Global Program Director

Established in 2004, OLIVER is the world’s first and only specialist in designing, building, and running bespoke in-house agencies and marketing ecosystems for brands. We partner with over 300 clients in 40+ countries and counting. Our unique model drives creativity and efficiency, allowing us to deliver tailored solutions that resonate deeply with audiences. 

As a part of The Brandtech Group, we're at the forefront of leveraging cutting-edge AI technology to revolutionise how we create and deliver work. Our AI solutions enhance efficiency, spark creativity, and drive insightful decision-making, empowering our teams to produce innovative and impactful results. 

Role:  Global Program Director 

Location:  London, United Kingdom  (1-3 days from our London offices)

About the role: 

As Global Program Director, you'll lead the delivery and operational health of medium-to-complex programmes — setting KPIs, managing budgets, driving process optimisation, and ensuring integrated outcomes across all business functions. You'll be the primary client contact at executive level, bringing together stakeholders across creative, production, technology, and commercial disciplines to deliver transformational programmes on time, on budget, and aligned to strategic goals. You'll also play a critical role in revenue forecasting, GP management, and building the team capability needed to scale programme delivery across OLIVER's global network.

What you will be doing: 

• Programme Management & Delivery
  • Lead medium-to-complex programmes with budgets of £10m–£15m, ensuring alignment to strategic goals, financial targets, and client expectations throughout
  • Develop and drive programme vision — managing organisational change and ensuring integrated outcomes across studios, functions, and geographies
  • Coordinate the activities of programme teams, maintaining full accountability for delivery health across all workstreams
  • Establish and track KPIs, produce regular programme status reports covering risks, issues, and performance metrics, and implement corrective actions as needed
  • Lead major transformation programmes centred on technology and people — bringing all stakeholders together to ensure dependencies are mapped, timelines are met, and no elements fall between workstreams
  • Map processes and touchpoints across the programme to ensure clarity, efficiency, and identification of interdependencies
  • Drive OMG hygiene standards across the programme, maintaining accuracy and accountability throughout
• Commercial Leadership
  • Hold full accountability for account gross profit — including all approvals that impact GP: expenses, hiring, freelancers, and ad hoc resource needs
  • Build complex scenario planning across multiple brands and regions, modelling the impact of tools, technology, and BTG solutions on the OLIVER commercial model
  • Create and manage Corrective Action Plans to ensure GP targets are met; make strategic adjustments to people and cost base as required
  • Engage with executive leadership on revenue forecasting and financial performance, securing necessary business approvals on decisions with financial implications
  • Ensure cost efficiencies across tightly resourced teams, identifying and implementing appropriate levers to optimise performance
• Technical & Solution Design
  • Develop a deep understanding of the BTG technology and services suite, identifying opportunities and challenges that affect the client and programme delivery
  • Lead high-level conversations with clients on technical solutions — knowing when to resolve directly and when to bring in specialist expertise
  • Design solutions that integrate commercial considerations, people resources, and technology to meet client needs at scale
  • Apply learnings from transformation phases to continuously refine delivery approaches
  • Partner with the Senior Leadership Team on solution packaging and client proposals
  • Demonstrate technical fluency across relevant platforms — including OMG, automation, AI, and SoM tools
• Resource & Team Management
  • Oversee resource scheduling and utilisation across the account portfolio, ensuring people are deployed efficiently and workloads are balanced across the wider OLIVER network
  • Work with Client Services and Resource Management on pipeline planning to ensure team structure is correctly sized and skilled for each phase of delivery
  • Ensure clear RACI frameworks are in place across all disciplines; work with client leadership to confirm reporting lines are correct and accountabilities are understood
  • Hold the team accountable for meeting established KPIs; support the development of team members through leadership, mentoring, and structured feedback
  • Build and develop the programme team, providing consistent leadership that raises capability and performance across all levels

What you need to be great in this role: 

• A strong track record of leading global programme delivery across large-scale, multi-studio account portfolios in a complex organisational environment
• Deep expertise in programme and project management — including governance, risk management, delivery health, and stakeholder coordination across multiple concurrent workstreams
• Advanced commercial acumen: experience managing budgets at £10m+ scale, with direct accountability for GP, revenue forecasting, and financial performance reporting to executive stakeholders
• Proven ability to lead and develop large, geographically distributed teams — creating accountability, clarity, and high performance across diverse disciplines
• Executive-level client partnership experience — building and sustaining trusted relationships with senior clients, managing escalations, and driving strategic conversations with confidence
• Experience leading transformation programmes centred on technology, people, and process change at enterprise scale
• Fluency with delivery management platforms and operational tools — including OMG, Agile/scrum methodologies, and relevant BTG technology; familiarity with automation and AI platforms is a strong advantage
• Ability to design commercially viable solutions that integrate people, technology, and process — and to partner with senior leadership on how those solutions are packaged and communicated to clients
• Direct accountability for gross profit across a £10m–£15m programme portfolio, including scenario planning, corrective action planning, and strategic cost management
• Experience presenting financial performance and forecasting to COO/SVP and executive stakeholders, with a clear track record of meeting and protecting GP targets across complex multi-region accounts
• Sets AI strategy for programme delivery and operations across a global portfolio — identifying where AI and automation tools create measurable efficiency and quality gains
• Experience establishing AI governance and quality standards at programme or studio level, ensuring responsible and effective adoption across teams
• Develops AI capability across multiple teams and disciplines, embedding new ways of working into programme operations and client delivery
• Agentic leadership for complex, multi-stakeholder business challenges — systematic, goal-oriented approach to problem-solving at scale
• Thought leadership on AI's evolving role in agency operations — contributing to best practice internally and with clients
• Formal qualifications are welcome but not required. Equivalent experience counts — gained through work, study, or professional development.

Req ID: 17945

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Our values shape everything we do: 

Be Ambitious to succeed   

Be Imaginative to push the boundaries of what’s possible   

Be Inspirational to do groundbreaking work   

Be always learning and listening to understand   

Be Results-focused  to exceed expectations   

Be actively pro-inclusive and anti-racist across our community, clients and creations   
 

OLIVER, a part of the Brandtech Group, is an equal opportunity employer committed to creating an inclusive working environment where all employees are encouraged to reach their full potential, and individual differences are valued and respected. All applicants shall be considered for employment without regard to race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, neurodivergence, disability status, or any other characteristic protected by local laws.   

 OLIVER has set ambitious environmental goals around sustainability, with science-based emissions reduction targets. Collectively, we work towards our mission, embedding sustainability into every department and through every stage of the project lifecycle.