Director, Planning

About WPP Media WPP is the trusted growth partner for the world’s leading brands. With exceptional talent, trusted data and intelligence, and world-class partnerships – all united by our pioneering agentic marketing platform, WPP Open – we help clients navigate change, capture opportunity, and deliver transformational growth. WPP Media is WPP's AI-driven media operating unit, bringing together media, data, and partnerships to deliver creative personalisation at scale. Connected through WPP Open and powered by Open Intelligence, clients see exactly where, how, and why their media investment is working. For more information, visit wppmedia.com . 3118 - Director, Planning - UK Role Summary and Impact This is an incredibly exciting opportunity to join our digital-first agency and lead one of the UK's most vibrant, fast-paced, and culturally loved brands: ITV . ITV is an absolute powerhouse within the UK’s media and entertainment landscape. They run a highly diverse portfolio of campaigns that shape the national conversation. Your mission is to partner directly with ITV’s senior marketing and strategy teams to build their consumer-facing brand, launch their biggest, most talked-about TV shows—from blockbuster dramas and live sports to cultural phenomena like Love Island —and aggressively drive digital customer acquisition to scale Monthly Active Users (MAUs) on ITVX . As the senior strategic and operational lead on this flagship account, you will tackle the thrilling challenges of digital, data, and ad-tech integration to power marketing communications that create a true competitive advantage. This role offers a massive focus on innovation and digital excellence, providing a brilliant opportunity to drive our signature “wholebrain” planning philosophy across a high-profile, culturally relevant brand. You will be part of a senior leadership team, working closely with the Managing Partner, Partners, and Digital Directors. You will also collaborate on cross-portfolio agency workstreams and help shape the future of our broader agency product. The Team: You will lead and inspire a talented, integrated team, typically consisting of Planning Senior Associate Directors, Account Directors, Account Managers, and supporting Planner and Executive resource. Reporting Line: This role reports directly to the Client Partner. Key Deliverables & Objectives Client Leadership & Strategic Excellence Brand & Growth Delivery: Take overall responsibility for the quality of the work exiting the agency. Ensure all media plans are first-class, insight-led, and masterfully balance high-impact show launches with sophisticated digital acquisition strategies to drive ITVX streaming growth. Client Satisfaction & PRF Delivery: Establish trusted, long-term relationships with senior ITV stakeholders. Deliver a proactive relationship-management strategy to ensure consistently high satisfaction scores, successfully unlocking performance-related fee (PRF) targets. Adoption of Next-Gen & A.I. Planning Tools: Act as an internal pioneer for the agency's proprietary planning systems. Drive the integration of AI-powered solutions and automated planning software across the account to deliver superior, data-driven planning results. Award-Winning Work: Champion breakthrough creative thinking across the team, aiming to deliver high-quality, innovative campaigns that are regularly entered and shortlisted for major industry awards (e.g., Media Week , Campaign ). Commercial & Financial Stewardship Financial Forecasting & Governance: Take full accountability for the financial health of the ITV business. Maintain highly accurate internal revenue and spend forecasting with minimal variance, keeping meticulous trackers of budget adjustments. Working Capital Management: Partner with finance teams to ensure seamless client billing, contract compliance, and prompt resolution of queries, maintaining debtors and unbilled accounts within strict corporate tolerance limits. Diversified Revenue Growth: Identify organic commercial opportunities to cross-sell and sell-in specialised agency services and managed partnerships, driving Year-on-Year growth in out-of-scope (OOS) revenue. Contractual Target Management: Oversee & contribute towards the successful delivery of complex contractual media targets (including barter, contra, and trading commitments), ensuring continuous monthly tracking is in place to mitigate under- or over-delivery. People & Team Leadership Talent Development & Succession: Build, motivate, and maintain a high-performing planning team. Ensure all team members have clear career growth plans mapped to planning craft KPIs, alongside robust succession planning. High-Potential (HiPo) Retention: Foster a supportive, inclusive, and collaborative team culture, aiming to achieve industry-leading retention rates amongst top-tier talent. Integrated Activation: Ensure the planning team is closely aligned with internal specialist buying and investment departments to g…