Associate Director, Programmatic
Confirmed on the employer's own hiring board on Oct 16, 2026. First seen by Alion on Oct 16, 2026. Known scores A on the Alion truth index.
WE HAVE CREATED A WORLD WHERE ART AND SCIENCE ARE BEST FRIENDS
Known is what happens when a data science firm and a creative agency stop arguing and start collaborating. We were built from scratch with PhD data scientists and award-winning creatives working on the same briefs, from day one. That structure earned us an Ad Age #3 A-List ranking, back-to-back Data & Insights Agency of the Year wins, plus Emmys, Cannes Lions, Clios, and Effies across clients in finance, tech, entertainment, consumer goods, and real estate. We're distributed across the U.S. and unapologetically ambitious.
If you're tired of choosing between doing smart work and doing creative work, you'll fit right in here.
BUT ENOUGH ABOUT US, LET'S TALK ABOUT YOU
About the role:
Known’s Media Science team uses advanced analytics, machine learning, statistics, and algorithms to plan and optimize advertising dollars. We translate our clients’ business goals into meaningful metrics, then buy media across all channels to drive those outcomes. You’ll work alongside data analysts, data scientists, media buyers, and software engineers.
As Associate Director, Programmatic, you’ll set the approach to programmatic across multiple clients, lead the team that carries it out, and stay close enough to the work to guide it in the platforms. You’ll be accountable for results, for the quality of the team’s work, and for the growth of the people on it.
WHAT YOU’LL DO
- Drive performance for your clients’ campaigns by meeting their targets and telling clear, insightful stories about the results.
- Design and author the team’s overall strategy and approach to programmatic across multiple clients.
- Translate each client’s business objectives into programmatic plans, and coordinate them with social, search, and addressable TV.
- Manage KPIs, deadlines, and day-to-day spend for the campaigns you oversee, working with channel specialists on strategy, insights, and optimizations.
- Manage and develop your direct reports and take responsibility for the whole team’s growth, including training and mentoring.
- Set best practice for setup, optimization, and reporting, share knowledge across teams, and maintain quality control procedures for campaign implementation.
- Be the point of escalation for problems, resolving them in a client-centric environment and coordinating the team’s response.
- Evaluate and manage vendors and partners to broaden the team’s capabilities.
- Help guide internal research and development for automation, optimization, and machine learning.
- Build analyses, stories, and slides for client media plans and reports.
- Explain Known’s programmatic value, technology, and process to current and prospective clients, and support new business.
- Stay current on programmatic trends, technologies, and best practices.
WHO YOU ARE AND WHAT YOU HAVE
- A degree from a well-regarded college or university; STEM preferred.
- 7+ years of hands-on experience managing the buying, strategy, and execution of data-driven performance programmatic campaigns, ideally at a digital agency, including experience leading people.
- 2+ years of management experience, including team check-ins, aligning team priorities, and training new members on programmatic and organization processes.
- Deep experience in major DSPs, ideally The Trade Desk, Amazon DSP, and Google DV360, across display, video, and CTV.
- An understanding of how programmatic teams work with social, search, strategy, and measurement teams.
- Experience across verticals and across performance and brand campaigns.
Skills, abilities, and knowledge
- Expertise designing high-performance programmatic campaigns: allocation, measurement plan, strategy, and scaling budgets.
- Comfort going in-platform to pull analyses when needed.
- An understanding of the basic stats and math behind smart media buying.
- Excellent communication and presentation skills.
- Experience working directly with data scientists is a plus.
- Experience multitasking in a fast-paced environment is a plus.
Competencies
- Translates business challenges into quantitative problems and delivers high-quality work that meets client expectations.
- Delegates well to junior team members.
- Highly collaborative.
- Committed to the quality and accuracy of analytics, in your own work and in the work of others.
SOME OF OUR PERKS
- Unlimited paid time off
- 401k with company matching and no vesting period
- Annual bonuses
- Generous medical plan
- Paid parental leave
ONE LAST THING TO ASK YOURSELF All this might sound great, but you’re probably still wondering, “Would I be a good fit for Known?” or “Would Known be a good fit for me?” Our culture is propped up by four values that we aspire to every day: We are one team. We see the good. We never stop learning. There’s always a better way. At Known we are setting out to build something more than just a company. We are building a legacy filled with exceptionally talented people with a kaleidoscope of backgrounds, experiences, and origin stories who feel encouraged and empowered to bring their whole selves to work, and to partner with us in molding and shaping our culture through our values.
Known is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate against employees or qualified job applicants on the basis of race, color, sex, age, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, status as a veteran, and basis of disability or any other federal, state or locally protected class.
The base salary for this position is $115K-$125K
This range is posted in compliance with state and municipal Pay Transparency laws. In addition to base compensation, this role is eligible to receive additional Known benefits.