Associate Director, Strategy & Planning

Croud is a global brand and performance media agency that helps businesses drive sustainable growth in an evolving marketing landscape. Combining deep expertise in performance marketing with brand strategy, integrated media, social, creative, and analytics, Croud delivers a Return on Intelligence so brands can make their next best move. Founded in 2011 to reinvent the agency model, Croud combines 600+ in-house digital experts with a global network of 2,900 on‑demand marketing specialists. This unique model enables us to operate with agility, delivering tailored solutions that drive meaningful and measurable growth for our clients in over 120 markets and 60+ languages. Located in the heart of SoHo, our New York office is home to a group of 100+ highly‑skilled marketers, passionate about driving innovation and delivering great work for clients. With a rapidly expanding team and client portfolio, Croud New York offers hands‑on experience working with some of the world's leading brands across every industry sector. Find out more about Croud NY here!

ROLE OVERVIEW

This role within the Strategy & Planning team is to provoke action into tangible solutions that act as the connective tissue to drive success for our clients & Croud. This role will be responsible for growing our client’s business by creating strategies that connect insights to media activation to measurement, expanding the agency's playbook to deliver media plans that deliver measurable results. At Croud, our vision centers around the idea of unlocking potential. We do this by elevating everyone in an inclusive and progressive culture, empowering individuals to deliver their best work. This means we build better brand outcomes, and unlock potential for our people, our clients, and our communities.

RESPONSIBILITIES

While there is no such thing as a typical day success in this role will rely on several skill sets Complex Problem Solving: Demonstrating an ability to build from scratch. Turning solutions into strategies to present back to clients. (Without reliance on tools / usual industry solutions) Data-Driven Brand Building: Understand client’s business needs and create programs to connect their initiatives to drive brand growth. Focused on outcomes based media planning. Deployment of Vision & Partnerships: Define a digital program's strategic vision, and cary that vision through real tactics across media channels Innovation: Facilitating effective brainstorming an ideation sessions to spur growth, turning ideas into actionable programs and/or products. Collaboration: Facilitating effective brainstorming and ideation sessions to spur growth, turning ideas into actionable programs and/or products. New Business: Work with new business teams on Croud’s proposition and pitch storytelling and platform strategy for all cross‑channel clients Examples will include: Work closely with senior client stakeholders to identify and solve key marketing challenges, as well as internal collaboration with other teams at Croud to pull plans together Lead cross‑channel media planning across 5‑6 priority initiatives throughout the year, ensuring that investment decisions made on behalf of clients are rigorously informed by all the available data. Work closely with teams across Croud to ensure strategy is deployed holistically across plans. Creating compelling narratives that are able to engage and persuade various audiences. Oversee audience, market, and competitor intelligence projects, ensuring that work is insightful and actionable Oversee measurement and testing strategy across channels, continuously optimizing investment decisions by translating performance data into clear actions regarding what to scale, shift, or stop across channels and campaigns. Drive integration across paid media, SEO, content, and AI‑led discovery to ensure clients capture demand across all relevant search and discovery touchpoints. Oversee team’s planning process and assist in growth of junior team members through measurable performance plans and close collaboration. The successful candidate in this role as Associate Director, S&P will report to the VP, S&P and work closely with Croud’s Biddable team, Media Measurement Directors and VP of Client Leadership in the US.

OBJECTIVES & REQUIRED KNOWLEDGE

Objectives of Role: Establishes & oversees team’s planning process including research, strategy, evaluations and recommendations of media vehicles and tactics, through plan development, presentation, execution and follow‑up Defines high level strategy and holistic management of the media plan development, implementation, and execution Lead strategic planning initiatives including deck writing, budget and channel allocation, and audience development Support development of strategic approach by delivering channel ideas and providing the link to reality of historical performance and in‑market opportunities Data backed story telling, comfortable using data to tell stories and guide decision making, familiarity with MMM, MTA, Standard Campaign Reporting in addition to syndicated research tools Thorough familiarity with media research resources, capabilities and limitations (planning tools, competitive tools) Be an ambassador in the development of new insights, audience segmentation and cultural analysis that will build clients' businesses Identifies key target insights based on client brief necessary for formulating strategic recommendations, and ensures alignment into broader long‑term goals Maintain an in‑depth knowledge of the client business and competitive landscape Ensure teams adopt best in class tools, techniques, and systems to deliver plan recommendations aligned to client’s objectives and expected business outcomes Demonstrate an intimate, and strategic, understanding of how consumers interact with channels and technology, while championing across internal agency teams Experience of elevating over campaign planning and having to drive demonstrable results for c‑suite executives. Expected to be an expert across all media, including digital, social and traditional, demonstrating advanced knowledge in all areas. Extensive experience of presenting to clients and ’selling‑in’ ideas, and of working closely with senior stakeholders to understand their business objectives. Great communication and presentation skills, with good attention to detail. Experience managing a team. Exposure to big budgets, complex organization structure with multiple stakeholders, overlapping planning processes with multiple competing priorities Hands‑on experience of key digital marketing platforms is preferred. These include (but are not limited to) Google Analytics, Google Ads, Facebook Ads Manager, DV360 Represent Croud at industry events, public speaking and thought leadership. Experience in CPG and/or Multi Brand Retail a bonus, but not a requirement.

COMPANY BENEFITS

20 days vacation a year with 12 public holidays observed Early finish throughout the summer months Enhanced paid parental leave Healthy in‑office meals and snacks Sales commission with pitch opportunities Full paid medical Insurance for employee (including dental and vision) Dependent contribution to medical, dental and vision coverage Employer paid life insurance coverage Monthly wellness membership stipend Access to health guidance and wellness resources Free Citi bike membership Hybrid workspace support – home office setup is provided Regularly scheduled social events and quarterly team offsites

COMPENSATION

Salary Range for this position is $110,000 - $130,000 per year. Where an employee or prospective employee is paid within this range will depend on, among other factors, actual ranges for current/former employees in the subject position, market considerations, budgetary considerations, tenure and standing with the Company (applicable to current employees), as well as the employee’s/applicant’s skill set, level of experience, and qualifications. Standard hours are from 9.00am to 5.30pm, there’s flexibility if agreed in advance with your line managers (it may also be necessary on occasions to work outside of these hours). Croud operates a hybrid working model with a minimum of 3 days a week based in our New York office and the remaining days from home if you wish. Croud is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the grounds of a person's gender, marital status, race, religion, age, disability or sexual orientation. All candidates will be assessed based on merit, qualifications and their ability to perform the requirements of the role. #J-18808-Ljbffr Croud