inclusive Benefits and our EAG’s (Employee Action Groups).

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

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.