Associate Director, Programmatic

At Real Chemistry, making the world a healthier place isn’t just an aspiration—it’s our everyday reality. Our drive to transform healthcare is informed by our blend of deep scientific expertise, human-centred creativity, and AI-driven insights, fostering a unique environment where innovation thrives and our people are impact-obsessed. As a global agency, we provide a full suite of services across healthcare communications and marketing to our clients, including top players in the pharmaceutical and biotech industries. Our culture is rooted in our people—we believe we are best together and are committed to excellence for both our clients and colleagues.

About the Role

The Associate Director, Programmatic is responsible for programmatic activation strategy and end-to-end management of digital media campaigns across key accounts. This role oversees planning, setup, QA, launch, optimization, troubleshooting, reporting, and day-to-day campaign management across programmatic display, video, audio, CTV, and emerging media. This role serves as a primary activation lead for internal teams, ensuring campaigns are accurate, on time, aligned to media plans, and optimized against client KPIs, budgets, business objectives, and timelines. The Associate Director should be comfortable operating independently, managing priorities, delegating work, and turning performance data into clear recommendations.

This role can be remote within the United States or based in any of our U.S. office locations, including New York City, Boston, Chicago, Lambertville, NJ, San Francisco, or Carmel, IN.

Responsibilities

• Lead tactical strategy, planning, execution, optimization, and day-to-day management of programmatic and digital media campaigns across key accounts.
• Manage campaign setup, QA, launch, maintenance, pacing, targeting, optimization, troubleshooting, and reporting across programmatic display, video, audio, CTV, and emerging channels.
• Ensure campaigns are activated on time, aligned with media plans and flighting, and optimized to meet client KPIs, business objectives, scope, and budget.
• Serve as the primary activation lead for internal teams, providing clear communication, timely updates, and accurate project management across campaign deliverables, requirements, timelines, and next steps.
• Analyze campaign performance to identify trends, surface issues, recommend optimizations, and translate results into actionable insights.
• Develop client-facing and internal deliverables, including planning materials, performance recaps, optimization summaries, recommendations, reporting slides, and wrap-up materials.
• Partner with Integrated Media, Analytics, Strategy, Ad Operations, Creative, Client Services, and vendors to ensure campaign needs are understood, executed smoothly, and measured appropriately.
• Manage vendor relationships, evaluate offerings and capabilities, support product trials and ad technology partnerships, and identify workflow improvements that improve quality and efficiency.
• Oversee creative QA, vendor specs, UTM creation, campaign taxonomy, tracking requirements, trafficking needs, platform setup, billing, and actualization in partnership with cross-functional teams.
• Maintain and improve operational processes, SOPs, QA standards, and best practices to drive consistency, accuracy, client satisfaction, and team efficiency.
• Manage, mentor, train, and support Managers, Associates, and junior team members while establishing clear roles, responsibilities, priorities, and delegation.
• Stay current on industry trends, platform updates, optimization algorithms, emerging ad technology, and programmatic best practices.

Requirements

• 5-7+ years of experience in digital media buying, trading, campaign management, media activation, ad operations, or digital media operations; equivalent experience may be considered.
• 3-5+ years of hands-on, in-platform programmatic experience.
• Strong understanding of digital media channels, including programmatic, CTV, display, video, and audio.
• Advanced knowledge of buying platforms and ad operations tools such as GCM/DoubleClick, DSPs, The Trade Desk, DeepIntent, Pulsepoint, DV360, MediaOcean, Google Analytics, and similar platforms.
• Experience managing or mentoring Managers, Associates, or junior team members, including onboarding, training, and workflow coaching.
• Experience leading day-to-day meetings, statuses, internal communications, vendor communications, and client-facing deliverables.
• Proven ability to manage multiple clients, brands, campaigns, priorities, and deadlines in a fast-paced environment.
• Experience developing platform strategy, tactical recommendations, optimization plans, performance insights, and client-ready reporting materials.
• Strong analytical, mathematical, and critical-thinking skills, with the ability to interpret campaign performance and translate data into recommendations.
• Excellent communication, collaboration, project management, organization, prioritization, and time management skills, with strict attention to detail and accuracy.
• Solutions-oriented mindset with the ability to identify, troubleshoot, and resolve issues.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint, and Word, with advanced Excel skills preferred; Google Suite experience is a plus.
• Healthcare, pharmaceutical, or agency media experience preferred but not required.
• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent work experience preferred.

Company Values

This position is a perfect fit for you if our company values—Best Together, Impact Obsessed, Excellence Expected, Evolve Always, and Accountability with an "I"—genuinely resonate with how you work and lead. You demonstrate the Real Chemistry Can mindset by approaching challenges with optimism, accountability, creativity, and a solutions-oriented attitude, always looking for ways to make a meaningful impact for our clients, colleagues, and communities. You are adaptable, resilient, and comfortable adjusting your scope, responsibilities, and priorities in a fast-paced, evolving environment. You are proactive, driven, and resourceful, with strong prioritization skills, intellectual curiosity, and a desire to leverage data to inform decisions and drive outcomes. You are energized by innovation and the transformative potential of AI, actively exploring new technologies, identifying opportunities to work smarter, and championing practical, responsible AI adoption that drives meaningful business impact.

Pay

The anticipated salary range for this position is $90,000-$120,000. Consistent with applicable law, compensation will be determined based on job-related, non-discriminatory factors including but not limited to experience, skills, qualifications, geographic location, and internal parity.

Benefits

Real Chemistry offers a comprehensive benefits package and a variety of programs designed to support our employees' well-being, growth, and success. Globally, this includes:

• Offices in key markets with free snacks.
• Generous holiday and paid time off.
• Options for private medical, dental, and vision plans.
• Support in saving for the future.
• Mental wellness coaching and support.
• Access to more than 13,000 online classes with LinkedIn Learning.

Learn more about our great benefits and perks and search specific offerings in your region at: www.realchemistrybenefits.com.

Schedule

Real Chemistry’s Real Hybrid and Regional Teams (Real HART) approach is designed to foster collaboration, learning, innovation, and meaningful relationships while providing flexibility where appropriate. Work arrangements may vary by role and location:

• For employees located within a one-hour commute of a Real Chemistry office, we require in-person attendance two days per week, either from a Real Chemistry office or when working onsite with clients.
• Employees in regions without a nearby office may work remotely and come together throughout the year for collaboration, culture-building, learning, and team connection opportunities.