Group Director, Marketing Effectiveness & Intelligence

Responsibilities Strategic Partnership & Client Embedding: Serve as the primary strategic partner for assigned client teams, fully embedded within operations to understand business objectives, challenges, and marketing strategies from the ground up. Proactively identify opportunities for marketing optimization, efficiency gains, and incremental growth through rigorous data analysis and strategic insights. Foster strong relationships with marketing leaders and other key stakeholders within the client team, building trust and influencing strategic direction. Marketing Performance Analysis & Measurement: Evangelize and implement measurement hierarchy frameworks, KPIs, and attribution models to assess the effectiveness and ROI of all marketing activities across various channels. Utilize advanced analytical techniques and tools to deeply analyze marketing performance data, identifying trends, correlations, causal relationships, and future opportunities. Oversee the generation of regular performance reports, dashboards, and ad-hoc analyses, ensuring accuracy, relevance, and actionability for all levels of stakeholders. Insights Generation & Narrative Development: Translate complex data sets and analytical findings into clear, concise, and compelling strategic insights that drive actionable recommendations. Expertly craft and deliver data and insights narratives to C‑Suite executives and senior leadership, simplifying complexity and demonstrating tangible business impact to influence critical strategic decisions, budget allocations, and long‑term strategy. Develop visually impactful presentations and storytelling techniques that resonate with diverse audiences, from technical teams to executive boards. Cross‑Functional Collaboration & Leadership: Collaborate and influence across diverse cross‑functional teams, including Marketing, Sales, Product, Finance, and Data Science, fostering a culture of data‑driven decision‑making and shared accountability. Champion the use of marketing effectiveness insights to inform budget allocation, campaign optimization, audience targeting, and overall marketing strategy. Potentially mentor and guide junior team members within the ME&I department, fostering a culture of continuous learning, analytical excellence, and professional growth. Innovation & Continuous Improvement: Stay abreast of industry best practices, emerging technologies, and advancements in marketing analytics, measurement, and effectiveness methodologies. Lead initiatives to improve data quality, infrastructure, and analytical processes, ensuring scalability and reliability. Qualifications Bachelor's degree in Marketing, Business, Statistics, Economics, Data Science, or a related quantitative field. Master's degree (MBA, MS) preferred. 10+ years of progressive experience in marketing analytics, marketing effectiveness, business intelligence, or a similar data‑intensive role, with at least 3–5 years in a leadership or group director capacity. Demonstrated experience in developing and implementing comprehensive marketing measurement frameworks, including multi‑touch attribution modeling, ROI analysis, MMM (Marketing Mix Modeling), and LTV (Customer Lifetime Value) calculations. Proven ability to operate as a highly effective self‑starter, taking initiative, proactively identifying problems, and driving projects independently from conception to completion with minimal oversight. Exceptional analytical and problem‑solving skills, with a strong ability to interpret complex data, identify key insights, and formulate actionable, strategic recommendations. Proficiency with advanced analytics tools and platforms (e.g., SQL, Python/R, Google Analytics 4, Adobe Analytics, marketing automation platforms, CRM data like Salesforce, CDP experience). Expertise in data visualization tools (e.g., Tableau, Power BI, Looker Studio) for creating impactful, executive‑level dashboards and reports. Superior communication, presentation, and storytelling skills, with a proven track record of successfully influencing, engaging, and gaining buy‑in from C‑Suite and senior executive stakeholders. Strong understanding of various marketing channels (digital, social, offline, email, content) and their respective strategies and measurement challenges. Desired Skills & Attributes Experience in a client‑facing or internal consultancy role, demonstrating exceptional stakeholder management, negotiation, and advisory skills. Deep understanding of statistical modeling, machine learning concepts, and their practical application to solve complex marketing challenges. Ability to thrive in a fast‑paced, dynamic, and often ambiguous environment, adapting quickly to changing priorities and new challenges. A truly collaborative spirit with a strong ability to build trust, foster positive relationships, and work effectively across diverse functional teams and levels of the organization. Strategic thinker with an innate ability to connect granular, detailed analysis to broader business objectives and organizational goals. Salary & Benefits Base salary range: $100,000—$230,000 USD. We offer a competitive benefits package. Hybrid work model allows employees to attend the office an average of four days a week; accommodations and flexibility can be discussed during the interview process. Equal‑Opportunity Employer WPP (VML) is an equal opportunity employer and considers applicants for all positions without discrimination or regard to 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. #J-18808-Ljbffr VML South Africa