Director, Paid Media Planning

BPI Group; Chicago (IL); Hybrid; USD 120,000 - 135,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Company-paid health insurance

401(k) with employer match

Generous vacation

Phone reimbursement

Unlimited sick time

Paid parental leave (16 weeks)

Job summary

BPI Group in Chicago seeks a Director of Paid Media to lead end-to-end digital advertising campaigns for a diverse client portfolio. You will set strategy, oversee execution, and drive results with accountability and high-quality output.

The role requires strong leadership, data-driven planning, vendor negotiation, and mentoring of junior planners. On-site three days weekly preferred, with fully remote options for exceptional candidates.

Qualifications

• 8-11 years of relevant work experience in digital media strategy, planning, and direct-IO buying (agency experience preferred).
• Proven track record of independently running campaigns for corporate reputation, public affairs, and/or political clients.
• Excitement to work on large corporate reputation accounts in addition to support of Democratic politics, non-profit, and advocacy opportunities as they arise.
• Advanced analytical thinking capabilities, with strong hands-on experience utilizing media consumption tools (e.g. GWI, Comscore) and business intelligence/dashboard software (e.g. Datorama, Google Analytics, or Tableau).
• Demonstrated ability to quickly learn and navigate new digital systems, emerging media tech, and specialized proprietary tools with minimal downtime.
• Expert-level proficiency in Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets for budget tracking, performance analysis, and data manipulation.
• Exceptional organizational skills, rigorous attention to detail, and a demonstrated ability to manage multiple high-stakes projects simultaneously.
• A readiness to work independently, think big, solve complex problems creatively, and scale leadership capabilities rapidly within a fast-paced environment.
• Expectation to work from one of our physical offices (DC, NYC, SF, CHI, LA) at least 3 days a week (unless hiring under a fully remote arrangement).

Responsibilities

• Independently manage clients and end-to-end advertising campaigns from inception through completion with high accountability, quality, and results.
• Develop data-backed media plans aligned with client goals; lead paid media POVs for clients or internal teams with limited paid experience.
• Regularly present sophisticated media strategies, reporting, and performance insights directly to clients.
• Oversee how campaigns are executed, optimized, and analyzed across digital and traditional platforms, including partner negotiation and contracting.
• Foster strong working relationships across client and internal specialty teams to set strategic goals around measurement, testing, and seamless execution.
• Proactively identify areas for team-wide workflow and operational process improvements, partnering with senior leadership to implement scalable solutions.
• Bring new ideas to advance the agency's media offering to senior leadership, drive team priorities, and operationalize new processes across the broader team.
• Serve as a senior agency contact for key partners, evaluate new vendor technologies, manage yearly vendor endeavors, and negotiate rate discounts to ensure planning utilization.
• Conduct deep-dive media, industry, and competitor research to stay abreast of market trends, inform strategic advertising plans, and evangelize the agency's media vision.
• Contribute to agency growth through budgeting exercises, pitch deck development, and participation in new business pitches as needed.
• Lead team pods and scale impact beyond immediate reports to the broader planning department, acting as a role model to elevate the work product of junior and mid-level planners.
• Embody agency values and ensure all client work reflects the standards, perspective, and quality of the agency at large.

Skills

8-11 years of experience

Campaign management

Excel

Google Sheets

Analytics

Budget tracking

Leadership

Independent working

Tools

GWI

Comscore

Datorama

Google Analytics

Tableau

Job description

Bully Pulpit International is an outcomes agency made up of strategists, data scientists, and artists. We come from politics, brands, and government and we communicate without barriers and measure what matters. We have more than 400 team members in six countries and thirteen offices — Berlin, Brussels, Chicago, D.C., London, Los Angeles, New York, Oslo, San Francisco, and Zürich. We apply our unique expertise across strategic communications, public affairs, research, and digital marketing to create sophisticated and customized strategies that make change possible for both American and European clients.

The Impact You Will Make

In this position as Director, you will support the execution and management of paid media campaigns across numerous clients on the Paid Media team. The ideal contract candidate thrives in a fast-paced, collaborative environment and is capable of working independently, while navigating multiple projects.

• Starting Salary Range: $120,000 - $135,000 (+ annual bonus)
• Expectation to work from one of our offices (Chicago, DC, NYC, SF, LA) at least 3 days a week (Fully Remote candidates will also be considered)

What The Day-to-Day Looks Like

Media Strategy & Execution

• Independently manage clients and end-to-end advertising campaigns from inception through completion with high accountability, quality, and results
• Develop comprehensive, data-backed media plans aligned with client goals; take the lead on paid media POVs for clients or internal teams with limited paid experience
• Regularly present sophisticated media strategies, reporting, and performance insights directly to clients, while providing off-the-cuff POVs and proactively anticipating issues or feedback
• Oversee how campaigns are executed, optimized, and analyzed across digital and traditional platforms, including partner negotiation and contracting

Collaboration & Workflow Management

• Foster strong working relationships across all client and internal specialty teams (Media Buying, Marketing Analytics, Insights, and Client Services) to set strategic goals around measurement, testing, and seamless execution
• Proactively identify areas for team-wide workflow and operational process improvements, partnering with senior leadership to implement scalable solutions

POV & Industry Leadership

• Bring new ideas to advance the agency's media offering to senior leadership, drive team priorities, and operationalize new processes across the broader team
• Serve as a senior agency contact for key partners, evaluate new vendor technologies, manage yearly vendor endeavors, and negotiate rate discounts to ensure planning utilization
• Conduct deep-dive media, industry, and competitor research to stay abreast of market trends, inform strategic advertising plans, and evangelize the agency's media vision
• Contribute to agency growth through budgeting exercises, pitch deck development, and participation in new business pitches as needed

Team Management & Mentorship

• Attract, retain, and elevate talent across the team through effective management, structured training, and empathetic mentorship
• Lead team pods and scale impact beyond immediate reports to the broader planning department, acting as a role model to elevate the work product of junior and mid-level planners
• Embody agency values and ensure all client work reflects the standards, perspective, and quality of the agency at large

Requirements

What You Bring

• 8-11 years of relevant work experience in digital media strategy, planning, and direct-IO buying (agency experience preferred)
• Proven track record of independently running campaigns for corporate reputation, public affairs, and/or political clients
• Excitement to work on large corporate reputation accounts in addition to support of Democratic politics, non-profit, and advocacy opportunities as they arise
• Advanced analytical thinking capabilities, with strong hands-on experience utilizing media consumption tools (e.g. GWI, Comscore) and business intelligence/dashboard software (e.g. Datorama, Google Analytics, or Tableau)
• Demonstrated ability to quickly learn and navigate new digital systems, emerging media tech, and specialized proprietary tools with minimal downtime
• Expert-level proficiency in Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets for budget tracking, performance analysis, and data manipulation
• Exceptional organizational skills, rigorous attention to detail, and a demonstrated ability to manage multiple high-stakes projects simultaneously
• A readiness to work independently, think big, solve complex problems creatively, and scale leadership capabilities rapidly within a fast-paced environment
• Expectation to work from one of our physical offices (DC, NYC, SF, CHI, LA) at least 3 days a week (unless hiring under a fully remote arrangement)

BPI offers a wide range of benefits to U.S.-based employees, including 100% company-paid medical, dental, and vision insurance, a 401(k) program with employer match up to 4%, generous time off for vacation, $50 monthly phone reimbursement, unlimited sick time, and 16 weeks of paid leave for new parents. BPI's benefits prioritize employee wellness and progressive support to our diverse workforce.

We're looking for all kinds of people. BPI Group is an integrated public affairs agency that delivers outcomes for the top organizations and leaders around the world. With expertise in strategic communications, digital marketing, creative, research, and measurement, we offer a cohesive approach across corporate, policy, and public affairs strategy in today's interconnected world. By combining incisive strategy and deep tactical expertise, we make change possible. Our transatlantic presence includes offices across thirteen markets in the US and Europe.

We are an equal opportunity employer and make employment decisions based on individual commitment to excellence. We want to have the best qualified people in every job. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, ancestry, national origin, religion or religious creed, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, age, marital status, status as a protected veteran, physical or mental disability, medical condition or genetic information or characteristics (or those of a family member) or any other consideration made unlawful by applicable federal, state or local laws. We also consider qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with legal requirements. BPI is dedicated to building an inclusive, diverse, equitable, and accessible workplace that fosters a sense of belonging - so if you're excited about this role but your past experience doesn't align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to still consider submitting an application. We consider applications holistically and you may be just the right candidate for this role or another one of our openings!

Let's keep in touch. Follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter at bpigroup.com