Associate Director, Paid Media

Associate Director, Paid Media

Northern is growing, and we're looking to add an experienced Associate Director, Paid Media to join our expanding paid media team. In this role, you'll take complete ownership of strategy and end-to-end execution for our key client accounts, leading high-performing, cross-channel paid advertising campaigns that deliver measurable business results. As a senior member of the team, you'll pair deep technical expertise with strategic vision, naturally leading every stage of the campaign lifecycle, from initial research and media planning through hands-on implementation, proactive optimization, and insightful reporting.

What You'll Do

You'll be much more than a campaign manager. You'll own account strategy and full campaign execution while serving as the senior client partner and escalation point for strategic conversations and quarterly business reviews. You'll optimize team capacity and workload planning to ensure we're staffed for success, and you'll integrate paid media strategy across the broader marketing landscape, partnering with creative, email, SEO, and UX teams to ensure campaigns reinforce overall business and brand goals. This is a role for a data-driven leader who thrives on delivering measurable ROI while building strong client relationships and mentoring a growing team.

Our Connected Workplace Program allows you to work remotely, in a hybrid model, or fully in-office. Preference is given to Ontario-based employees due to the requirement for occasional in-person client and team meetings.

Benefits of Becoming a Northerner

In exchange for your talent and expertise, Northern is committed to providing:

• Robust Benefits plan, including a Health Spending Account
• Wellness Program & LifeWorks EAP
• Fitness Reimbursement Program
• Vet Care Program
• RRSP Matching
• Profit-Sharing Performance Bonuses
• Endless Professional Growth Opportunities
• Delicious Meals & Company Social Events
• Free Onsite Parking
• Referral Bonus Program
• Flexible work environment - so you can work where & when you work best
• Allowance to help set up home office

What You'll Be Doing:

Strategy & Campaign Management

• Lead paid media strategy and execution across Google, Meta, TikTok, Pinterest, Snap, and LinkedIn, owning campaign planning, setup, optimization, and reporting end-to-end
• Develop data-driven campaigns aligned with client goals and KPIs, leveraging research, audience targeting, and performance insights to drive measurable results
• Monitor and optimize campaign performance, making strategic adjustments, troubleshooting issues, and proactively identifying improvement opportunities
• Own media pacing and budget management, ensuring campaigns remain on track with planned spend and performance targets

Client Leadership & Communication

• Act as the senior client partner and primary escalation point, leading strategic conversations, quarterly business reviews, and resolving complex issues
• Create and present detailed performance reports, clearly communicating results, trends, and actionable recommendations to clients and stakeholders
• Provide strategic direction during client calls and touchpoints, ensuring alignment between campaign execution and business objectives

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Connect paid media strategy to broader marketing initiatives, partnering with creative, email, SEO, and UX teams to ensure campaigns reinforce overall business and brand goals
• Oversee campaign quality and performance, optimizing ad copy, landing pages, creative assets, and campaign structures in collaboration with internal teams
• Support business growth initiatives, contributing to audits, proposals, and identifying opportunities for platform expansion and campaign scaling within existing accounts

Team Leadership & Development

• Own capacity and workload planning, ensuring account coverage matches account complexity and team bandwidth
• Mentor and develop junior team members, reviewing work, providing constructive feedback, and sharing best practices to strengthen team expertise
• Stay current on digital marketing trends and platform updates, sharing insights with the team and applying emerging tactics to drive performance

What You'll Bring:

• 7+ years of hands-on experience managing paid digital advertising (search, social, display, video, and multi-channel campaigns)
• Proven track record leading client accounts and managing cross-functional teams in a fast-paced environment
• Deep expertise in major advertising platforms: Google Ads, Meta, TikTok, Pinterest, Snap, and LinkedIn
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to translate data into strategic insights and actionable recommendations
• Excellent client management and communication skills, with ability to influence stakeholders at all levels
• Demonstrated success mentoring and developing junior team members
• Experience managing budgets and optimizing spend allocation across multiple platforms
• Proficiency with marketing automation, analytics tools, and reporting platforms

The Team

You'll join a tight-knit team of 6-8 talented Paid Media professionals who move fast and think strategically. You'll partner directly with Account Management and Marketing Leadership to shape client strategy, collaborate with top-tier measurement consultants, and report to the Senior Director of Digital Advertising, someone who values data expertise and gives you room to innovate. This is a role where your tracking and measurement work directly influences how the team thinks about our client's success.

Compensation

This role has a target salary range of $80,000 - $110,000 CAD, with final compensation determined based on a number of factors, including but not limited to relevant skills and experience, depth of role-related expertise, years of directly applicable experience, internal equity, and market alignment for the role. Compensation decisions also consider the scope and complexity of the position and are made in a manner consistent with our pay practices. In addition to base salary, we offer a comprehensive total rewards package, which may include health & dental benefits, RRSP matching, Profit Sharing, and many additional perks.

Equity and Diversity

Northern welcomes applications from all qualified individuals and is dedicated to fostering a culture of inclusivity, employment equity, and diversity in the workplace. We encourage candidates from all backgrounds to apply, including but not limited to members of visible minorities, Indigenous peoples, individuals with diverse abilities, and those of all gender identities and expressions.

We are also committed to ensuring an inclusive and accessible recruitment process. Accommodations are available at every stage of the hiring process. If you require support or adjustments to participate fully, please let us know when you apply, and we will work with you to meet your needs.

AI Use & Interview Transparency

Northern uses AI tools to support parts of the hiring process, such as drafting interview questions and organizing candidate information. We may also record and transcribe interviews to ensure accuracy and consistency in our evaluations. Rest assured, you will be speaking with real live human beings!

Why Join Northern?

You'll work alongside a team of 200+ digital experts at one of Canada's Best Workplaces™ for Inclusion, Women, Mental Health, Hybrid Work, and more. We're intentional about growth, collaboration, and creating meaningful digital experiences that move our clients forward.