Director, Solutions, Activation

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 our pioneering agentic marketing platform, WPP Open – we help clients navigate change, capture opportunity, and deliver transformational growth. 

WPP Media is WPP's AI-driven media operating unit, bringing together media, data, and partnerships to deliver creative personalisation at scale. Connected through WPP Open and powered by Open Intelligence, clients see exactly where, how, and why their media investment is working.

For more information, visit wppmedia.com .

3091 - Director, Solutions, Activation - UK

Location: London

Reporting into: Head of Activation

About WPP Media

WPP is the creative transformation company. We use the power of creativity to build better futures for our people, planet, clients and communities. For more information, visit wpp.com.

WPP Media is WPP’s global media collective. In a world where media is everywhere and in everything, we bring the best platform, people, and partners together to create limitless opportunities for growth. For more information, visit wppmedia.com.

About WPP Media Solutions - A Leading WPP Media Brand

Our proprietary, opt-in media solutions give clients access to unique advantages and cutting-edge capabilities. Through a single point of access to addressable media, we've built on premium inventory and leveraged universal customer signals.

We enable cross-channel storytelling, cross-platform AI optimization, and robust business impact measurement to maximize campaign effectiveness.

Role Summary and Impact

The Activation Director is a pivotal role in our Activation team, tasked with leading a top-tier team to deliver exceptional media solutions. This individual will work under the Head of Activation, managing a specific agency/business area and spearheading cross-channel campaigns to achieve outstanding results for our clients. The role involves collaboration with both onshore and offshore specialists.

Skills and Experience

At WPP Media, we believe in the power of our culture and our people. It’s what elevates us to deliver exceptional experiences for both our clients and each other. In this role it will be critical to embrace WPP & WPP Media’s shared core values:

• Be  Extraordinary by  Leading Collectively to  Inspire transformational Creativity.

• Create an  Open environment by Balancing People and Client Experiences by  Cultivating Trust .

• Lead  Optimistically by  Championing Growth and Development to  Mobilize the Enterprise .

Key Responsibilities :

Leadership 

• Collaborate with the Heads of Activation on the strategic vision and structure development and execution across the activation function.

• Lead pivotal business projects and initiatives to enhance our solutions and capabilities, engaging with both internal stakeholders and external partners.

• Lead your pods of activation experts to  represent activation's voice within  WPP Media , offering in-depth, cross-channel insights and  expertise .

• Be the expert in the room, sharing insights as cross-channel specialists across the business and externally with agencies and clients .  

• Act as the senior escalation point for your agency "patch" and serving as a liaison for your agency teams.

• Owner of a single channel demand management. 

• Collaborate with Marketing Science for the integration of data and AI in campaigns and ensure best practices in data-driven, multi-channel campaigns from  inception to reporting. 

• Support client engagement projects as expert, feed into testing roadmaps and  new activity uptake.

• Develop an independent activation team proficient in problem-solving.

• Encourage the creation and uptake of data-driven, multi-channel, brand-safe best practices to achieve client goals from campaign setup to reporting and reconciliation.

• Take ownership of activation requirements within Ad Tech Product Development programmes.

• Work closely with other teams  across WPP Media to ensure the highest quality activation by implementing systems, tools, and processes that govern quality and performance.

• Cultivate a culture of rigour and continuous improvement in best practices and processes combined with an agile, experimental approach to empower the team to innovatively expand the scope of our  WPP  Media Solutions.

• Facilitate knowledge sharing throughout the business.

• Embed the intelligent use of data and AI analytics into the campaign lifecycle.

• Develop a self-reliant activation team capable of independently resolving activation issues.

Processes and efficiencies

• Own key projects to improve ways of working and team efficiencies .  

• Continuously refine processes,  SLAs and best practice to improve campaign quality and efficiency.

• Ensure the continuous iteration and adoption of process and best practices that drive quality, efficiency, and accuracy across all campaigns.

• Drive operational excellence through automation, training, and offshoring.

• Unify onshore and offshore teams for effective campaign delivery.

• Facilitate knowledge sharing and ensure documentation accessibility.

• Utilise systems for campaign monitoring, addressing recurring issues.

• Align business processes with activation team needs and codify working practices.

• Integrate data, AI, and analytics solutions with Marketing Science and data teams.

• Ensure uptake of systems and tools for campaign delivery monitoring, reporting, and issue resolution.

Performance and demand  management

• Monitor campaign pacing and demand forecasting.

• Foster collaborative practices to enhance client performance.

• Partner with Client Services for targeting and forecasting of client briefs.

• Prioritise initiatives with Marketing Science, focusing on data governance.

• Continually overseeing the entire portfolio of demand and supply, including forecasting and monetisation; communicating critical information to senior stakeholders, managing issues effectively, and considering multiple clients and supply points for  optimal portfolio management.

People & Culture

• Lead and develop direct reports, fostering professionalism and  high standards .

• Guide team career development and performance, with effective stakeholder management.

• Drive recruitment, onboarding, and training for new members.

• Maintain up-to-date technical knowledge within the team.

• Set performance KPIs and instil a collaborative 'one team' ethos.

• Promote continuous learning through partnerships with key industry players.

• Collaborate with colleagues in other markets and business areas within their specialism

Life at WPP Media & Benefits

Our passion for shaping the next era of media includes investing in our employees to help them do their best work, and we’re just as committed to employee growth as we are to responsible media investment. WPP Media employees can tap into the global WPP Media & WPP networks to pursue their passions, grow their networks, and learn at the cutting edge of marketing and advertising. We have a variety of employee resource groups and host frequent in-office events showcasing team wins, sharing thought leadership, and celebrating holidays and milestone events. Our benefits include 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 particular characteristics. We are committed to fostering a culture of respect in which everyone feels they belong and has the same opportunities to progress in their careers.

We believe the best work happens when we're together, fostering creativity, collaboration, and connection. 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 this is a UK based role and requires individuals to have the right to work in this location).

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