Associate Director, Horizon Futures, Channel

Job Description

Horizon Media, founded in 1989 by Bill Koenigsberg, is recognized as one of the most innovative marketing and advertising firms. We are headquartered in New York City, with offices in Los Angeles and Toronto. A leader in driving business solutions for marketers, Horizon is known for its highly personal approach to client service.  Renowned for its incredible culture, Horizon is consistently named to all the prestigious annual Best Places to Work lists published by Fortune, AdAge, Crain’s New York Business and Los Angeles Business Journal. Together we are building a place of belonging. 
 
At Horizon, we understand the value that different perspectives can bring to our clients and culture, so we strive for an environment where our employees feel welcomed, safe and empowered. We value YOU and believe that your authentic voice and unique perspective allows us to create a more rewarding culture, and experience, together.  

Our simple recipe for success? We hire talented people (thinkers, doers, dreamers, makers), challenge them and give them every opportunity to grow. 

Horizon Futures is Horizon’s unified center of excellence that brings together expertise from media insights, consumer behavior research, and cultural intelligence into one powerful team. By integrating these disciplines, Horizon Futures delivers a holistic understanding of where audiences are today — and where they're going tomorrow.

What We Do

Horizon Futures exists to identify and interpret emerging shifts across media, technology, culture, and consumer behavior. We move beyond traditional analysis to provide foresight, helping brands anticipate change rather than react to it. Our work informs smarter media strategies, creative innovation, and business growth opportunities.

The Horizon Futures - Channel team analyzes and forecasts evolving media consumption and channel/platform innovation driven by advancements in technology. We distill early signals from across industries to advise on emerging opportunities and risks. We develop provocative and actionable thought leadership to lead our teams in navigating and winning in the complex channel ecosystem.

The Channel group also arms our teams with knowledge and insights on best practices and empowers them with best in class resources for media strategy, in partnership with the Product and Client Architect teams and other stakeholders.

-------------

The Associate Director, Future of Channel is a critical member of the Channel team. They report up to a VP or SVP, collaborating on agency initiatives, taking the lead on projects of their own and mentoring any direct report(s). The Associate Director supports their manager on agency thought leadership and also proposes new concepts for exploration. They build strong relationships in the industry and with key teams throughout Horizon, including Business Solutions, Product, Analytics, Investment and the Client Architects. They act as a strategic consultant to Business Solutions and other stakeholders in support of our mission to be a growth partner to our clients.

Key Responsibilities

Thought Leadership

• Support agency thought leadership publications and initiatives, including thought-provoking and actionable points of view on channel consumption and emerging opportunities, forecasting and predictions of evolving behavior, market shifts and technology that will influence media strategy and innovation. They also propose initiatives to take on as lead, coached by their manager.

• Develop collaborative and influential relationships with Business Solutions, Investment, Analytics, and other internal stakeholders. Establish strong relationships with key media partners of Horizon and our clients for shared initiatives. Build client exposure and relationships under the supervision of their manager.

• Attend agency and industry events, and when appropriate, developing recaps of key takeaways, to ensure Horizon remains at the forefront of marketplace trends and innovations.

Strategic Best Practices

• Strategic Consultation: Develop understanding of and advocate for marketing strategy best practices by leveraging both external and internal resources. Work with their manager to advise Business Solutions teams and other stakeholders on higher order strategic questions, including Channel-led projects (e.g., consumer journey work, budget setting, custom work, forecasting, etc.). Represent the Futures perspective in client meetings and internal discussions.

• Data and Measurement Expertise: Support agency partnerships and evaluation of media measurement and currency providers. Build expertise on Horizon’s blu. platform with a deep understanding of the capabilities and data sources and how to engage marketing sciences for advanced analyses. Proactively monitor the data and measurement landscape to understand complementary resources or those that should be evaluated as part of the blu. ecosystem. Develop familiarity with 3P measurement providers and partner with manager and Analytics on recommending solutions for clients.

• Integrated Leadership: Collaborate closely with Horizon Futures’ Consumer & Culture and Multicultural teams to ensure understanding and application of evolving capabilities. Proactively develop knowledge of and relationships with Horizon’s COEs, BST, Investment and Horizon Holdings services.

Resource Development

• Help manage Channel-led contracts including cultivating strong partner relationships, assisting manager in developing proposals for Finance and leadership, ensure monitoring of licenses, spend commitments and timelines.

• Develop and source training on proprietary and syndicated Channel tools to empower BSTs, Investment and other stakeholders with the skills and confidence to work independently and train their teams.

• Support testing of Channel resources as well as testing and beta needs of other internal teams.

• Support product team on blu. and other resource development initiatives.

Supervisory Responsibilities and Career Growth

• Team Development: Oversee ongoing training and professional development for team members (if applicable), ensuring fluency with the blu. platform, AI, advanced analytics tools, proprietary resources, and integration of new communication channels. Mentor any direct report(s) to support their growth and independence, as well as their managerial skills in developing any team members they may supervise.

• Personal Development: Participate in all mandatory Horizon training initiatives and Horizon’s mentorship program.

Preferred Skills and Experience

• Bachelor’s or higher degree in Business, Marketing, Communications, Data Solutions, Analytics or relevant field.

• Minimum of 6-7 years of relevant experience in insights, strategy, data solutions and resource development within the media, marketing, or technology sectors.

• Exceptional organizational, project management, and multitasking abilities.

• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite (Excel, PowerPoint, SharePoint, Word), Nielsen, Comscore, usage of AI agents and models, media research/reporting resources, data visualization, and business intelligence tools.

• Experience managing people preferred.

Who You Are

• A strategic thinker with a passion for leveraging insights, data, and research to drive business growth and innovation in dynamic environments.

• An engaging and persuasive storyteller with the ability to translate complex data and insights into compelling narratives that inspire clients and teams to consider new opportunities.

• Curious, adaptable, and committed to continuous learning, with the ability to synthesize complex information and translate it into actionable strategies.

• You have an AI-driven mindset – eager to explore and leverage emerging capabilities, while maintaining critical thinking and evaluation of the outputs, their sourcing and veracity.

• Skilled at building relationships and collaborating across disciplines, including with senior executives, clients, finance and partners.

• Confident and effective in verbal and written communication, able to present and sell ideas to diverse audiences both internally and externally.

• Experienced in leading teams, providing constructive feedback, and fostering a culture of inclusion, growth, and high performance.

• Proactive and solution-oriented, comfortable navigating ambiguity and driving change in fast-paced environments.

• Committed to upholding organizational values as an agency of belonging, embracing diversity, equity, and inclusion in all aspects of your work.

This job description provides a general overview of the requirements and responsibilities for the Associate Director, Horizon Futures, Channel position. Duties and qualifications may be adjusted to meet organizational needs.

#LI-LT1 #LI-Hybrid

Horizon Media is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace.  We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status. We also consider qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with legal requirements.

Salary Range

A successful applicant’s actual base salary may vary based on factors such as individual’s skill sets, experience, training, education,  licensure/certifications, and qualifications for the role.  As an organization, we take an aptitude and competency-based hiring approach.  We provide a competitive total rewards package including a discretionary bonus and a variety of benefits including health insurance coverage, life and disability insurance, retirement savings plans, company paid holidays and unlimited paid time off (PTO), mental health and wellness resources, pet insurance, childcare resources, identity theft insurance, fertility assistance programs, and fitness reimbursement.