Principal, Digital Marketing

Pearson

4d•$190,000 - $220,000

About The Position

Pearson Virtual Schools is seeking a senior performance marketing leader to drive new student enrollment for Connections Academy, a tuition‑free, accredited K‑12 online public school. This role owns the paid media strategy, investment, and execution, leading agency partners and internal collaboration to deliver enrollment growth, efficiency, and long‑term value across a complex, localized education model.

Requirements

8+ years of hands‑on experience in Paid Search (SEM), with broader performance media experience a plus.
3+ years managing large‑scale budgets, including $50M+ in performance media spend.
Proven experience managing agencies and internal stakeholders.
Strong command of marketing analytics, tagging and tracking, and Marketing Mix Modelling.
Experience using AI to improve campaign performance and workflows.
An eCommerce or growth mindset, ideally across both eCommerce and lead‑generation models.
Confident leader with strong communication and executive presentation skills.

Responsibilities

Own and evolve the end‑to‑end performance marketing strategy, with deep expertise in Paid Search.
Apply insight into a localized education model to inform media strategy and investment decisions.
Drive full‑funnel growth across Search, Paid Social, Online Video, Over The Top (OTT), Display, Programmatic, and Digital Out Of Home (DOOH).
Manage a 7‑figure paid media budget, optimizing spend to deliver enrollment, ROI, and LTV goals.
Lead and develop the external advertising agency to meet enrollment, CPE, and testing targets.
Mentor and support an internal team member and contribute to building a high‑performing team culture.
Oversee planning, execution, and optimisation of performance‑driven campaigns.
Own paid landing page strategy, testing, and conversion optimisation.
Design and lead structured experimentation, including A/B and multivariate testing.
Leverage AI and automation to improve performance, efficiency, and workflows.
Partner closely with Analytics and Finance on forecasting, spend phasing, and measurement.
Lead adoption of advanced measurement practices, including Marketing Mix Modelling.
Ensure best‑practice tagging, tracking, and data integrity across platforms.
Translate performance data into clear insights and executive‑level recommendations.
Build strong relationships with Marketing, Analytics, Finance, Enrollment, and Digital COE teams.