Media Director

About John McNeil Studio

John McNeil Studio (JMS) is a full-service creative agency that transforms ambitious brands through storytelling design and experience. We believe powerful ideas thrive when strategy creativity and media execution work together seamlessly. We are a studio-based culture where creativity and collaboration thrive in shared space. We embrace flexibility but we believe our best work happens when were connected in person.

The Role

We are seeking a Media Director to help define and grow our current media capabilities as a core part of our integrated offering. As the Media Director you will shape and scale a new practice area manage paid media for existing clients and play a central role in winning new business.

This role is deeply collaborative: youll work shoulder-to-shoulder with our creative and strategy teams to ensure media isnt just a channel but a contextual extension of brand ideas. Youll also act as a connector across disciplines ensuring media planning creative development and brand strategy are fully aligned in both process and outcome.

This is also a builders role. Were looking for someone with an entrepreneurial drive able to operate independently while inspiring collaboration across the studio.

Key Responsibilities

• Help us navigate for a best-in-class practice with emphasis on brand advertising and upper-funnel channels.
• Recruit inspire and grow a high-performing media teamor source and manage best-fit external agency/vendor partnerships.
• Oversee media strategy planning and buying reporting and optimization across diverse clients.
• Establish processes tools and best practices that foster innovation agility and accountability.
• Drive the media component of new businessdeveloping strategies shaping pitches and showcasing JMSs capabilities.
• Track emerging platforms technologies and behaviors to keep our approach sharp and future focused.
• Serve as media advisor offering trusted counsel clarity and measurable results.
• Partner with our clients demand media agencies to deliver cohesive end-to-end media strategy throughout the funnel.
• Partner with finance and operations to ensure transparency accuracy and profitability in managing media spend.
• Work in partnership with the creative team to develop innovative media activations and partnerships to maximize the efficiency and visibility of our creative efforts.
• Work in partnership with the strategy department to ensure message consistency align target audience insights and enhance creative effectiveness.

Qualifications

• 6 years leading integrated media strategy across brand and performance channels.
• Expertise across digital and traditional media with strength in brand-building and upper-funnel campaigns.
• Demonstrated success pitching and winning new business.
• Strong leadership experience managing teams agencies and vendor relationships.
• Financial and operational acumen in managing large-scale budgets.
• Highly collaborative with the ability to integrate media thinking seamlessly into creative and strategic processes.
• Passion for innovation and a clear point of view on the future of media.

This is a full-time position with a generous benefits package including healthcare benefits FSA PTO and 401k match.Location is onsite full time at our Studio in Berkeley California.

Required Experience:

Manager