EMEA Paid Media Director

We are seeking an EMEA Paid Media Director to lead and develop a high-performance, multi-market media team within a global socially-led creative agency. This role involves owning paid media strategy across various channels, primarily social, but also paid search, video, and display. The director will act as a strategic advisor to clients, oversee campaign excellence, contribute to new business, and drive thought-leadership across key EMEA markets including the UK, Dubai, Italy, France, and Spain.

Must Have

• Full-funnel media leadership with extensive EMEA experience
• Ability to elevate the strategic role of media within a creative agency
• Experience leading, developing, and coaching high-performance, multi-market media teams
• Extensive experience within paid media, with strong knowledge of the paid media landscape across channels, objectives, and trends
• Extensive, hands-on experience planning and executing multi-objective, multi-channel media, with proficiency in both brand building and direct-response campaigns
• Extensive experience managing and optimising multi-million dollar budgets towards business goals like brand lift, ROI
• Deep expertise across social platforms, including Meta, TikTok, Linkedin, Pinterest, and Reddit
• Advanced knowledge of AI tools, digital measurement, and analytics, with proven competency in leveraging data and latest technologies to inform strategy
• Excellent understanding of how media and creative work together to drive business growth
• Legal right to work in the UK

Perks & Benefits

• Equity, Diversity and Inclusion focus
• 25 days holiday
• Pension scheme
• Life assurance
• WAS Passport scheme (connect to colleagues globally)
• Work From Anywhere schemes (connect to colleagues globally)

Description

Who We Are

We are a global socially-led creative agency, with unrivalled social media and influencer marketing expertise. With over 1,200 people in four continents, we deliver a global perspective to our clients in a time when social media is shaping culture.

We're proud to be a multi award-winning agency, with Cannes Lions, One Show, Webby and Shorty Awards, to name but a few. Our most recent work has seen us help Amazon Music, Activision and Adidas deliver some of their biggest and most innovative campaigns to date.

As well as creating for clients, we help educate the wider industry. Our Instagram publication The Feed tracks culture at the speed of social. 6,500 people registered or tuned into our events last year, and our reports garnered more than 20 million views.

The Opportunity

Are you a full-funnel media leader with extensive EMEA experience?

Do you want to elevate the strategic role of media within a world-class creative agency?

Are you ready to lead, develop, and coach a high-performance, multi-market media team?

We are looking for an EMEA Paid Media Director to join our growing media department across key EMEA markets. You will lead within the UK and Dubai, while providing senior strategic guidance across Italy, France & Spain. This role will take ownership of paid media strategy across channels, primarily on social, but also paid search, video, display, and other forms of online and offline media. You will act as a trusted strategic advisor to clients, consult with internal departments, oversee campaign excellence, and participate in new business development and pitch presentations, all while owning thought-leadership for your markets.

This role is based in our London office. Applicants must already have the legal right to work in the UK

Requirements

What You’ll Have Delivered Elsewhere

• Improved team performance through implementing a new management, development, training, and coaching framework.
• Generated a continued uplift in client business outcomes by developing full-funnel, integrated creative & media strategies and cross-channel media campaigns.
• Drove an increase in the adoption of new platforms, technologies, and media channels across client campaigns by fostering a culture of innovation and experimentation.
• Ensured 100% compliance with industry best practices across all media campaign implementations, as evidenced by strong audit scores.
• Increased inter-departmental efficiency by implementing and standardising new effective ways of working.
• Secured early access to new ad products/services for clients by building and nurturing strong publisher and vendor relationships.
• Successfully contributed to growth in the paid media service offering.
• Maintained a high budget accuracy across all media activities by owning budgeting, forecasting, and financial reporting in collaboration with the finance team within relevant markets.

What Else Are We Looking For?

• Extensive experience within paid media, with strong knowledge of the paid media landscape across channels, objectives, and trends.
• Extensive experience managing media teams of varied sizes.
• Extensive, hands-on experience planning and executing multi-objective, multi-channel media, with a proficiency in both brand building and direct-response campaigns.
• Extensive experience managing and optimising multi-million dollar budgets towards business goals like brand lift, ROI, and more.
• Deep expertise across social platforms, including Meta, TikTok, Linkedin, Pinterest, and Reddit.
• Advanced knowledge of AI tools, digital measurement, and analytics, with a proven competency in leveraging data and the latest technologies to inform strategy.
• Excellent understanding of how media and creative work together in order to drive business growth.

Benefits

Our Culture and the Nice Stuff

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion runs in the water here at We Are Social. We are transparent about the changes that are needed, we are focused on making real strides, both internally and within the industry and we strive to truly be a workplace that represents, supports and advocates for ALL. Our Charter for Change in the UK can be found here which details our focus areas across People, Work and Culture in 2025.

Inclusion at every level is crucial to creative innovation and success, and we want to create a workplace where everyone feels a sense of belonging. We welcome and encourage talent from ALL backgrounds and are committed to creating a representative team that can deliver creative excellence. If you require any support, adjustments or accommodations for any reason whatsoever during the recruitment process, please let us know via recuitment@wearesocial.net

So let’s get to the good stuff, we offer all those things you would naturally expect; 25 days holiday, pension scheme & life assurance. But what we love most is connection, so we have our WAS Passport and Work From Anywhere schemes which allow you to truly connect to colleagues all over the world!

But what’s life around here really like day-to-day? Well, we ask our people regularly what they think about us/their role and here are some of the most common things theyI can certainly help you draft a job advertisement using the provided job description and the specified template format.

This role is based in our London office. Applicants must already have the legal right to work in the UK.