Senior Director, Publisher Operations

Index Exchange • New York, NY

3d • Remote

About The Position

Index Exchange is a global advertising supply-side platform enabling media owners to maximize the value of their content on any screen. As a trusted partner and ally, we connect leading experience makers with the world’s largest brands to ensure a quality experience for consumers. We’re a proud industry pioneer with over 20 years of experience accelerating the ad technology evolution. With our radically transparent business practices and dedication to total market efficiency, we’re committed to upholding the integrity of the programmatic ecosystem at large. Index is an exciting and fast-paced place to work. You'll be able to feed your ambition, lean into trust and transparency, and feel genuine support from your colleagues. We’re built on our core values and live them each day. They're not just buzzwords. We pride ourselves on our independence and openness, not only in our technology, but in our teams, too. Our diverse and inclusive culture celebrates how we can leverage our unique differences to help drive Index forward. We have more than 550 Indexers around the globe dedicated to building a safe and transparent marketplace that provides a trusted experience for consumers, and we’re looking for talented professionals to help take us to the next level. Are you ready to join the programmatic evolution?

Requirements

• 10+ years of experience in programmatic advertising, publisher operations, SSP operations, or digital media, with significant exposure to global markets
• Significant experience leading large, globally distributed operations teams, including managing senior managers and regional leaders, across multiple regions.
• Deep understanding of publisher monetization strategies across display, video, CTV, app and emerging channels
• Strong understanding of SSP operations, ad serving technologies, integration hygiene, and account optimization strategies
• Demonstrated experience acting as a senior escalation point for complex, high-stakes operational situations
• Proven ability to develop and execute customer-centric strategies that grow publisher revenue and strengthen partner relationships
• Experience establishing and monitoring performance metrics, operational KPIs, and driving continuous improvement initiatives
• Exceptional verbal and written communication skills, with experience presenting to executives and cross-functional teams
• Strong analytical and problem-solving capabilities, with a data-driven approach to operational decision-making
• Experience working across multiple geographies and time zones, with an appreciation for cultural nuance in global organizations
• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Marketing, Technology, or a related field; MBA or advanced degree preferred

Nice To Haves

• MBA or advanced degree preferred

Responsibilities

• Lead and Develop the Global Publisher Operations Organization: Manage a global team of Publisher Operations leaders and individual contributors, including recruiting, onboarding, and developing people managers in addition to individual contributors, ensuring scalable leadership, clear accountability, and succession planning across the function.
• Define Strategy and Vision: Set the strategy and operating model for Publisher Operations, translating company strategy into effective multi-quarter plans, including resourcing and capacity planning, as well as priorities across regions and teams.
• Drive Publisher Growth and Account Hygiene: Drive significant growth across publisher partners, always looking for new ways to grow revenue and ensure optimal integration setup and account hygiene.
• Operational Standards and Playbooks: Work cross-functionally with Publisher Operations leadership to outline requirements and standardize best practices for onboarding, integrating, optimizing, and improving publisher performance.
• Senior Escalation Point: Act as a senior escalation point of contact for internal teams and publishers on complex operational or technical issues and account-related questions.
• Operational Excellence and KPIs: Establish KPIs and operational metrics that drive accountability across the global team. Implement and monitor performance metrics, lead process improvements, and develop best-practice standards that ensure consistent quality in account management, integration support, troubleshooting, and publisher enablement across all regions.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partner closely with Product, Engineering, Sales, Account Management, and Platform Partnerships. Act as a bridge between the commercial and technical sides of the business, advocate for publisher needs internally, and support strategic company initiatives that require senior operational leadership. Support product launches across MVP, Alpha, Beta, and GA phases, including creating documentation, training materials, and internal enablement resources.
• Customer & Stakeholder Relationships: Establish new and cultivate existing relationships with key publisher accounts, with a focus on becoming their top partner. Ensure delivery on key publisher objectives, initiatives, and account plans.
• Organizational Communication & Alignment: Keep global Operations leadership informed of key developments, wins, risks, and opportunities across the function. Communicate proactively, ensure alignment across regions, and partner with senior leadership on strategy execution.
• AI-Forward Leadership: You champion the adoption of AI across the team, staying current on emerging tools and use cases and translating that knowledge into practical, day-to-day workflows. You set a clear vision for how AI enhances Publisher Operations — from automating routine tasks to improving decision-making and account support — and you lead by example, driving hands-on adoption rather than just advocating for it from the sidelines.

Benefits

• Comprehensive health, dental, and vision plans for you and your dependents
• Paid time off, health days, and personal obligation days plus flexible work schedules
• Competitive retirement matching plans
• Equity packages
• Generous parental leave available to birthing, non-birthing, and adoptive parents
• Annual well-being allowance plus fitness discounts and group wellness activities
• Employee assistance program
• Mental health first aid program that provides an in-the-moment point of contact and reassurance
• One day of volunteer time off per year and a donation-matching program
• Monthly town halls and regular community-led team events
• Multiple resources and programming to support continuous learning
• A workplace that supports a diverse, equitable, and inclusive environment

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior