Activation Operations Lead

About EssenceMediacom

EssenceMediacom, part of GroupM, is a data-driven global agency that blends data science, objective media and captivating experiences to build valuable connections between brands and consumers. Clients include Google, FrieslandCampina, and the Financial Times. The agency is more than 1,100 people strong, manages over $3B in media spend and deploys campaigns in 71 markets via its global offices throughout North America, EMEA and APAC.

Visit essenceglobal.com for more information and follow us on Twitter at @essenceglobal .

About the role

As a Activation Operations Lead, you will report into the regional VP of Activation, and be accountable for the strategic and day-to-day leadership of operations across a portfolio of clients.

Leading a small team, and partnering with Activation, you will be expected to:

• Lead the successful delivery of work across portfolio, by ensuring work is effectively planned, effort is carefully project managed, barriers to delivery are overcome and risks are proactively managed
• Champion the use of the agency’s ways of working, and strive for their continual improvement, to drive operational effectiveness and work quality across portfolios

Some of the things we’d like you to do:

Supporting Activation Performance

• Oversee the development of clear scopes of work and commercial proposals

○ Partner with Activation to understand client needs and translate requirements to activation scope of work, and build a clear understanding of work effort to deliver it

• Maintain visibility of activation performance to drive future recommendations

○ Partner with teams to ensure resource utilization, campaign output (i.e. collated pacing, kpi achievement) and performance is accurately reported

○ Make ongoing recommendations to activation as to how they can manage work to meet targets (whether via automation/ process improvement)

• Maintain a view of activation demand and resourcing requirements

○ Work with Resource Management to identify ways to leverage different resourcing solutions [including permanent, freelancing, offshoring and outsourcing] to best match resourcing to fluctuating activation needs to ensure we can deliver the work on time and to expectations

• Support the generation of incremental revenue

○ Identify areas of service that are out of scope, and work with Activation to develop compelling proposals for cross-sell or upsell opportunities

Leading the Delivery of Work

• Support project management onboarding of new clients, ensuring they are set up for operational success from the outset
• Develop, coach and manage Account/Project managers to:

○ Translate scopes of work into effective project plans that will ensure we meet client expectations on time and on budget.

○ Give activation leadership visibility of the necessary obligations to meet the plan, and help them set appropriate expectations and hold them to account

○ Coordinate efforts across the cross-functional team, including the successful use of daily huddles to maintain context and drive decisions, and break-out sessions to overcome challenges

○ Maintain an up-to-date view of progress against plan, working with them to get effort back on track if behind plan, and escalating to activation for input where appropriate

• Support activation by inspiring the cross-functional team to effectively collaborate and communicate in a truly integrated way in global and regional projects/ workstreams

Driving Operational Effectiveness

• Ensure cross-functional teams are holding regular wash-ups, which lead to actionable recommendations that are implemented to improve the way they work together
• Lead some of the regional initiatives to drive improvement, and ensure the successful adoption of all agency improvements [including those led by your colleagues] within your portfolio

A bit about yourself:

• You’ll have 5+ years’ experience, with a proven track record in an operations or project management role within a service industry
• You have strong project management skills, balancing best-in-class approaches with pragmatism for a given situation
• You can demonstrate strategic initiatives you successfully delivered to improve business effectiveness
• You have a data-driven, analytical mind, able to use it to identify route causes to complex problems
• You can make decisions and resolve problems quickly and effectively
• You are a very organized person, and have strong attention to detail, allowing you to bring structure to otherwise unstructured situation
• You have strong spoken and written communication skills, ensuring you can get your point across, and drive engagement and interest in most situations
• You have well-tuned relationship skills, and you’re able to use them to build rapport and influence people at all levels
• You have a can-do attitude, you can multi-task and you remain calm and composed under pressure
• You exude positivity and energy, and you can thrive in a fast-paced and dynamic working environment
• You work best in team environments, and you are a beacon of collaboration
• You’re able to recruit, develop and nurture a talented team

More about EssenceMediacom

We are a global communications agency leading with breakthrough thinking, building explosive growth for brands, and helping our clients see the bigger picture. Our daring global network of 10,000 influencers help our clients breach traditional boundaries in media, uncover novel ideas, and unleash exponential growth. EssenceMediacom challenges conventional thinking to build, propel, and supercharge our clients’ businesses at scale and lead our industry in critical areas such as diversity, equity, inclusion, and sustainability.

EssenceMediacom understands that our people are tasked with big goals: building breakthrough growth for brands and leading with breakthrough thinking in our industry. Our people are at the heart of this work because their ideas will enable us to decode the intersections of people, content, and technology to bring our aspirations to life. Our success is down to our eclectic, diverse, and talented people.

EssenceMediacom is a place for us to grow our careers and expand our horizons. EssenceMediacom is committed to building an agency culture that supports our people, puts diversity at the forefront of our operations, and creates opportunity for all. This collective culture will be our “new power” where ideas are freely exchanged, and collaboration is actively encouraged in a place where you can innovate in our hyperconnected world.

About GroupM Singapore

GroupM Singapore operates in one of the most dynamic and exciting environments in the world. Although it is a small domestic market, there is a vibrant media industry which is undergoing rapid evolution as digital technology reshapes the way marketing supports advertisers’ needs. Being at the crossroads of Asia means, that aside from the local clients and media owners, we also have a high proportion of multi-national clients, renowned brands and media owners. Making GroupM Singapore the Number One organisation to join and develop your career in media investment. GroupM is an equal opportunity employer. We view everyone as an individual and we understand that inclusion is more than just diversity – it’s about belonging. We celebrate the fact that everyone is unique and that’s what makes us so good at what we do. We pride ourselves on being a company that embraces difference and truly represents the global clients we work with.

GroupM APAC is committed to fostering a culture of diversity and inclusion. Our people are our strength, so we respect and nurture their individual talent and potential.