Paid Search Account Director

Starcom; Greater London; On-site; GBP 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Pension

Life Assurance

Private Medical cover

Reflection Days

Shared Parental Leave

Job summary

Starcom is hiring a Search Account Director to lead Paid Search strategy for a major global client. You’ll merge strategic thinking with advanced Search expertise to drive business results across Google Ads and emerging channels.

Build a trusted roadmap, supervise a talented team, and collaborate with broader digital media partners to unlock new opportunities. This role offers a path to shape a high-impact Search roadmap, manage budgets, and advance client partnerships while aligning with

Qualifications

• Strong hands-on Google Ads experience with Search, automation and newer formats like Performance Max.
• Expertise in conversion and value-based bidding and balancing automation with business objectives.
• Experience designing and evaluating experiments to drive practical recommendations.
• Strong analytical skills across Google Ads and GA4 and ability to tell a data-driven story.
• Experience building trusted client relationships and communicating complex topics clearly.
• Experience coaching or managing others and fostering collaborative teams.
• Commercial awareness including budgeting, forecasting and AI-driven discovery trends.

Responsibilities

• Own the Paid Search strategy and roadmap, turning priorities into activation plans and measurable outcomes.
• Lead campaign strategy across Google Ads including Search, broad match, AI Max and Performance Max with thoughtful automation.
• Shape bidding, audience, budget and experimentation strategies to improve engagement and efficiency.
• Turn performance data into clear, actionable insights aligned with broader marketing and business goals.
• Act as a senior Search partner to the client, leading planning sessions and proactive recommendations.
• Lead and develop Search specialists through coaching and collaborative ways of working.
• Partner with Social, Programmatic, ecommerce, SEO and analytics teams to connect Search with the wider media strategy.

Skills

Google Ads

Automation

Analytics

Client relationships

Team coaching

Budget management

Tools

GA4

Performance Max

Google Analytics 4

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

We’re hiring a Search Account Director to lead Paid Search strategy for a major global client. You’ll combine strategic thinking with strong Search expertise, turning innovation across Google Ads and emerging discovery channels into meaningful business results. It’s an opportunity to shape an ambitious Search roadmap, build trusted client relationships and develop a talented team, while collaborating across the wider digital media landscape.

Responsibilities

• Own the Paid Search strategy and roadmap, turning business priorities into clear activation plans, investment recommendations and measurable outcomes.
• Lead campaign strategy across Google Ads, including Search, broad match, AI Max, Performance Max and Demand Gen, using automation thoughtfully to improve performance.
• Shape bidding, audience, budget and experimentation strategies, identifying opportunities to improve the quality and efficiency of customer engagement.
• Turn performance data into clear, actionable insights, connecting Search activity with broader marketing and business objectives.
• Act as a senior Search partner to the client, leading planning sessions and performance conversations while bringing proactive ideas and recommendations.
• Lead and develop Search specialists through coaching, clear direction and collaborative ways of working, creating an environment where people can do their best work.
• Partner with Social, Programmatic, ecommerce, SEO and analytics teams, as well as Google and other partners, to connect Search with the wider media strategy and unlock new opportunities.

Qualifications

• Strong hands-on Google Ads experience, with a solid understanding of Search, automation, Smart Bidding and newer campaign formats such as Performance Max and Demand Gen.
• A good understanding of conversion and value-based bidding, audience strategy and how to balance automation with business objectives.
• Confidence designing and evaluating experiments, using the results to make practical recommendations and improve performance.
• Strong analytical skills across platforms such as Google Ads and GA4, with the ability to translate data into a compelling story for different audiences.
• Experience building trusted client relationships and making complex or technical topics clear, relevant and commercially meaningful.
• Experience supporting, coaching or managing others, with a collaborative approach that helps teams develop and deliver high-quality work.
• Commercial awareness, including experience managing budgets, forecasting and delivery, alongside curiosity about developments in AI-driven search, ecommerce and the broader discovery landscape.

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:

• Pension
• Life Assurance
• Private Medical cover
• Reflection Days
• Shared Parental Leave

Please check out the Publicis Career Page which 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.

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.