Senior Manager, Paid Search

McGarrah Jessee

4d•Remote

About The Position

McGarrah Jessee is looking for a Senior Manager, Paid Search — someone who doesn’t just manage keywords and bids, but architects how search drives full-funnel retail growth in a world where discovery is being rewritten in real time. This role sits at the intersection of performance marketing, retail strategy, data and emerging AI-driven discovery — translating business ambition into search ecosystems that capture demand, create demand and defend against it being intercepted upstream. You’ll lead SEM for a major national retail brand, overseeing a multimillion dollar monthly investment while partnering directly with senior client leadership to connect business priorities to platform execution. This is not a “manage the account” role. This is a shape how search works in a post-search world role.

Requirements

7+ years of paid search experience, with a background in high-volume B2C campaigns.
2+ years of management experience with at least two direct reports.
Budget Scale: Proven track record of directly managing monthly ad spends of $1MM+.
Bachelor’s degree in marketing, business or analytics, or equivalent experience.
Deep Platform Knowledge: Expert-level proficiency in Google Ads (Search, Shopping, PMax), Microsoft Ads, and SA360 (or similar enterprise tools).
Analytics & Reporting: Advanced proficiency in GA4 or Adobe Analytics and Excel/Google Sheets.
Automation Fluency: Comfort with script adoption and using AI for reporting insights. Willingness to embrace new technology to solve old problems.
Retail Acumen: You understand retail math (margins, inventory turn, seasonality) and how digital marketing impacts the bottom line.
Clear Communicator: You can explain complex SEM concepts to non-technical stakeholders without getting lost in the jargon.
Detail-Oriented: You have a "zero-defect" mentality regarding campaign setup, budget pacing, and QA.

Nice To Haves

Experience with visualization tools like Power BI, Looker Studio or Tableau is highly preferred.

Responsibilities

Own the full-funnel role of search across the retail business — from demand capture to demand creation to demand defense.
Translate merchandising priorities, seasonal moments and inventory realities into search strategy.
Define how search shows up across key retail moments — from everyday intent to peak events to cultural spikes.
Architect how search integrates with broader media, retail media networks and owned channels.
Drive the Roadmap: Own the holistic SEM strategy for a major retail account, aligning paid search efforts with the client’s seasonal calendar, merchandising priorities and inventory fluctuations.
Client Partnership: Act as the primary point of contact for the client’s marketing team. Translate complex campaign data into clear, business-centric narratives for VP+ level audiences.
Budget Stewardship: Direct the allocation of monthly budgets exceeding $1MM, ensuring agile fund movement to capture demand during peak sales events.
Omnichannel Growth: Develop strategies that simultaneously drive online ROAS and local store visits, utilizing the full suite of search products (Performance Max, Shopping, Local Inventory Ads, YouTube and Demand Gen).
AI & Automation: Lead the agency’s adoption of scripts and AI tools to automate bidding, streamline reporting, and visualize data. You will test new workflows to optimize output and create efficiencies.
Data-Driven Optimization: Move beyond basic metrics. Analyze full-funnel performance (from impression to conversion) to provide actionable insights that inform not just bids, but creative and landing page decisions.
Mentorship: Manage and mentor a team of SEM Managers and Specialists. Foster a culture of rigorous QA, testing and continuous professional development.
Cross-Channel Integration: Collaborate with the client’s internal and external partners (SEO, Affiliate, Display) to ensure a unified market presence and consistent messaging.