Head of OOH
No salary listed
Expert
Bachelor's
Johannesburg, South Africa
In Person
Growth & MarketingPerformance & Paid Marketing
About the job
Requirements
- A bachelor's degree in Marketing or Media Management.
- At least 10 years of experience in Out-of-Home media, including planning, buying, and strategic account leadership.
- A proven network and influence within South Africa's OOH ecosystem, across large and small vendors.
- Strong understanding of OOH site economics, municipality regulations, concession models, and rate structures.
- Experience negotiating national and regional deals and managing multi-stakeholder relationships.
- Familiarity with OOH data, mapping, and verification tools, including OMC Road 2.0, IDS Software, Outdoor Auditors, SEEDOH, All Unite, Luxon, and Lightstone.
- Excellent understanding of brand communication planning and the role of OOH in the consumer journey.
- Ability to engage CMOs and client teams at a strategic level.
- Demonstrated experience leading cross-functional or centralized teams.
Responsibilities
- Define and implement Publicis Africa's OOH growth strategy, combining traditional scale with digital transformation, data, and measurement.
- Oversee strategy planning and execution of out-of-home campaigns, ensuring alignment with brand goals and market trends.
- Map the consumer journey and align OOH touchpoints with broader brand and media strategies from awareness to conversion.
- Identify growth zones, including township economies, commuter corridors, and retail precincts, and integrate them into client communication plans.
- Translate complex OOH opportunities into strategic narratives for CMOs and client boards.
- Leverage knowledge of South Africa's OOH ecosystem, including media suppliers, sites, environments, and ownership structures.
- Analyze market data to optimize placements and drive innovation in OOH solutions and data-informed planning.
- Maintain relationships with major OOH media holding groups.
- Negotiate strategic site access, long-term value commitments, and preferential rates.
- Identify campaign location gaps or redundancies and address them through site swaps or deal leverage.
- Lead senior-level OOH commercial negotiations to ensure transparency, value creation, and profitability.
- Develop supply-side partnerships to secure premium inventory and first-mover advantage for clients.
- Build volume-based or multi-client deals with OOH media owners to improve pricing and data access.
- Work with finance and procurement to maintain margins and operational sustainability.
- Collaborate with planning, strategy, and data teams to align OOH with audience intent, path-to-purchase, and brand-funnel goals.
- Translate brand strategy into outdoor plans specifying where, when, and how OOH drives consumer action.
- Support OOH and media teams with OOH data, audience insights, and contextual recommendations during campaign ideation.
- Promote OOH as a storytelling medium that drives emotional impact and measurable business outcomes.
- Lead a centralized OOH operations and delivery hub based in South Africa, serving agencies and clients across South Africa and Pan-Africa.
- Ensure campaign execution, including site bookings, posting verification, OOH monitoring, and post-campaign reporting.
- Drive operational efficiency and the use of automation tools.
- Mentor and develop OOH planners, buyers, and coordinators to improve delivery quality and market credibility.
- Help the OOH team resolve client queries accurately and promptly.
- Integrate data-enabled OOH and P/DOOH solutions, including location intelligence, programmatic trading, and mobile retargeting.
- Pilot measurement frameworks connecting OOH exposure to store visits, sales lift, and online conversions.
- Build case studies demonstrating the commercial impact of integrated outdoor campaigns.
- Collaborate with Epsilon and Data teams to connect OOH exposure with identity-based audiences and retargeting opportunities.
Desired Qualifications
- Additional experience within the Pan-African OOH ecosystem.
About the company
Publicis Groupe runs advertising, media buying and digital transformation services for companies that want to reach consumers, coordinate campaigns and improve their business systems. Its agency network includes creative and media specialists, while Publicis Sapient builds and modernizes the technology behind clients' operations. Epsilon adds customer data and marketing technology that connect brands with audiences and measure campaign results. Clients pay for consulting, campaign creation and execution, with production and media costs billed through alongside the group's service work. Founded in 1926, Publicis Groupe is headquartered in Paris, France.
Company Size
10,001+
Company Stage
IPO
Headquarters
Paris, France
Founded
1926
Get referred to Publicis Groupe
See people who can refer or advise you
Simplify's Take
What believers are saying
- Growth is holding up: July 2026 results showed 4.7% organic net revenue growth in the first half.
- Data work is expanding: Publicis agreed in May 2026 to buy LiveRamp and its data collaboration business.
- International experience has a formal route: WorkYourWorld gives approved Publicis employees up to six weeks abroad annually.
What critics are saying
- Accounts are vulnerable: Publicis' top 100 clients generated 58% of 2025 revenue, with short-notice contract exits.
- Employees face continuing reorganization: July 2026 results reported €76 million restructuring costs, up from €63 million.
- Expansion adds interest costs: September 2026 LiveRamp financing priced €500 million of bonds with a 4.125% coupon.
What makes Publicis Groupe unique
- Agency collaboration has financial backing: Publicis unifies profit accounts and gives each global client one accountable leader.
- Epsilon connects ads to purchases: its CORE ID uses transaction data rather than third-party cookies.
- Leadership continuity is unusual: Arthur Sadoun is only Publicis Groupe's third CEO.
Help us improve and share your feedback! Did you find this helpful?
Benefits
- Remote Work Options
- Hybrid Work Options
- Training Programs