Senior Director, Performance Media

AbelsonTaylor Group • Chicago, IL

2d • $155,000 - $180,000 • Hybrid

About The Position

AbelsonTaylor Group is seeking a Senior Director, Performance Media to lead the strategic direction, quality, growth, and operational excellence of its performance media practice. The position oversees Paid Search, Programmatic Display and Video, Paid Social, and emerging digital activation channels, connecting media strategy and activation with creative, analytics, ad operations, and technology.

The role provides senior client and practice leadership, supports business growth, and partners across agency functions to deliver connected media programs. It also oversees operational and financial priorities, including staffing, workload management, investment pacing, budget stewardship, and activation quality. The Senior Director leads, mentors, and develops performance media team members while fostering an inclusive, collaborative, accountable, and psychologically safe environment.

This position follows a hybrid schedule, with employees required to work onsite Tuesday through Thursday each week in the Chicago office. The compensation range is $155,000–$180,000; the starting salary offer depends on the candidate’s skills, qualifications, and experience.

Requirements

• 10+ years of digital or performance media experience, including significant leadership responsibility across Paid Search, Programmatic, and Paid Social.
• Demonstrated expertise in performance media strategy, activation, optimization, audience planning, measurement, and analytics.
• Deep knowledge of major platforms and systems, including DV360, SA360, Campaign Manager 360, Google Ads, Microsoft Advertising, Meta, LinkedIn, PulsePoint, and Prisma.
• Experience leading teams, managing senior client relationships, and presenting strategic recommendations to executive stakeholders.
• Strong financial, operational, and organizational skills, with the ability to manage priorities across multiple clients and workstreams.
• Analytical and creative problem-solving skills, sound judgment, and a commitment to high-quality work.

Nice To Haves

• Healthcare or pharmaceutical media experience, including experience working with regulated brands and cross-functional agency teams.

Responsibilities

• Lead the agency performance media practice across Paid Search, Programmatic Display and Video, Paid Social, and emerging digital activation channels.
• Establish strategic direction, channel standards, quality controls, and best practices for effective, compliant, and measurable activation.
• Partner with the Media Strategy team on channel recommendations aligned with client strategy, audience needs, investment levels, and business objectives.
• Guide testing, optimization, innovation, and platform adoption across the performance media portfolio.
• Serve as the senior escalation point for activation, platform, measurement, and performance challenges.
• Represent performance media expertise in client meetings, strategic presentations, and annual planning engagements.
• Translate complex platform, data, and performance topics into actionable recommendations for clients and internal teams.
• Guide senior team members in developing report observations, implications, and optimization actions.
• Support new business, organic growth, scopes of work, case studies, and agency thought leadership.
• Collaborate with Media Strategy, Marketing Intelligence, Creative, Integrated Strategy, Brand Planning, and Account teams to deliver connected media programs.
• Partner with Creative leadership on asset requirements, dynamic content opportunities, new formats, deliverable timing, and performance-informed creative recommendations.
• Help align channel activation, ad operations, measurement, analytics, and reporting approaches across accounts.
• Partner with department leadership on staffing, account assignments, workload management, revenue projections, investment pacing, and operational priorities.
• Oversee activation quality, budget stewardship, pacing, billing inputs, and issue resolution across assigned business.
• Develop and maintain department processes, templates, playbooks, onboarding materials, and training resources.
• Lead, mentor, and develop Associate Directors, Supervisors, Specialists, and other performance media team members.
• Balance workloads, clarify ownership, set priorities, and create opportunities to build team members’ strategic and technical skills.
• Provide ongoing coaching, formal performance feedback, and career development support.
• Foster an inclusive, collaborative, accountable, and psychologically safe team environment.

Benefits

• Medical, dental, and vision coverage.
• 401(k) with company match of 50% on the first 6%.
• Adoption assistance of up to $2,500.
• Company-paid life insurance.
• Short-term and long-term disability coverage; short-term disability provides 100% of salary coverage.
• Paid parental leave for birth and non-birth parents (4 weeks).
• Summer Fridays.
• Flexible Time Off (FTO).
• 11 holidays and an end-of-year office closure.
• Company-provided learning and development opportunities.
• Free lunch Wednesdays.
• Wellness program.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Education Level: No Education Listed