Senior Manager, Audience Growth

Job Description

Job Description

Who we are

We are a global community that is driven by the creative spirit of Los Angeles. Through an inspiring mix of music, news, and culture, we bring joy and connection – online, in-person and on the radio. Always excellent, accessible, and often unexpected, we are a constant source of fuel for the imagination, education and good vibes. At least, that is what our members tell us. 

As NPR’s flagship member station in Southern California for more than 30 years and a community service of Santa Monica College, KCRW is the next generation of public media.

How You’ll Make an Impact

The Senior Manager, Audience Growth leads marketing strategy and execution for KCRW initiatives designed to sustainably grow and engage our audience, including shows, events, newsletters, media partnerships, and other KCRW programs and products.

This role is the quarterback for integrated marketing campaigns: setting the marketing goal and strategy, building and managing the campaign plan, and aligning internal channel owners, content leads, and external partners around successful execution. While specialists own individual channels and programs, this role is accountable for ensuring the overall marketing plan works together in service of the goal.

This is a hands-on individual contributor role. You’ll lead strategy and creative direction while also doing much of the campaign work yourself: from writing copy and developing campaign strategy briefs and assets to managing paid media, timelines, partners, and campaign performance.

Success looks like:

• Measurable growth in new and engaged audiences, with clear performance targets and accountability

• Integrated campaigns that are strategically focused, well planned, and executed on time

• Creative that reflects KCRW’s voice and drives meaningful audience action (e.g., newsletter signups, repeat visits, event participation, and app downloads)

• Campaigns that are actively monitored, tested, and optimized after launch

• Actionable learnings that improve future marketing strategy and execution

This is a full-time, exempt position reporting to the VP of Marketing & Membership.

What You’ll Do

• Own integrated marketing campaigns from strategy through execution, establishing clear goals, audiences, strategy, channel mix, creative direction, and measures of success.

• Build and actively manage campaign plans, including deliverables, owners, deadlines, dependencies, and approvals; anticipate needs and risks and keep work moving to completion.

• Quarterback internal channel owners, content leads, and external partners, ensuring alignment on the marketing goal, plan, responsibilities, and timing.

• Serve as a hands-on marketer, developing campaign briefs, messaging, copy, creative concepts, partner materials, and other assets while coordinating specialized execution across the team.

• Manage KCRW’s marketing calendar and prioritize campaigns and resources based on organizational goals, audience opportunity, expected impact, and team capacity.

• Oversee KCRW’s paid newsletter acquisition program and external agency, partnering with internal newsletter owners to grow qualified audiences and optimize performance.

• Partner with the Acquisitions & Promotions Manager to leverage media trade, KCRW Presents, promotions, giveaways, and cultural partnerships for audience acquisition and awareness.

• Lead paid-media strategy and execution, including budget allocation, targeting, creative testing, optimization, and performance analysis, while continually exploring and testing new channels and acquisition opportunities.

• Monitor campaign performance during and after launch, using data to optimize active campaigns, identify new experiments, and apply learnings to future strategy and execution.

• Test new tools and approaches, including AI, to improve the speed, quality, and effectiveness of KCRW’s marketing.

What You’ll Need

• 5+ years of experience in digital, growth, or integrated marketing; experience in nonprofit, public media, media, or another mission-driven organization is a plus

• Proven experience owning multi-channel campaigns from strategy and planning through execution, optimization, and reporting

• Strong project-management skills, with the ability to manage multiple campaigns, owners, deadlines, dependencies, and shifting priorities at once

• Experience navigating complex, highly cross-functional organizations, with the ability to identify stakeholders and dependencies early, create alignment, and drive work forward without direct authority

• Strong judgment and prioritization skills, with the ability to identify what matters most, ask the right questions, anticipate needs, and proactively surface risks

• Strong creative instincts across messaging, storytelling, and design, with the ability to personally develop high-quality campaign briefs, copy, and core marketing materials

• Experience running paid media across major digital platforms and using performance data to improve targeting, creative, and spend

• Data-driven mindset with the ability to translate performance insights into decisions and action

• Curiosity about emerging channels, tools, and technologies, with the judgment to determine what is worth testing

• Familiarity with AI tools in marketing workflows, with the ability to use them thoughtfully while applying independent judgment and quality control

• Understanding of Los Angeles’ cultural landscape

• A genuine enthusiasm for KCRW, its mission, and its role in Los Angeles’ cultural community

What We Offer

• Salary: $85,000 – $95,000

• Hybrid work schedule for select positions

• Eligible for overtime and premium working holiday pay rate

• Sick leave award

• Vacation leave accrual

• Paid holidays

• Health insurance (including medical, dental, vision, FSA, life and AD&D) eligibility