Head of Paid Media

Job Title: Head of Paid Media

Job Type: Full-Time

Compensation: $140,000 to $160,000 Annually + Bonus + Benefits

FLSA Status: Exempt

Division: Paid Media

Reports To: Search and Paid Media President

Location: Remote-first company with physical offices in San Diego, CA, Colorado Springs, CO, and Columbus, OH

The Digital Marketing Recruiters

Digital Marketing Recruiters has been in the digital marketing and recruitment space for over 25 years. We work with highly skilled marketing, digital marketing, and sales professionals and match them with our clients from diverse industries across the United States. Our selection process incorporates comprehensive resume screening, shortlisting, conducting video-recorded interviews and providing client information, administering written assessments (if required by the client), arranging client interviews, and facilitating job offers and placements.

If you are interested in this role but have any questions, concerns, or suggestions before applying, please don't hesitate to contact us at View email address on click.appcast.io.

Why You'll Love Being an Interonaut (The Client)

When you join Intero Digital, you become part of a collaborative, creative, and growth-minded community of innovators, strategists, and creators working together to push the boundaries of what's possible in digital marketing. As a full-service digital marketing agency with deep expertise across every major discipline, you won't just be part of the digital landscape-you'll help shape it.

The Mission (aka The Role)

The Head of Paid Media is responsible for the leadership, strategic direction, and success of Intero Digital's paid media service within our Search and Paid division. This role owns where paid media goes as a service: what we offer, how it evolves, how we talk about it in the market, and how it grows. You will drive revenue, optimize service offerings, and foster a high-performing, engaged, and growth-minded team.

You lead a team of experienced paid media directors and their teams, set the strategic direction for the practice, and serve as our most visible voice for paid media, internally and externally. Because Paid sits within an integrated division alongside SEO/GEO, Content, and Earned Media, you also help shape how paid and organic channels work together to deliver one connected strategy for clients.

This is a collaborative leadership role centered on innovation, thought leadership, sales, retention, and growth.

The candidate may be based in any of the following US states: AL, AZ, CA, CO, FL, GA, IL, IN, KS, KY, MI, MN, MO, NC, NJ, NV, NY, OH, TN, TX, UT, VA, WA, and WI.

Mission Objectives (Essential Functions)

Service Line Leadership

• Lead the paid media practice across paid search, paid social, programmatic, and email.
• Provide clear leadership and direction for the paid media practice, setting clear goals and strategies that drive growth, service quality, and client satisfaction.
• Act as the voice for paid media internally, representing the practice in leadership discussions and contributing to the division's overall service vision.
• Partner with Search and Paid division leadership on planning, priorities, and resourcing for the paid practice.
• Ensure the practice meets or exceeds KPIs related to campaign performance and service delivery.
• Provide regular visibility into service line performance, KPIs, and progress against goals.
• Develop and track goals for team performance, client retention, and campaign success.

Service Innovation

• Own the evolution of our paid media service offerings, keeping them innovative, competitive, and effective in the market.
• Identify and launch new service offerings and capabilities as the channel landscape shifts.
• Stay ahead of industry trends, platform changes, policies, and emerging technologies, and translate them into refined best practices and service approaches.
• Build scalable strategies that maximize client performance across a range of industries and budget levels.

AI and Automation

• Build and automate workflows across the practice, using AI to reduce manual effort so the team spends its time on strategy rather than execution overhead.
• Bring a clear point of view on how AI and LLMs are reshaping paid media, from platform automation and bidding to how people search, discover, and buy.
• Evaluate and adopt emerging AI tools across campaign management, creative, and reporting, setting the standard for how the practice uses them.
• Translate what is changing in the market into how we build and position our services, so the offering stays ahead of where paid is heading.

Thought Leadership and Market Presence

• Serve as a recognized voice for paid media in the market, building Intero Digital's reputation and point of view in the space.
• Partner with marketing on content, case studies, speaking engagements, and other thought leadership that positions the practice.
• Bring an informed, differentiated perspective on where paid media is heading and what it means for clients.
• Build relationships across the industry, supporting both our market presence and talent recruitment.

Sales and Business Growth

• Partner with the Growth Team to identify new opportunities and expand the client base.
• Participate in high-value new business opportunities, bringing subject matter expertise and credibility to the pitch.
• Train and support the Sales and Account Management teams so they can sell and upsell paid media services effectively.
• Support integrated pitches alongside search, where the combined offering is the differentiator.
• Nurture key platform and partner relationships that support lead generation and service capability.

Team Leadership and Growth

• Lead, mentor, and develop the paid media directors and, through them, the wider paid team.
• Foster a supportive, inclusive environment that promotes professional development and engagement.
• Build a culture of continuous learning, innovation, collaboration, and accountability.
• Identify and develop future leaders within the team and support career growth at all levels.
• Grow and scale the team to support the practice's growth, ensuring strong client service and execution.
• Implement and maintain Intero Digital's performance management standards.

Integrated Delivery

• Partner with leaders across SEO, GEO, Content, and Earned Media, so paid and organic are planned as one coordinated motion rather than adjacent efforts.
• Contribute to shared standards, unified measurement, and a connected client strategy across the division.
• Help identify where audience insight, budget, and performance data should move between paid and organic to improve client results.
• Work on collaboration and integrated service delivery to develop consistent processes and ways of working together to foster a positive culture and success for our clients.

Client Success and Service Quality

• Ensure a high standard of service delivery across paid engagements, driving measurable results and long-term retention.
• Own and develop senior client relationships across key accounts, building trust with executive stakeholders, and identifying opportunities for growth.
• Build and maintain senior-level relationships with our paid media platform partners (Google, Meta, Microsoft, etc.) across our client portfolio, unlocking the access, support, and escalation paths that drive client results.
• Serve as the senior point of escalation for paid engagements.
• Partner with Account Management and the VP of Operations, Search and Paid Media to refine paid media service delivery and client reporting.

Operational Excellence

• Set the measurement standard for the practice, including attribution frameworks and conversion tracking processes, linking GA4, CRM, and onsite tracking (through GTM or direct onsite code) to clearly connect paid performance to business results.
• Run the paid practice within the division's shared operating model, partnering with division operations leadership on standards, workflows, and rhythms.
• Own the methodologies, quality benchmarks, and best practices specific to paid, bringing them into the division's standards rather than running parallel.
• Establish, document, and refine paid media processes and SOPs, aligned to division-wide standards.
• Drive efficiency, scalability, and standardization across paid media teams.
• Plan staffing and capacity for the practice so the team is resourced to meet client demand and growth.
• Use data-driven decision-making to optimize workflows and team productivity.
• Ensure adherence to industry standards, ethical practices, and Intero Digital's internal methodologies.

Your Space Suit Specs (Requirements and Qualifications)

• Collaborative spirit and ability to thrive in an autonomous, remote-first environment.
• Curiosity and a drive to innovate.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Creative problem-solving and adaptability in a fast-changing environment.
• Strong project management and organization skills.
• Strong understanding of digital channels.
• 7+ years of experience in paid media and digital advertising.
• 4+ years in a leadership role managing teams - managing other managers is preferred.
• Strong expertise across Google Ads, Meta Ads, LinkedIn Ads, programmatic display, and analytics platforms. Experience with TikTok Ads, Pinterest Ads, X Ads, and ChatGPT Ads is a plus.
• In-depth, hands-on experience with the supporting Google stack, including Google Tag Manager, Google Merchant Center, and Google Business Profile.
• Proven experience growing or scaling a paid media practice or service line.
• Proven experience working in an integrated environment with SEO and Paid channels and teams to bring successful results to clients.
• Experience managing complex, enterprise-level ad budgets.
• Excellent leadership, communication, and stakeholder management skills.
• Experience leading multi-disciplinary teams and collaborating across service lines.
• Agency experience is strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated experience building and automating workflows with AI tools.
• A clear point of view on AI evolution/innovation and experience with how LLMs are changing paid media, search behavior, and buyer journeys.
• A visible thought leadership presence in paid media within the market, demonstrated through speaking, writing, or industry presence, is a plus.
• Formal education not required-skills, integrity, and initiative matter most.

Bonus Program

In addition to base salary, this role is eligible for Intero Digital's quarterly Growth Bonus Program. The program is designed to reward team members who contribute directly to company growth.

Bonuses are funded each quarter once company performance surpasses a defined baseline. If targets are met, earnings could range between $1,000 and $5,000.

Company Sponsored Benefits (Your Interonaut Toolkit)

At Intero Digital, we believe in taking care of our crew. From stellar healthcare to interstellar growth opportunities, we've got you covered! Think of the following benefits as your toolkit for living your best work-life.

Time Off and Leave

• 1-Week Winter Break
• 13 Paid Holidays
• Flexible PTO
• Paid Sick Leave
• Paid Parental Leave + Return-to-Work Program
• Paid Jury Duty and Bereavement Leave

Health and Financial Benefits

• 100% Employer-Covered Medical Insurance
• 100% Employer-Covered Long-Term Disability
• 100% Employer-Covered Life Insurance
• 401(k) Matching after 1 Year
• Dental and Vision Insurance
• Short-Term Disability
• Hospital Indemnity and Critical Illness
• Voluntary Life and AD and D
• Legal Insurance
• Pet Insurance

Growth and Exploration Benefits

• Annual learning and development opportunities.
• Monthly all-hands team meetings.
• Employee resource groups for collaboration and connection.

Community Orbit

If you join our team, you'll be more than just an employee-you'll be an Interonaut!

Interonaut (noun) | in• te• ro• naut

A courageous explorer of digital frontiers-someone who leads with integrity, thrives under cosmic pressure and delivers the extraordinary; someone who boldly goes where no marketer has gone before, turning challenges into constellations of opportunity and lighting the path for others to follow.

Equal Opportunity Employer

Intero Digital provides equal employment opportunities to all teammates and applicants regardless of race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, national origin, age, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, military status, or any other protected characteristic.

If you need accommodation during the hiring process due to a disability or the virtual nature of the process, please contact View phone number on click.appcast.io.