Senior Media Planner

Our client, a full-service digital marketing agency, is seeking a Senior Media Planner to join their team on a full-time basis. This is a hands-on, digital-first planning role supporting a large tourism account, with additional exposure to clients across tourism, technology, and consumer verticals.This person will take approved media strategies and turn them into fully executable plans - owning channel mix, budgets, flighting, flowcharts, materials, and ongoing reconciliation across digital and traditional media. The ideal candidate is highly detail-oriented, comfortable managing significant budgets independently, and has experience negotiating directly with media vendors.TypeFull-Time, SalariedLocation: Hybrid onsite Monday/Wednesday for candidates within 60 miles of downtown Chicago; fully remote candidates may be considered in IL, FL, GA, IN, MI, MN, NV, SD, or TN.Salary: $75,000–$100,000 DOEResponsibilitiesBuild and own multi-channel media plans, translating approved strategies into detailed budgets, flowcharts, flighting, and campaign plansPlan across digital and traditional channels including paid social, programmatic, CTV, streaming audio, OLV, publisher direct, print, OOH, broadcast, and airport mediaOwn working media budgets from initial allocation through revisions, pacing, authorizations, invoicing, and final reconciliationMaintain highly accurate budget trackers and flowcharts, adjusting monthly allocations to align with approved plansReview and approve media invoices, proof of performance, and associated documentation for accuracyNegotiate annual vendor contracts across traditional media channels including OOH, broadcast, and airport placementsRequest and evaluate vendor performance metrics for custom media placementsManage media specifications, creative calendars, materials tracking, tagging, and trafficking requirementsPartner closely with creative, strategy, analytics, account, and project management teams to keep deliverables, timelines, and budgets alignedHandle ongoing client requests, media POVs, plan revisions, and optimization needsIndependently manage multiple accounts, deadlines, and priorities while knowing when to escalate issues to senior leadershipQualifications4+ years of media planning experience, with a strong emphasis on digital mediaDemonstrated hands-on experience personally building media plans, flowcharts, budgets, and flighting from approved strategyStrong financial accountability with experience owning budget pacing, revisions, media authorizations, invoice approvals, and reconciliationDirect experience independently negotiating vendor contracts; OOH, broadcast, airport, or similar traditional media experience strongly preferredAdvanced Excel skills with the ability to independently build and manage complex budget trackers, flowcharts, and reconciliation documentsExperience planning across multiple digital and traditional media channelsStrong working knowledge of paid social platforms and digital media ecosystemsExperience with Strata, Mediaocean, or a similar media planning platform is a plusTourism, travel, destination marketing, or other multi-market account experience is highly preferredExceptional attention to detail and comfort working with complex budgets and financial dataProven ability to independently manage multiple accounts, deadlines, and workstreams without sacrificing accuracyStrong cross-functional communication and collaboration skills