Performance Director

November 7, 2026

Hybrid

Senior

London, United Kingdom

Also worth knowing

Mandatory office attendance
3 days per week

Description

Senior performance role at an independent digital media agency in London, leading paid search and social across a hub of four or five premium, luxury and lifestyle clients. The role combines hands-on PPC platform work with senior client strategy, annual planning, budget allocation and team leadership. The successful candidate will shape the agency's point of view on AI-driven search and contribute to new business pitches.

Responsibilities

Own the strategy, performance and growth of paid search and social channels across your client portfolio for full-funnel results
Lead search within one client hub as the senior performance lead across four or five accounts
Champion and further develop the Unified Search offering alongside the Head of Performance and Effectiveness
Own paid search strategy across Google Ads and Microsoft Advertising, spanning brand protection, non-brand acquisition, Shopping and Performance Max
Set annual and quarterly search plans with clients, translating commercial goals such as revenue, ROAS and profit into clear targets and budgets
Lead market and budget allocation decisions across regions and campaigns to maximise incremental return on media investment
Shape the point of view on AI-driven search, including Performance Max, AI Max for Search and AI Overviews, turning it into practical client advantage
Drive a structured test-and-learn agenda, including incrementality testing on brand and Performance Max, feed management and creative experiments
Partner with measurement and data teams to ensure tracking, conversion modelling, value-based bidding and attribution are accurate and robust
Connect search performance to wider measurement, including MMM and incrementality results, so investment decisions reflect true contribution
Interrogate performance data at every level and turn it into clear, concise recommendations for senior stakeholders
Act as the senior search lead for key clients, leading quarterly business reviews and building relationships with marketing, e-commerce and senior leadership stakeholders
Bring conversations up from channel detail into broader discussions about growth across paid media
Line manage, coach and develop the wider team, setting standards for account structure, QA and auditing
Support and motivate junior team members within the hub structure
Work closely with paid social, organic search, creative and measurement colleagues to deliver a joined-up full-funnel approach
Contribute to new business pitches, audits and proposals, and help grow existing accounts
Help build agency processes, frameworks and thought leadership in luxury and premium search

Requirements

6+ years in paid search for Associate Director level, or 8+ years for Director level, including leading a team or a multi-client search portfolio in an agency or client-side
Deep hands-on expertise in Google Ads and Microsoft Advertising, including Shopping, Performance Max, AI Max for Search and value-based bidding
Confidence to stay close to platform detail while also leading strategic client conversations
Strong working knowledge of paid social and other paid channels
Appetite and commercial understanding to speak credibly about the wider paid media ecosystem if search-led
Strong command of Google Merchant Center and product feed optimisation for e-commerce and DTC brands
Track record of growing revenue and profitability for premium, luxury, fashion or lifestyle brands across multiple markets
Solid understanding of measurement, including GA4, server-side tagging, enhanced conversions, attribution, incrementality testing and MMM
Clear understanding of how brand, demand generation and demand capture work together to deliver DTC goals such as ROAS, revenue and new customer growth
Ability to hold your own with clients on paid search and social with strong commercial judgement
Confidence presenting to and influencing senior stakeholders
Experience managing, coaching and developing people, and building team processes and standards
Advanced Excel or Google Sheets and PowerPoint
SQL, Looker Studio or scripting experience is a bonus
New business experience including audits, pitches and proposals is a strong advantage
Curiosity about where search is heading, from AI Overviews to the links between paid and organic search
Clear concise communication, good judgement on when to push, and a positive upbeat approach that helps motivate the team