Manager, Strategic Partnerships

2598 - Manager, Strategic Partnerships

ONE WPP – Vision '30

Join us in shaping the future of our industry with Vision '30 – our ambitious strategy to lead in the AI era. We are revolutionizing our business to unlock limitless growth opportunities for our clients and ourselves, built on four core priorities:

1. Collaboration: Foster unprecedented levels of data collaboration across WPP and partners through WPP Open, turning every channel into a smarter opportunity.
2. Data & Technology: Leverage our AI-powered Open Intelligence solution, connecting vast data to uncover unique insights, deliver predictive performance and superior brand experiences through our globally consistent DPAM process.
3. Innovation: Drive true innovation by generating intelligence from trillions of privacy-by-default data points, focusing on the 'why' behind customer behaviour to create unparalleled competitive advantages.
4. People: Developing future-ready talent involves evolving our focus from traditional media planning to strategic business outcomes, advanced technology and real-time measurable results, as AI increasingly automates media investment by 2030

 

We empower ambitious experts to deliver extraordinary work by challenging ordinary thinking. If you are passionate about an AI-driven future, thrive in a collaborative and data-centric environment, and are driven to deliver unparalleled growth, we invite you to be part of our transformative journey.

WPP Media is a single client centric company with a portfolio of go to market brands. Wavemaker, EssenceMediacom, Mindshare and T&P are our agency teams, these house multiple local and global clients.  In addition, we have a number of client specific brands built to service specific clients. These include OpenDoor (Amazon), MFG (Google), OpenMind (Nestle), OpenConnect (BT/EE) and Media Futures Group (Google).  All of these teams are supported by consistent capabilities, enterprise level tools and systems and our market leading OPEN platform.   

Role Summary and Impact

The Manager is a hands-on operational role within WPP Media, responsible for delivering agreed objectives within a defined area of the business. They support the execution of plans, manage day-to-day activity through others, and ensure operational standards, process adherence and stakeholder service quality. This role requires strong organisation, sound judgement and the ability to solve practical problems within established guidelines and with support from senior leaders.

Capability Description

As the Manager of Strategic Partnerships, you will support the delivery of key strategic partner relationships and help ensure that partnership activity is coordinated effectively across internal teams. You will work closely with senior stakeholders to support the implementation of partner plans, maintain tracking and reporting, and help ensure that agreed actions are progressing in line with business priorities.

This role will focus on day-to-day partnership administration and operational delivery, including supporting joint plans, coordinating partner-facing initiatives, monitoring delivery against commitments and helping identify opportunities to improve value from existing relationships. You will work across a range of partners and internal teams to ensure that activity is well organised, deadlines are met and stakeholders remain aligned.

You will also support the coordination of WPP Media’s data and technology partner ecosystem, helping manage partner activity, internal communication and delivery tracking. The role requires strong relationship management, attention to detail and the ability to support multiple stakeholders in a fast-paced environment.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

Joint Business Plan Support and Delivery

1. Support the delivery of Joint Business Plans with strategically important partners, including Meta, TikTok, Google, Amazon, ITV and Sky.
2. Help maintain governance and tracking for partner plans to ensure commitments are being met and opportunities for value creation are identified.
3. Work with senior stakeholders to support alignment between partner activity and WPP’s broader growth priorities.
4. Monitor delivery against agreed actions and highlight issues or risks to senior leaders where needed.

Strategic Client and Agency Enablement

1. Support the connection between strategic partnerships and client outcomes, helping ensure partner capabilities are translated into practical value.
2. Work with agency teams to identify opportunities to use partner investment, tools and solutions more effectively.
3. Help coordinate partner-facing initiatives, learning activity and communication that support commercial objectives.
4. Contribute to the development of value propositions and support the prioritisation of partner engagement across key accounts.

Data and Technology Partner Ecosystem Support

1. Support the coordination of WPP Media’s data and technology partner ecosystem.
2. Help manage the implementation of partner plans and ensure internal stakeholders are aligned on priorities, timelines and deliverables.
3. Contribute to the tracking of partner investment and value delivery, ensuring visibility of progress and outcomes.
4. Support key client teams in identifying relevant data and technology partnerships where required.
5. Assist with the coordination of procurement and partner management activity across the broader ecosystem.

Skills and Experience

• Experience in strategic partnerships, commercial roles, business development or client-facing roles within the media, advertising or technology sectors
• Strong understanding of the media and digital advertising landscape
• Experience supporting joint plans, partnership activity or cross-functional commercial programmes
• Good relationship management skills with the ability to work effectively across internal and external stakeholders
• Strong organisational skills and attention to detail
• Ability to manage multiple priorities and coordinate activity across teams
• Commercial awareness and an understanding of how partnerships create value for clients and the business
• Strong communication and presentation skills
• Ability to collaborate effectively without direct authority
• Experience working with data, technology or platform partners would be beneficial
• Ability to support a team and help manage day-to-day delivery
• Comfortable operating within defined frameworks while identifying practical improvements to processes and outcomes

Measures of Success

Within 6 Months: Gain a strong understanding of WPP Media, the strategic partnerships function and your immediate area of responsibility, plus you will have started to understand how Vision '30 affects your day-to-day work. Understand the key business challenges within your remit and be able to articulate priorities for your team and manager. Your team and key stakeholders will acknowledge clear day-to-day support and direction, plus initial feedback should reflect responsiveness and professionalism. A key measurable is that you should have started to identify practical improvements within your area, including opportunities to use data/AI thinking where relevant.

Within 12 Months: Consistently deliver against operational partnership objectives, demonstrating the impact of your leadership on delivery and stakeholder coordination. You’ll receive positive feedback from internal and external stakeholders on service quality, organisation and commercial support, alongside positive feedback on your leadership and contribution to WPP Media and Vision '30. You will have helped improve team ways of working, supported stronger partnership outcomes and contributed to client growth, partner activation or new business activity aligned to Vision '30 capabilities. Maintain strong stakeholder confidence and demonstrate effective day-to-day team development.

Life at WPP Media & Benefits

Our passion for shaping the next era of media includes investing in our employees to help them do their best work, and we’re just as committed to employee growth as we are to responsible media investment. WPP Media employees can tap into the global WPP Media & WPP networks to pursue their passions, grow their networks, and learn at the cutting edge of marketing and advertising. We have a variety of employee resource groups and host frequent in-office events showcasing team wins, sharing thought leadership, and celebrating holidays and milestone events. Our benefits include competitive medical, group retirement plans, vision, and dental insurance, significant paid time off, preferential partner discounts, and employee mental health awareness days.  

WPP Media is an equal opportunity employer and considers applicants for all positions without discrimination or regard to characteristics. We are committed to fostering a culture of respect in which everyone feels they belong and has the same opportunities to progress in their careers.

We believe the best work happens when we're together, fostering creativity, collaboration, and connection. That's why we’ve adopted a hybrid approach, with teams in the office around four days a week. If you require accommodations or flexibility, please discuss this with the hiring team during the interview process.

Please read our Privacy Notice (https://www.wppmedia.com/pages/privacy-policy) for more information on how we process the information you provide.

While we appreciate all applications received, only those candidates selected for an interview will be contacted. 

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