Senior Programmatic Lead Jobs in Chicago, IL (NOW HIRING)

Company Description

About Publicis Commerce: Informed by data, our passionate team strives to deliver Hero Moments for our clients' brands in the final mile of the retail customer journey. We pride ourselves on being able to provide winning client solutions delivered across 7 core capability areas: Data & Consumer Insights; Shopper Marketing & Integrated RTM; Field Marketing; Events & Activations; Promotional, Risk, Reward & Loyalty and Retail POS Strategy.

Overview

We're seeking a Senior Manager, Programmatic to lead commerce-focused programmatic activation and strategy across retail media ecosystems. This role will drive audience development, media activation, optimization, and performance analysis across DSPs while partnering closely with clients and internal teams to deliver measurable business outcomes.

The ideal candidate will bring deep experience in programmatic advertising within commerce media or retail media environments, including hands-on experience with Amazon DSP and other retail media platforms. This individual will lead team development, shape activation best practices, and provide strategic guidance across client portfolios.

Candidates must reside within commuting distance of our Atlanta, Chicago, or New York office for a hybrid work schedule.

Responsibilities

Commerce Media & Programmatic Strategy

• Lead the development and execution of commerce-focused programmatic media strategies across retail media ecosystems.
• Build audience strategies leveraging retailer first-party data, shopper insights, and commerce signals to achieve client business objectives.
• Provide strategic leadership across Amazon DSP, Walmart DSP, and other programmatic activation platforms.
• Develop recommendations around audience segmentation, inventory selection, bidding methodologies, measurement frameworks, and optimization strategies.

Campaign Activation & Performance

• Oversee the setup, execution, optimization, and reporting of programmatic campaigns across DSP platforms.
• Drive performance improvements through audience refinement, bid strategy optimization, inventory curation, and testing initiatives.
• Identify opportunities to expand activation across retail media networks and commerce-driven media channels.
• Establish best practices and operational processes to ensure campaign quality, accuracy, and performance excellence.

Client Leadership & Strategic Planning

• Partner with internal and client stakeholders to develop integrated commerce media plans aligned with broader marketing and business objectives.
• Present strategic recommendations, performance insights, and optimization plans to senior client stakeholders.
• Translate campaign performance, shopper behavior, and audience insights into actionable business recommendations.
• Serve as a subject matter expert on commerce media and retail media industry trends, platform capabilities, and emerging opportunities.

Team Leadership & Development

• Lead, mentor, and develop Programmatic Managers and Specialists.
• Provide guidance on platform activation, audience development, reporting, and optimization best practices.
• Establish team standards, workflows, and training initiatives that support continued growth and scalability.
• Foster a collaborative, high-performance environment focused on innovation, accountability, and professional development.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience in programmatic advertising, commerce media, retail media, or digital media activation.
• Hands-on experience managing campaigns within Amazon DSP and other leading demand-side platforms.
• Experience developing media strategies within commerce media, retail media, eCommerce, marketplace, or omnichannel marketing environments.
• Strong understanding of audience targeting, bidding strategies, measurement frameworks, inventory selection, and optimization methodologies.
• Demonstrated success managing complex client relationships and presenting media recommendations to stakeholders.
• Experience mentoring, coaching, or managing team members.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving capabilities.
• Advanced Excel skills, including Pivot Tables, lookups, and performance analysis.
• Excellent communication, presentation, and storytelling abilities.
• Ability to balance strategic thinking with hands-on execution when needed.

Additional Information

The Power of One starts with our people! To do powerful things, we offer powerful resources. Our best-in-class wellness and benefits offerings include:

Paid Family Care for parents and caregivers for 12 weeks or moreMonetary assistance and support for Adoption, Surrogacy and FertilityMonetary assistance and support for pet adoptionEmployee Assistance Programs and Health/Wellness/Comfort reimbursements to help you invest in your future and work/life balanceTuition AssistancePaid time off that includes Flexible Time off Vacation, Annual Sick Days, Volunteer Days, Holiday and Identity days, and moreMatching Gifts programsFlexible working arrangements'Work Your World' Program encouraging employees to work from anywhere Publicis Groupe has an office for up to 6 weeks a year (based upon eligibility)Business Resource Groups that support multiple affinities and alliances

The benefits offerings listed are available to eligible U.S. Based employees, are reviewed on an annual basis, and are governed by the terms of the applicable plan documents.

We also offer medical and voluntary benefits to our freelancers and temporary employees. Voluntary benefit options include supplemental medical insurance, transportation, and parking benefits, legal benefits, pet insurance, and auto and home insurance. You must be actively employed for 90 consecutive calendar days in order to be eligible for Publicis medical and voluntary benefits.

Publicis Commerce is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Our employment decisions are made without regard to actual or perceived race, color, ethnicity, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, childbirth and related medical conditions, national origin, ancestry, citizenship status, age, disability, medical condition as defined by applicable state law, genetic information, marital status, military service and veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state or local laws and ordinances.

If you require accommodation or assistance with the application or onboarding process specifically, please contact USMTTACompliance@publicis.com.

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.

 Compensation Range: USD $97,375.00 - USD $155,961.00/Annually. This is the pay range the Company believes it will pay for this position at the time of this posting. Consistent with applicable law, compensation will be determined based on the skills, qualifications, and experience of the applicant along with the requirements of the position, and the Company reserves the right to modify this pay range at any time. Temporary roles may be eligible to participate in our freelancer/temporary employee medical plan through a third-party benefits administration system once certain criteria have been met. For regular roles, the Company will offer medical coverage, dental, vision, disability, 401k, and paid time off. The Company anticipates the application deadline for this job posting will be 9/27/2026.Employment Type: FULL_TIME