Associate Director, SEM

Monks; Hilversum; Hybrid; EUR 93,000 - 105,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

PTO and holidays

401k with company contribution

Parental leave

Work-life balance

Career growth

Job summary

Monks is seeking an Associate Director of Paid Search to lead a team of Senior Managers, Account Managers, and Analysts within our Paid Search practice. You will drive client strategy, oversee execution, and directly manage 1-3 large client relationships, focusing on KPI improvements and ROI.

You’ll guide the team in advanced Google/Bing advertising, nurture talent, and contribute to revenue growth across B2B, B2C, and DTC ecommerce accounts.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of agency Google advertising experience and directly managed paid search budgets of $100,000+ in monthly ad spend.
• Experience managing both B2B and B2C Google advertising efforts.
• Passion for crunching numbers, analyzing data, and navigating Excel spreadsheets.
• Leads with effective, persuasive communication when discussing performance with clients and teams.
• Driven and Innovative attributes guiding the team and industry direction.

Responsibilities

• Lead and coach a growing team of Paid Search Senior Managers, Account Managers and Analysts.
• Manage paid search campaigns across B2B/B2C Lead Gen and DTC ecommerce clients.
• Oversee optimization to core KPIs and forecasting.
• Conduct weekly account reviews and provide optimization assistance.
• Develop and communicate paid search strategies across Google and Microsoft Ads.

Skills

Google Ads

Budget management

Data analysis

Leadership

Client communication

Tools

Excel

Job description

About the Role

The Associate Director of Paid Search will report to the Paid Search Director of Account Services. In this role, you will lead a team of Senior Managers and Account Managers, overseeing their day-to-day work and their overall professional development. Our Paid Search team members are experts in paid search advertising, responsible for driving KPI improvements and developing cutting-edge strategies tailored to client goals. As a talented digital marketer yourself, you will also directly manage paid search efforts for 1-3 large client relationships: developing strategy, overseeing execution, and communicating directly with the client.

We are looking for someone with a passion for paid search advertising, well versed in other digital acquisition channels, and a people-focused leader who wants to join a fast-growing, fun digital agency that is hyper-focused on client performance and ROI. The ideal candidate is confident in their ability to drive improvements in account performance, but also to manage and develop our awesome talent.

Responsibilities:

Team Management:

• Manage and coach a growing team of Paid Search Senior Managers, Account Managers and Analysts
• Lead paid search across B2B or B2C Lead Gen as well as DTC ecommerce clients
• Responsible for optimization to core KPIs
• Planning and execution
• Train your team in advanced Google/Bing and other search partner advertising skills including paid search strategy, forecasting, reporting analytics data visualization, etc.
• Focus on personal development through ongoing feedback, goal reviews, and quarterly 1-on-1s with team members.
• Provide support and recognition for your team.
• Support department and agency-wide thought leadership and training initiatives

Client & Revenue Oversight:

• Generate and oversee strong revenue growth from client renewals.
• Participate in onboarding, renewal calls, and other important client communications with top Google advertising accounts.
• Develop a detailed understanding of clients’ products, industry, marketing goals, and objectives.
• Together with the team, create and overlook well performing paid search strategies across Google and Microsoft Ads
• Conduct weekly account reviews with your account managers.
• Provide optimization assistance and account troubleshooting.
• Analyze performance data and KPIs.

About You

The essentials:

• Ideal candidate has 5+ years of agency Google advertising experience and has directly managed paid search budgets of $100,000+ in monthly ad spend.
• Experience directly managing both B2B and B2C Google advertising efforts.
• Passion for crunching numbers, analyzing data, and navigating Excel spreadsheets
• You frequently find yourself stepping into leadership roles and want those around you to succeed
• You can use strong and persuasive communication when discussing paid search performance with clients and your team
• ‘Driven’ and ‘Innovative’ are attributes commonly associated with you
• Not afraid to get in the weeds, but still also able to identify the larger direction of the team & paid search industry.

#LI-OG1

#LI-Hybrid

What We Offer

Benefits

• Excellent, full coverage medical, dental, and vision insurance - more about our coverage here!
• Generous PTO and 15 company-wide holidays
• 401k with company contribution
• Paid parental leave
• Work-life balance with an emphasis on personal well-being
• Career growth in a disruptor space & entrepreneurial opportunities within the Monks network
• A globally diverse & inclusive culture with employee resource groups such as S4 Melanin, Pride.Monks, Cultura.Monks, and more!
• Authentic commitment to DEI efforts and sustainable growth. (Why Sir Martin Sorrell signed The Climate Pledge here!)

This role is subject to our Return to Office (RTO) policy. If you reside within a commutable distance of one of our office locations, you will be expected to work from the office a set number of days per week. The specific details, including the number of required office days, will be in accordance with the company’s then-current RTO policy, which is subject to change from time to time.

Monks has provided a compensation range that represents its good faith estimate of what Monks may pay for the position at the time of posting. Monks may ultimately pay more or less than the posted compensation range. The salary offered to the selected candidate will be determined based on job-related factors, but not based on a candidate’s sex or any other protected status.

Salary Range: $105,000—$118,000 USD**About Monks **

Monks is the global, digital-first, data-driven, unitary operating brand of S4Capital plc, where our culture centers on how we show up for the work and for one another. That begins with the commitment to strive for mastery—taking deep pride in our craft and creating work that sets the bar. In everyday execution, we drive momentum by choosing bold action rather than waiting for certainty. Above all, our teams are stronger together, bringing diverse perspectives into a unified team that communicates with clarity, trust, and mutual respect.

This commitment to craft and innovation translates directly into widespread industry acclaim: Monks was named a Contender in The Forrester Wave™: Global Marketing Services and a leader in the 2026 Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ for Global Digital Marketing Agencies. It ranks among Cannes Lions' Top 10 Creative Companies (2022-25) and remains the only partner featured in AdExchanger’s Programmatic Power Players list every year (2020-24). Named Adweek’s first AI Agency of the Year (2023) and The One Show’s inaugural AI Pioneer Organization (2025), Monks was also awarded Business Intelligence Group’s 2026 Excellence in Artificial Intelligence Award in the Human-Machine Interaction Team category. Additionally, Monks.Flow earned AI-built Marketing Solution of the Year at the 2026 AI Breakthrough Awards and a 2026 Global Generative AI Award in the Agentic Marketing Innovation category. Finally, Monks achieved a record-breaking number of FWAs and continues to hold the most of any partner.

We are an equal-opportunity employer committed to building a respectful and empowering work environment for all people to freely express themselves amongst colleagues who embrace diversity in all respects. Including fresh voices and unique points of view in all aspects of our business not only creates an environment where we can all grow and thrive but also increases our potential to produce work that better represents—and resonates with—the world around us.