Manager, Retail Media Strategy & Activation

Kepler executes engineered marketing, where every message and ad delivered helps create a more personalized and productive relationship between brands and their consumers. The Manager, Retail Media Strategy & Activation position will be a leader on key client relationships within our Media Strategy & Activation team. In this role, you’ll be responsible for deeply understanding clients’ commerce challenges, becoming the trusted “go-to” strategic partner for retail media networks.

Responsibilities

Serve as the strategic lead across Retail Media Networks (RMNs), focusing heavily on ecosystems like Walmart Connect, Target Roundel, and emerging commerce platforms; Act as the primary point of contact and subject matter expert for assigned clients; proactively manage communication, translate complex retail data into strategic narratives, and build strong partnerships; Lead campaign strategy, planning, and optimization across performance-driven retail media channels to drive measurable business outcomes and return on ad spend (ROAS); Oversee hands-on activation and execution within retail aggregation platforms, specifically requiring deep operational excellence in Criteo; Manage, mentor, and develop a team of 2–4 Analysts and Senior Analysts, guiding their professional growth and campaign execution quality; Partner with Media Analytics to support deep-dive reporting and actionable insights, and collaborate with Client Solutions to align platform strategies with overarching client business goals; Codify and share retail media best practices, industry POVs, and optimization frameworks to streamline internal workflows and drive operational excellence

Requirements

3–5+ years of experience in digital media planning, activation, and performance marketing, with a distinct focus on Retail Media Networks; Proven, hands-on experience activating retail media through Criteo is required; Experience managing and developing a team of 2+ direct reports (Analysts/Senior Analysts); Familiarity with managing large product catalogs, item-level/ASIN management, and inventory-driven optimization; Strong analytical acumen; comfortable working with large datasets, Excel (pivots, VLOOKUPs), and translating lower-funnel performance metrics into clear client insights; Exceptional presentation, written, and verbal communication skills, with the ability to confidently lead client status meetings and strategic planning sessions; Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, entrepreneurial, and highly collaborative team environment; Proven people leader, creative problem solver, and possess a deep technical understanding of the evolving retail media landscape, audience targeting, and multi-retailer network activation

Nice to have

Strong experience with Walmart Connect and/or Target Roundel is highly preferred; Familiarity with retail media management tools such as Pacvue, Skai, or similar commercial technologies is a strong plus; Bachelor’s degree with relevant major preferred

Benefits

Healthcare/Dental/Vision; Unlimited PTO; RRSP Contributions; $75/mo Wellness Stipend; $100/mo Mobile Phone Stipend; $50/mo Internet Stipend; $500/yr Annual Learning Stipend; $2,000/yr Annual Tuition Stipend; One-time $200 New Hire Home Office Equipment Stipend; Parental Leave - 16 week primary caregiver / 6 week secondary caregiver leave; Annual Work From Anywhere 4 weeks per year