Associate Director, Planning

BarkleyOKRP; Kansas City (MO); On-site; USD 80,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Flexible PTO

Life insurance

401(k)

Job summary

BarkleyOKRP is seeking an Associate Director, Planning in Kansas City to lead the development of integrated media recommendations and manage client relationships. You will bridge strategy and flawless execution, coaching junior planners and ensuring disciplined budgeting across accounts.

Ideal candidates have 5–8 years in media planning, strong analytical skills, and proficiency with key planning tools. The role offers a comprehensive benefits package and a focus on business impact.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience.
• Proven experience in integrated media planning across traditional and digital channels.
• Strong written and verbal communication with a track record of client presentations.
• Experience mentoring junior planning team members.

Responsibilities

• Lead development of strategic and tactical media recommendations aligned with client objectives.
• Translate audience insights into owning, audience-first media strategies.
• Identify category white space and craft media moments that amplify creative impact.
• Evaluate campaigns and provide strategic POVs on optimizations and trends.
• Oversee client relationships, weekly status updates, and campaign reviews.
• Mentor junior pod members and elevate team capabilities.
• Ensure precision in media math, flowcharts, and budgeting.

Skills

Media planning

Budget oversight

Team leadership

Client relationship management

Analytical thinking

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience

Tools

MRI-Simmons

Resonate

YouGov

Vivvix

Pathmatics

SQAD

Guideline/MediaTools

Nielsen

Job description

MissionOne Media is a brand within BarkleyOKRP that combines full-funnel media planning and buying services, CRM, data, analytics, retail media, SEO, and digital experiences. We're an independent media partner offering transparency, integration, and a relentless focus on business impact.

The Associate Director, Planning (AMD) serves as an essential strategic and operational lead within a planning pod. In this role, you bridge high-level strategy and flawless execution, leading the development of integrated media recommendations while managing day-to-day client relationships.

You are responsible for translating strategic direction into actionable, audience-first plans that tightly align media placement with creative messaging. Operating with a blend of analytical rigor and creative problem-solving, you coach and manage junior planning talent, elevate team output, and ensure operational and financial discipline across assigned accounts.

The Kind Of Leader Who Thrives Here

• Curious and Analytical: You are always asking "Why?" You dig beyond surface-level data to find meaningful insights and category white space.
• A Strategic Storyteller: You distill complex inputs into clear, compelling narratives. You articulate a crisp media POV in both internal and external rooms with confidence.
• An Empowering Manager: You balance disciplined delegation with hands-on support, actively coaching and growing junior team members.
• Resilient and Adaptable: You navigate ambiguity with ease, bringing proactive solutions to complex challenges in a fast-paced environment.
• Commercially Focused: You understand the client's business deeply, identifying organic growth opportunities that drive real business impact.

Responsibilities

Strategic Planning & Integration

• Lead the development of strategic and tactical media recommendations that align with client business objectives.
• Translate audience insights and competitive data into ownable, audience-first media strategies using syndicated tools (MRI-Simmons, Resonate, YouGov, etc.).
• Identify category white space and craft unique media moments that amplify creative impact and go beyond standard media placements.
• Evaluate campaign performance against objectives, providing strategic POVs on optimizations and marketplace trends.
• Develop strategic analyses (geographic, target audience, competitive audits) to guide plan direction and client spend recommendations.

Client Leadership & Collaboration

• Own day-to-day client relationships, serving as a key point of contact and driving weekly status, recommendations, and campaign reviews.
• Partner seamlessly across cross-functional agency teams—including Client Experience, Strategy, Creative, Activation, Analytics, CRM, and Finance to deliver integrated output.
• Represent a strong, clear media POV in key client presentations and internal strategic discussions.
• Build and maintain productive, professional relationships with media vendor partners to stay ahead of marketplace innovation.

Team Leadership & Pod Operations

• Manage, mentor, and coach junior pod members (Supervisors, Senior Planners, Planners), fostering their growth in planning craft, tool usage, and soft skills.
• Master the art of delegation - balancing oversight with direct support to ensure flawless delivery while building bench strength.
• Evaluate current pod workflows, resources, and bandwidth, elevating capability needs or operational challenges to the Director.

Financial Stewardship & Growth

• Oversee flawless client budget management, including reviewing and approving flowcharts, media authorizations, and spend allocations.
• Partner with Activation and Finance to ensure draft invoices match planned investments and maintain overall billing accuracy.
• Identify organic growth opportunities across Media, Data & Analytics, and CRM, partnering with leadership to bring value-add ideas to clients.
• Translates data and insights into clear, creative, and actionable media strategies.
• Builds trust and strong alignment with clients and internal cross-functional leads.
• Effectively delegates and develops junior planners into strong, autonomous strategists.
• Maintains absolute precision in media math, flowcharts, and financial stewardship.
• Proactively brings solutions and media POVs to the table rather than just identifying issues.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience.
• 5-8 years of media planning experience within an agency setting.
• Proven experience developing integrated plans across traditional and digital channels.
• Demonstrated experience direct-managing or mentoring junior planning team members.
• High proficiency in industry planning and research tools (e.g., MRI-Simmons, Resonate, YouGov, Vivvix, Pathmatics, SQAD, Guideline/MediaTools, Nielsen).
• Strong media math acumen, financial discipline, and analytical problem-solving skills.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills with a track record of effective client presentation.

The annual gross base salary range is $80,000- $120,000 USD. This range represents the anticipated target salary range for this position. Actual salaries will vary and are based on factors such as a candidate's qualifications, skills, and geographic location. Salary is one component of BarkleyOKRP's total compensation package, which includes multiple health insurance options, flexible PTO, life insurance, and 401K.

BarkleyOKRP's Commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion + Belonging

• At BarkleyOKRP, DEI+B drives work that matters. We believe people and creativity are made of the same substance, and when every perspective is valued, the impact is stronger. We build belonging as a business strategy, power inclusive creativity that delivers measurable results, and hold ourselves accountable as a B Corp committed to progress over performative intent. When people are valued, the work carries greater impact.