Activation Operations Analyst

Comcast•New York, NY

About The Position

FreeWheel, a Comcast company, provides comprehensive ad platforms for publishers, advertisers, and media buyers, leveraging premium video content, robust data, and advanced technology to facilitate transactions across all screens, data types, and sales channels globally. The Activation Operations team manages the post-activation lifecycle of programmatic Deal IDs, monitoring delivery, troubleshooting technical issues, and optimizing performance to ensure smooth operation and meet expectations. This role serves as the primary operational owner for live deals, collaborating with Sales, Account Management, the Inventory Desk, Business Intelligence, and other cross-functional teams to coordinate programmatic demand and supply within the FreeWheel ecosystem. As part of the Programmatic Activation pillar, this position works closely with Supply Activation and Demand Activation to support seamless deal performance through ongoing optimization and troubleshooting, ensuring deals deliver as expected and buyers achieve their campaign objectives.

Requirements

2-5 years of experience in programmatic advertising operations, digital advertising analytics, or technical ad operations roles with strong programmatic knowledge
Strong understanding of Deal IDs, PMP deals, programmatic guaranteed, and open auction dynamics
Deep knowledge of the programmatic ecosystem, including SSP and ad server technologies, DSPs, auction mechanics, identity and addressability, and cross-platform video supply
Familiarity with major DSPs (e.g., The Trade Desk, Google DV360)
Familiarity with SSPs/exchanges (e.g., Magnite, PubMatic)
Ability to analyze auction data and identify delivery issues quickly
Proficiency with analytics and reporting tools (e.g., Looker or similar BI dashboards)
Strong troubleshooting and problem-solving skills
Experience working cross-functionally with sales, buyers, and technical teams
Strong communication skills for translating technical issues into clear explanations
Detail-oriented with strong operational rigor
Comfortable managing large volumes of live deals simultaneously
Proactive mindset for identifying issues before buyers escalate
Ability to work independently with moderate guidance while knowing when to escalate
Highly organized and self-motivated with a track record of delivering against goals
Comfort working with AI-assisted tools and a demonstrated willingness to integrate AI into day-to-day workflows (e.g., Microsoft Copilot, Glean, large language models)
Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience

Nice To Haves

Experience working within or alongside programmatic deal operations, yield management, or marketplace optimization environments
Familiarity with CTV supply chain workflows, including programmatic deal types (PMP, PG, open exchange), and marketplace dynamics
Hands-on experience with deal troubleshooting, performance analysis, or programmatic ad operations
Experience contributing to cross-functional product feedback loops or participating in product roadmap discussions
Experience using AI tools beyond basic prompting - such as building structured workflows, automating documentation or reporting tasks, or applying AI approaches to operational processes
Proficiency with SQL for data analysis and troubleshooting
Advanced Excel skills including pivot tables, VLOOKUP, and data visualization
Experience with SharePoint for documentation and knowledge management
Background in process improvement methodologies or operational efficiency initiatives

Responsibilities

Monitor live Deal ID performance and delivery across DSPs, SSPs, and internal ad serving platforms
Track key metrics including impressions, win rates, bid rates, spend, fill rate, and revenue performance
Identify delivery issues such as under-delivery, pacing discrepancies, or bid suppression
Ensure deals are delivering according to agreed targeting, pricing, and inventory parameters
Investigate issues impacting live deals including deal not receiving bids, low win rate or unexpected bid behavior, DSP targeting mismatches, pricing/floor conflicts, and supply path or seat configuration issues
Work with internal DSP traders, SSP partners, and internal product/engineering teams to resolve technical problems
Diagnose issues across platforms such as bid requests, deal targeting, inventory eligibility, and auction dynamics
Analyze performance trends and proactively recommend optimizations
Recommend configuration adjustments and optimizations including deal priority, floor pricing, inventory packages, and targeting parameters
Identify opportunities to increase delivery, revenue, and buyer satisfaction
Devise new tactics, strategies, and frameworks for optimization to be used by both external and internal customers
Partner closely with Sales and Account Management for deal expectations
Collaborate with Product to roll out new programmatic products, features, and capabilities
Collaborate with programmatic strategy teams on deal performance insights and with Product/Engineering for platform troubleshooting
Provide operational support for escalations from buyers or internal stakeholders
Build and maintain post-activation reporting dashboards
Deliver insights on delivery trends, buyer behavior, and auction dynamics impacting deals
Provide regular updates on deal health and performance to internal teams
Analyze bid data to resolve technical bid activity issues
Review and analyze bid data and historical marketplace activity to improve PMP performance and delivery
Leverage AI-assisted tools such as Microsoft Copilot, Glean, and large language models to enhance operational efficiency and analytical capabilities
Apply AI-driven approaches to streamline reporting, documentation, deal analysis, and troubleshooting workflows
Utilize AI tools to identify patterns in deal performance data and surface optimization opportunities more quickly
Stay current on emerging AI capabilities and integrate them into day-to-day operational processes where applicable
Develop and document standard operating procedures for post-activation deal monitoring
Identify recurring issues and recommend workflow improvement to scale operational efficiency as deal volume grows
Provide troubleshooting and QA support to address campaign performance issues
Other duties and responsibilities as assigned