Associate Director, Social Media Activation

WPP Media; San Francisco (CA); Hybrid; USD 75,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical insurance

Retirement plan

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

Paid time off

Employee discounts

Mental health days

Job summary

WPP Media's Associate Director of Social provides strategic leadership across paid social accounts, guiding campaign quality, client relationships, and mentoring junior staff to align with client business objectives.

Based near a WPP office, the role requires hands-on platform experience across LinkedIn, Meta, X/Twitter, TikTok, YouTube, plus budget oversight for large-scale campaigns and strong communication with senior executives.

Qualifications

• Strong expertise in client communication, escalation handling, and paid social platform best practices.
• 2+ years of direct line-management experience.
• Demonstrable experience in senior client-facing roles, leading strategic client calls and setting clear expectations.
• Hands-on platform experience inside major paid social native platforms (LinkedIn, Meta, X/Twitter, TikTok, YouTube, Pinterest).
• Proven ability to track, manage, and optimize large-scale media budgets across multiple platforms.
• Exceptional verbal and written communication skills for high-level conversations with senior executives.
• Ability to act as primary escalation point for campaign or platform issues under tight agency timelines.

Responsibilities

• Planning & Execution: delegate and approve campaign strategy, forecasting, and measurement/testing plans to align with client goals.
• Quality & Performance: escalate campaign launches, QA, data integrity, and post-campaign analysis (PCA).
• Direct career development, coaching, and growth plans for direct reports (Supervisors and Managers).
• Oversee team bandwidth, staffing efficiency, and workload utilization to prevent burnout.
• Client Engagement: act as the primary activation lead and escalation point for senior client stakeholders.
• Relationship Building: build strong relationships across key media partners and internal teams; resolve issues independently.
• Workflow Optimization: drive process enhancements and best practices across paid social workflows.
• Partner with cross-functional and regional teams to identify new platform opportunities and share learnings.

Skills

Client communication

People management

Senior client-facing

Paid social platforms

Budget management

Communication

Escalation management

Job description

About WPP Media

WPP is the trusted growth partner for the world’s leading brands. With exceptional talent, trusted data and intelligence, and world-class partnerships – all united by ourpioneeringagentic marketing platform, WPP Open – we help clients navigate change, capture opportunity, and deliver transformational growth.

Position Overview

The Associate Director of Social provides strategic leadership and operational oversight across paid social accounts. This role is responsible for driving campaign quality, guiding client relationships, and mentoring team members to ensure all social media initiatives align with client business objectives.

Responsibilities

• Planning & Execution: Accountable for delegating and approving campaign strategy, forecasting, and measurement/testing plans to ensure they align with client goals.
• Quality & Performance: Serve as the ultimate escalation point for campaign launch, campaign QA, data integrity compliance, and post-campaign analysis (PCA).
• Direct career development, coaching, and growth plans for direct reports (Supervisors and Managers).
• Oversee team bandwidth, staffing efficiency, and workload utilization to ensure high performance and prevent burnt-out teams.
• Client Engagement: Act as the primary activation lead and key escalation point for senior client stakeholders.
• Relationship Building: Build strong relationships across key media partners and internal teams, while resolving complex account or scoping issues independently.
• Workflow Optimization: Drive process enhancements and best practice adoption across paid social workflows.
• Partner with cross-functional and regional teams to identify new platform opportunities, share learnings, and showcase top-tier work.

Qualifications

• Strong expertise in client communication, escalation handling, and paid social platform best practices.
• 2+ years of direct line-management experience. Proven ability to guide, mentor, and QA the day-to-day work of junior/mid-level team members (experience managing nearshore or offshored teams in LATAM is a plus).
• Demonstrable experience in senior client-facing roles, serving as a primary point of contact, leading strategic client calls, and setting clear expectations.
• Hands-on Platform Experience: Deep, practical familiarity inside major paid social native platforms (LinkedIn, Meta, X/Twitter, TikTok, YouTube, Pinterest, etc.). Must have direct experience working inside platform back-ends, not just high-level oversight.
• Proven ability to track, manage, and optimize large-scale media budgets across multiple social platforms.
• Exceptional verbal and written communication skills with the confidence to drive high-level strategic conversations with senior client executives.
• Ability to act as the primary escalation point for campaign or platform issues, providing swift and thoughtful solutions under fast-paced agency timelines.
• Location: Based near a WPP office (e.g., Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, Chicago, Atlanta).

Life at WPP Media & Benefits

Our passion for shaping the next era of media is powered by our commitment toBe Extraordinary, investing in our employees to inspire transformational creativity. We alsoLead Optimistically,firmly believingin andChampioning Growth and Developmentfor every individual. This commitment allows WPP Media employees toleveragethe extensive global WPP Media & WPP networks to pursue their passions, build vital professional connections, and learn at thecutting edgeof marketing and advertising. WeCreate an Open environmentbuilt on trust and respect, where everyone feels they belong and has opportunities to progress. This inclusive culture is fostered through a variety of employee resource groups and frequent in-office eventsshowcasingteam wins, sharing thought leadership, and celebrating holidays and milestone events. Our comprehensive benefits package reflects this commitment, including competitive medical, group retirement plans, vision, and dental insurance, significant paid time off, preferential partner discounts, and employee mental health awareness days.

WPP Media is an equal opportunity employer and considers applicants for all positions without discrimination or regard to characteristics. We believe the best work happens whenwe'retogether, fostering creativity, collaboration, and connection in this open and supportive environment. That's why we've adopted a hybrid approach, with teams in the office around four days a week. If you require accommodations or flexibility, please discuss this with the hiring team during the interview process. Please note that while our philosophy is the same across WPP, benefits may vary by office/country.

Please read our Privacy Notice (https://www.wppmedia.com/pages/privacy-policy) for more information on how we process the information you provide.

The base salary range for this position at the time of this posting is indicated below. Individual compensation varies based on job-related factors, including location, business needs, level of responsibility, experience, and qualifications. We offer a competitive benefits package, go to https://mybenefits.wpp.com/public/welcome for more details.

US Pay Range

$75,000 - $180,000 USD

Please read our Privacy Notice for more information on how we process the information you provide.