Senior Manager Brand Media Strategy & Operations

Purpose & Overall Relevance for the Organization:

 

The Senior Manager, Brand Media Strategy & Operations for the US will be responsible for breakthrough media campaigns supported by strategies & best practices from planning through to execution. This role is a managerial role, with responsibility managing people, cross-functional teams and external partners. Additionally, this role supports the Director, Brand Media Strategy & Operations in media strategy development, application of the media vision through campaign execution and media agency management. Day-to-day, this person will have a key role in intake, briefing, planning, execution, creative handover & adaptation, budgeting, and reporting in partnership with teams in Brand Communications, Performance Marketing, Newsroom/PR, Sports Marketing, Culture Marketing, Digital Innovation, Strategic Planning & Brand Health, and the US Media AOR.

 

This role will partner with Brand Communications teams closely to plan and execute with excellence, while elevating and finding ways to most effectively work with the agency.

 

Key Responsibilities:

• Work closely with Brand Communications teams to ensure plans enact sound strategies. Translate those into objectives and agency campaign briefs that inspire the AOR’s best thinking to deliver campaign targets and ultimately drive topline growth.
• Advise on media budget setting with Brand Communications teams and media agency, managing financial responsibility and tracking of POs.
• Review and manage feedback process of media plans to ensure adoption of best practices, thresholds, and overarching strategic direction.
• Drive custom media & content partnerships in addition to contributing to success of the creative handover process for campaign assets, briefing in creative adaptation needs to meet specifications of media plans in partnership with Brand Communications teams.
• Mentor junior media team member(s) and cross-functional stakeholders, identifying upskilling and growth opportunities to develop organizational talent and delver day-to-day executional excellence.
• Own timelines & project management milestones throughout the entire process of bringing media campaigns to market. Oversee workback schedules that ensure critical deliverables are met, internal stakeholders are accountable to deadlines and streamline workflow with the agency. Develop or evolve operational processes to improve ways of working.
• Develop and present presentations and plan overviews to NAM cross-functional partners and at times, senior leadership.
• Help manage the overall media relationship with the horizontal and category brand communications teams, acting as media expert and valued partner. Provide and share best practices and innovative opportunities, at times together with key cross-functional partner teams.
• Maintain key relationships with Global media team and international Market media teams to align approaches, find cross-market opportunities and share best practices.
• Act as a consultant for other teams that purchase media (ex: Trade Marketing).
• Identify opportunities in the media landscape to create impact among key consumer groups and give the brand competitive advantage. Build and maintain strong relationships with media partners and stay up to date on media trends to share broadly.
• Support Director, Brand Media Strategy and Operations and NAM senior leaders in agency resourcing, contract scope, and future proof planning for business needs/challenges.
• Collaborate with Strategic Planning & Brand Health to develop key media insights from annual MMM outputs, evangelizing learnings and informing brand strategy processes.

 

Key Relationships:

 

US Brand Activation and Digital Activation + Media leadership

US Brand Communications, Horizontal and Business Unit Categories

US Performance Marketing

US Newsroom

US Strategic Planning & Brand Health

US Digital Activation

US Sports Marketing (SpoMa)

US Culture Marketing

Global Media

International Market Media

Media AOR

Media Partner Representatives

Partner Agencies in content creation & creative adaptation

 

 

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

 

• Strong interpersonal, written and verbal communication skills and high level of strategic thinking.
• Superior writing, research, presentation and organizational/project management skills, including the ability to work on several projects simultaneously with attention to detail.
• Experience in media strategy, media planning, media buying – with digital as key focus.
• Ability to manage and collaborate with internal and external cross-functional groups.
• Experience in m