Media Strategy & Planning Associate Manager (Sonic)

PURPOSE OF THE POSITION

Support the Media Strategy & Planning team in the overall planning, activation, and stewardship functions for the Sonic brand, both National and Local. This role will be responsible for ensuring creative asset timelines and deliverables are met in ad trafficking to buys. Additionally, this role will be a key contributor, supporting the team in maintaining accurate financial stewardship & invoice reconciliation across the brand portfolio.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

Media Strategy & Planning (70%)

• Support the general day-to-day functions as led by Manager, Media Strategy & Planning
• Manage the budget, billing and invoice process across the National/Local disciplines to ensure all expenses are on time and on budget
  • Maintain media plan budgets and billings
  • Generate and communicate necessary financial records, including cross-comparing actuals vs. plans to better enable accruals and forecasts
  • Proper management and reconciliation of all account budgets in accordance with media authorizations
  • Develop and maintain relationships with agency personnel related to budget management processes and deliverables
  • Ensure key information is provided to appropriate individuals and teams regarding budget management issues
  • Budgeting and forecasting company revenues and internal operating expenses, as well as reconciling data from multiple financial databases
  • Interface with external/internal teams in managing requests concerning processes and deliverables. This will include but not be limited to internal brand and enterprise analytics teams and 3rd party auditors
• Partner with Managers to support the various steps required to ensure proper asset alignment (including creative & traffic fulfillment) across media buys; this will include verification of coding as necessary across TV and Digital buys for measurement reporting and accuracy
• Support the integrated reporting of documents as needed by cross functional team members for internal and external purposes
• Attend regular status meetings (both internal and external) to help prioritize deliverables and timelines with Managers
• Provide general team support as needed based on internal priorities and scope of projects

Agency & Cross-Functional Internal Teams Collaboration (30%)

• Partner with external Media Agencies and internal biddable team to ensure invoicing is on schedule and ties to flowcharts/budgets
• Partner with the finance teams to ensure invoices are processed accurately
• Partner with the analytics team to measure the impact of ongoing campaigns and the effectiveness of the media plans
• Partnering with internal Integrated Marketing teams on creative trafficking and needs
• Oversee creative asset delivery from external and internal creative agencies, ensuring traditional and digital ads are built and trafficked to spec in a timely manner

EDUCATION QUALIFICATION:

Required Minimum: Bachelor’s degree

EXPERIENCE QUALIFICATION:

• 3 – 5 years of relevant experience in marketing and / or media
• Demonstrated experience in problem solving and managing multiple tasks in a fast-paced environment

REQUIRED KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS OR ABILITIES:

• Ability to deliver results
• Prior experience in media planning and strategy, inclusive of traditional and digital mediums, with a focus on National executions. Local experience is a bonus but not required.
• Excellent project management skills
• Proficiency in Excel and PPT will be key
• Ability to balance multiple priorities and meet project deadlines
• Excellent oral and written communication skills
• Personal integrity, humility, an appreciation for the power of true teamwork, and a sense of humor
• Self-starter personality who can operate with minimal supervision
• Strong ability to collaborate closely with team members to solve problems, prioritize tasks, and manage time effectively
• A detail-oriented approach and a desire to achieve objectives accurately
• Solid quantitative and research skills, and proven data interpretation capability
• Ability to learn new systems and workflows

Inspire is a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 33,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC restaurants worldwide.

We’re made up of some of the world’s most iconic restaurant brands, but we’re much more than just a restaurant company. We’re a team of hundreds of thousands who individually and collectively are changing the way people eat, drink, and gather around the table. We know that food is much more than a staple—it’s an experience. At Inspire, that’s our purpose: to ignite and nourish flavorful experiences.