Director, Programmatic Display & Video

Groundworks•Dallas, TX

5d•Onsite

About The Position

The Director, Programmatic Display & Video is responsible for building Groundworks’ in-house programmatic function from the ground up. This role owns the full lifecycle of bringing programmatic in-house, evaluating and selecting DSP partners, establishing data and measurement infrastructure, building out audience and targeting strategy, and scaling investment as performance is proven. The ideal candidate has done this before: built or significantly scaled a programmatic function in-house, and wants to do it again without an agency layer in between them and the platforms. This role will lead a team over time, but leads by staying in the work.

Requirements

7+ years of hands-on programmatic media buying experience, including direct, in-platform DSP experience
Proven experience building or substantially scaling an in-house programmatic function, including DSP selection and onboarding
Deep, current expertise in at least one major DSP (The Trade Desk, DV360, or similar); multi-platform experience strongly preferred
Strong understanding of display, video, and native including deal types (PMP, programmatic guaranteed, open exchange)
Experience with audience strategy, including first-party data activation and privacy-conscious targeting approaches
Strong analytical skills; comfortable working directly with performance and attribution data (Excel required, SQL a plus)
Experience partnering with analytics teams on incrementality or lift measurement
Strong communication skills: able to translate platform-level performance into a clear business narrative for senior leadership

Responsibilities

Lead and own the build out of programmatic media in-house, including DSP selection (e.g., The Trade Desk, DV360), seat setup, and onboarding of data and measurement integrations
Personally build and launch campaigns directly within the DSP(s) — line items, creative setup, inventory/deal selection, and audience targeting — rather than directing an agency to do so
Set programmatic strategy across display, video and native, and then execute against that strategy hands-on, day to day
Own budget pacing and bid management directly within platforms, adjusting in real time based on performance rather than on a periodic review cycle
Build and refine audience strategy using first-party data, contextual targeting, and third-party/curated segments as privacy and platform capabilities allow
Establish measurement and attribution for programmatic — partnering with analytics
Build a testing roadmap for creative, audience, and channel/inventory mix, and personally execute and read out those tests
Take extreme ownership of performance — proactively identifying underperformance and making the platform-level changes needed rather than waiting for direction
Partner with creative teams to ensure display and video assets are built and sized correctly for programmatic delivery
Build the operational foundation (naming conventions, tagging, reporting structure, documentation) needed to scale programmatic responsibly as investment grows
Hire, onboard, and eventually lead a small team of programmatic buyers as the function scales — while remaining hands-on in the platforms alongside them
Represent programmatic performance, strategy, and roadmap in regular reporting to Performance Marketing leadership and cross-functional leadership
Stay ahead of programmatic industry shifts and proactively bring relevant opportunities to the team
It is an essential function of this job that the employee regularly and reliably reports to work on time each working day.
Perform other duties as necessary or assigned.