Associate Director, Planning

Starcom; New York (NY); On-site; USD 97,000 - 156,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Paid time off (vacation, sick, etc.)

Flexible working arrangements

Work Your World program (travel to/vol

Job summary

Starcom is seeking an Associate Director, Planning to lead a media planning team and drive cross-media strategy for large campaigns in the United States. You will own budgeting, channel allocation, and audience development while delivering strategic insights across client activities.

The ideal candidate is data‑driven, a thoughtful decision maker and strong presenter with a track record in leading planning initiatives and guiding a team to success.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree preferred, in marketing, advertising, communications, business, sociology, or consumer insights.
• 5+ years of experience in media planning/strategy across media channels.
• Previous team management experience.
• Strong digital media experience preferred.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite with Excel and PowerPoint.
• Experience with media systems/platforms (Kantar, MOAT, Prisma, ComScore).

Responsibilities

• Strategize with internal directors and client to develop innovative, well-targeted marketing solutions.
• Interface with clients and partner agencies to build strategic communication plans for targeted audiences.
• Review client deliverables for quality, ensuring recommendations and work product are sound and viable.
• Own the development of strategic proposals and client facing POVs, coordinating with necessary teams.
• Lead campaign planning for assigned client accounts and manage multiple work streams.
• Foster teamwork and collaboration within the group.
• Lead knowledge share sessions to learn new strategies for optimization and performance.
• Collaborate with clients, internal teams, and leadership to build relationships.
• Provide deck writing, budget and channel allocation, and audience development.
• Serve as escalation point to troubleshoot issues.

Skills

Bachelor’s degree

Media planning/strategy

Team management

Digital media

Communication

Project management

Multi-tasking

MS Office (Excel/PowerPoint)

Media systems (Kantar MOAT Prisma ComS

Education

Bachelor’s degree preferred

Tools

Kantar

MOAT

Prisma

ComScore

Job description

Company Description

Starcom is the world's first standalone media agency, a storied innovator that continues to lead the way for many of the world's best brands.

Starcom has long been the professional birthplace and proving ground for marketing leaders – CEOs, CMOs, sales leaders, and technology pioneers – and we continue to drive the industry with peerless talent and relentless innovation.

From the start, we've known that achieving growth for our clients requires understanding and connecting with real people where they live and work, in ways they value.

In an AI era, we remain "Guided By Humanity," a phrase that describes our foundational belief that human expertise must remain in the driver’s seat, supported by the best processes and technology.

With our proprietary capabilities and Publicis Media’s industry‑leading resources and clout, we create ideas that move people and drive transformative business outcomes for brands.

Overview

The Associate Director, Planning oversees a media planning team and manages cross‑media strategy and planning campaigns. The Associate Director owns planning activities for complex or large spend campaigns, and is responsible for generating strategic insights while driving learnings across the full suite of the client’s activities.

The ideal candidate for this position will be a thoughtful decision maker and team player who loves data and has the proven ability to lead strategic planning initiatives including deck writing, budget and channel allocation and audience development. This is an energetic, collaborative team that partners with an analytics‑driven client to provide guidance as they continue to grow and evolve their brand.

Responsibilities

• Strategize with internal directors and client to develop innovative, well‑targeted marketing solutions
• Interface with clients and partner agencies to build strategic communication plans for targeted audiences
• Review client deliverables for quality, ensuring that recommendations and work product are sound and viable
• Own the development of strategic proposals and client facing POVs, coordinating with necessary teams to account for all relevant inputs
• Assume accountability and ownership of campaign planning for assigned client accounts
• Embrace and encourage a culture based on teamwork, collaboration, and support
• Develop best practices for improving communication and collaboration within the team and the group
• Lead knowledge share sessions to share and learn new strategies for optimizing and enhancing campaign performance
• Collaborate and foster relationships with key partners including clients, internal teams, and leadership
• Lead strategic planning initiatives including deck writing, budget and channel allocation, and audience development
• Serve as escalation point for teams to help troubleshoot issues
• Support development of strategic approach and experience design by delivering channel ideas and providing the link to reality of historical performance and in‑market opportunities
• Responsible for management and development of Associates, Senior Associates, and Supervisors

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree preferred, preferably with a concentration in marketing, advertising, communications, business, sociology, or consumer insights
• 5+ years of experience in media planning/strategy experience across media channels
• Previous team management experience
• Strong digital media experience preferred
• Resourceful, curious, and motivated individual with an ability to work independently as well as in a team setting
• Ability to manage timelines, projects and personnel within direct report team and across cross‑functional teams
• Proven experience in successfully managing multiple work streams at one time
• Strong organizational, communication, and time‑management skills
• Excellent presentation skills to effectively lead meetings in‑person with key clients
• Detail‑oriented with the ability to multi‑task and manage priorities and deadlines in a fast‑paced environment
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite with strong understanding of Excel and PowerPoint
• Experience working within media systems/platforms (Kantar, MOAT, Prisma, ComScore etc.)

Additional Information

Starcom is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Our employment decisions are made without regard to actual or perceived race, color, ethnicity, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, childbirth and related medical conditions, national origin, ancestry, citizenship status, age, disability, medical condition as defined by applicable state law, genetic information, marital status, military service and veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state or local laws and ordinances.

Benefits

• Paid Family Care for parents and caregivers for 12 weeks or more
• Monetary assistance and support for Adoption, Surrogacy and Fertility
• Monetary assistance and support for pet adoption
• Employee Assistance Programs and Health/Wellness/Comfort reimbursements to help you invest in your future and work/life balance
• Tuition Assistance
• Paid time off that includes Flexible Time off Vacation, Annual Sick Days, Volunteer Days, Holiday and Identity days, and more
• Matching Gifts programs
• Flexible working arrangements
• 'Work Your World’ Program encouraging employees to work from anywhere Publicis Groupe has an office for up to 6 weeks a year (based upon eligibility)
• Business Resource Groups that support multiple affinities and alliances

The benefits offerings listed are available to U.S. based employees, are reviewed on an annual basis, and are governed by the terms of the applicable plan documents.

If you require accommodation or assistance with the application or onboarding process specifically, please contact [e-mail].

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.

Compensation Range: USD $97,375.00 - USD $155,961.00/Annually. This is the pay range the Company believes it will pay for this position at the time of this posting. Consistent with applicable law, compensation will be determined based on the skills, qualifications, and experience of the applicant along with the requirements of the position, and the Company reserves the right to modify this pay range at any time. Temporary roles may be eligible to participate in our freelancer/temporary employee medical plan through a third‑party benefits administration system once certain criteria have been met. Temporary roles may also qualify for participation in our 401(k) plan after eligibility criteria have been met. For regular roles, the Company will offer medical coverage, dental, vision, disability, 401k, and paid time off. The Company anticipates the application deadline for this job posting will be 9/4/2026.