WPP Media: Performance Executive

About the role

The role operates within WPP Media's AI-driven media operating unit and concentrates on search, social, and display channels. You will own the end-to-end performance of client campaigns, ensuring that strategies are executed with precision and results are aligned with business objectives. Outcomes are measured by impact on client revenue growth and marketing results, requiring you to connect data directly to commercial impact. You will translate complex performance data into clear narratives that drive decisions and optimize ongoing media investments. This position demands a proactive mindset that anticipates market shifts and adjusts tactics to sustain growth. You will act as a bridge between data, creativity, and strategy to ensure seamless execution. Success in this role is defined by your ability to deliver measurable improvements in campaign efficiency and client outcomes.

Key facts

What you'll do

Develop weekly performance reports that are presented to stakeholders to translate key metrics into clear, actionable recommendations that support client marketing outcomes. Analyze campaign results systematically to identify trends, draw conclusions, and document key learnings that strengthen future campaign strategies and creative directions. Lead the management of paid search and social campaigns, ensuring budgets are optimized and objectives are met with precision. Apply strong analytical skills to convert raw data into actionable insights that inform media adjustments and strategic pivots. Drive a creative and solutions-oriented mindset to solve complex performance challenges and uncover new growth opportunities. Communicate findings and recommendations with excellence, ensuring that insights are accessible to both technical and non-technical stakeholders. Maintain an organized approach to work, managing multiple priorities and deadlines without compromising quality or accuracy. Collaborate closely with media, data, and creative teams across the WPP network to align on shared goals and best practices. Utilize spreadsheet tools and dashboards to monitor performance in real time and support data-driven decision making. Build a deep understanding of paid search and social campaigns to identify opportunities for testing and scaling successful tactics.

Requirements

A bachelor's degree is preferred, ideally in a STEM major, providing a foundation for understanding complex data structures and analytical problems. Relevant experience in digital media, paid advertising, or media buying is required, with agency experience as an advantage for understanding diverse client needs. Managing paid search and social campaigns successfully is necessary for this role, demonstrating a track record of driving performance at scale. Analytical skills must be strong enough to translate data into actionable insights, enabling the team to make informed decisions quickly. A creative and solutions-oriented mindset is expected to approach challenges with innovation and resilience. Communication and collaboration skills must be excellent to work effectively with cross-functional teams and clients. An organized approach to work is required to manage workflows, timelines, and deliverables efficiently. Candidates must be comfortable working in a hybrid environment, attending office sessions around four days a week to foster close collaboration. A commitment to continuous learning and adapting to new media tools and technologies is essential in this fast-paced role.

Nice to have

There are no specific preferred items listed in the source beyond the core requirements and expectations for the role.

Practical notes

Typical interview steps

Leadership hiring usually includes a strategy case, a people scenario, and a values conversation. Candidates may be asked to turn around a struggling team or plan for growth. Past results are examined closely, especially how decisions were made. Interviewers dig into specific decisions you made and their consequences. Preparing two or three decision stories with numbers and lessons is the best use of time.

Good to know

Performance marketing roles focus on measurable outcomes such as conversions and return on ad spend. Analytical thinking and data-driven decision making are central to daily responsibilities. Collaboration across media, data, and creative teams is common in media operating units. Proficiency with spreadsheet tools and dashboards supports reporting and insights. Understanding of paid search and social campaigns is valuable in digital media environments.

Questions to ask

Useful questions for the interview: what a typical week looks like, how work is assigned, what tools the team uses, and how feedback works. Asking how the role has changed recently and what the team wishes it had known when joining is also reasonable. Questions about the manager's priorities are especially valued.

Career growth

Leadership careers move from manager to senior manager, director, and executive roles. Each step adds more scope and more responsibility for outcomes. The best leaders keep learning how to delegate, communicate, and decide. Leadership careers reward a record of building and developing people. The higher you go, the more your communication shapes the whole organization.