Associate Director, Digital Activation

OMD; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 70,000 - 125,000; Full time

Job summary

OMD in Chicago seeks an Associate Director to lead a high-performing media team and own strategic planning and activation. The role demands hands-on leadership to ensure projects run on time, on budget, and with high quality across digital channels.

You will collaborate with senior leaders, translate business needs into executable media strategies, and drive ROI. A strong finance/process background and a drive for excellence are essential.

Qualifications

• 3+ years in a management role; 2+ reports
• Leading media professionals across digital areas
• Meet with senior leaders to shape requests
• Understand client/agency finance and billing
• Follow agency processes to maintain workflow
• 4+ years in strategic digital media planning and execution
• Deep knowledge of media rates, buying models, contracts
• Advanced proficiency in media math and optimization
• Proficiency with Prisma (non-negotiable)
• Ability to critique partner media plans for alignment
• Fluency in media terminology and standards

Responsibilities

• Manage daily team performance and trajectory
• Accountable for direct reports’ day-to-day tasks
• Bridge senior leadership, clients, and internal teams
• Review partner media plans for ROI and alignment
• Manage client/agency finance processes and billing
• Champion agency processes and operational efficiency

Skills

Team leadership

Digital media planning

Media math

Data-driven optimization

Negotiation strategies

Stakeholder management

Tools

Prisma

Job description

Agency

Omd

Job Function

Media

Job Subfunction

Performance Media

Job Description

Associate Director – Digital Media

Role Overview

We're seeking an exceptional Associate Director to lead and inspire a high-performing team of media professionals. In this hands-on leadership role, you'll drive strategic outcomes by balancing delegated accountability with direct ownership of media planning and activation. You'll establish a foundation of support, guidance, strategic clarity, and commitment to excellence while ensuring every project executes on time, on budget, and exceeds quality standards.

Key Responsibilities

• Manage daily team performance and trajectory, ensuring alignment with agency objectives and client expectations
• Be accountable for your direct reports’ day-to-day performance and task prioritization
• Facilitate partnership between senior leadership, clients, and internal teams to translate business requirements into executable digital media strategies
• Review, assess, and provide constructive feedback on partner media plans to ensure strategic alignment, efficiency, and ROI maximization
• Demonstrate proficiency in client/agency finance processes, billing protocols, and resource allocation
• Champion agency processes and best practices to ensure operational efficiency, accountability, and consistent client satisfaction

Management Experience

Required Experience & Qualifications

3+ years in a management role; must be comfortable managing a team of several employees (at least 2+ employees)

Must love managing and leading a team of passionate and dedicated media professionals across digital areas

Meeting with senior leaders to understand and facilitate client, agency and business requests

Understanding of client/agency finance process; client billing and employee hours/pacing against business scope

Must follow all agency process to support/push continued adherence to facilitate workflow and manage expectations

Digital Media Expertise

• 4+ years of strategic digital media planning and execution
• Deep expertise in digital marketplace dynamics—including media rates, buying models, negotiation strategies, and contract execution
• Advanced proficiency in media math and data-driven optimization
• Deep proficiency with Prisma (non- negotiable)
• Proven ability to review, evaluate, and critique partner media plans for strategic alignment and optimization
• Fluency in media terminology and industry standards

Preferred Qualifications (Nice-to-Haves)

• Hands-on experience managing and executing campaigns within ecommerce platforms (Instacart, DoorDash, Walmart Connect)
• Background in curating custom content programs, with cross -channel components
• Social media experience (Meta, TikTok)
• Experience optimizing digital media strategies for conversion-focused campaigns $70,000 - $125,000

Omnicom’s policy requires employees to work in the office for a minimum of three days a week, unless additional in-office days are directed by their agency or manager. Our objective is to increase this requirement over time, and many of our agencies as well as Omnicom’s corporate group already require five days of in-office attendance.

Omnicom is committed to hiring and developing exceptional talent. We agree that talent is uniquely distributed, and we’re focused on developing inclusive teams that can bring the best solutions to everything we do. We strongly believe that celebrating what makes us different makes us better together. Join us—we look forward to getting to know you. We will process your personal data in accordance with our Recruitment Privacy Notice.

Link to Recruitment Privacy Notice: https://www.omc.com/privacy-notice

For US Job Seekers

It is the policy of Omnicom and any of its affiliates to provide equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, religion, color, ethnic origin, gender, gender identity, age, marital status, veteran status, sexual orientation, disability, or any other basis prohibited by applicable federal, state, or local law. EOE/AA/M/D/V/F.

$70,000 - $125,000