Sr. Manager, Growth & Creative Strategy

Senior Manager, Growth & Creative Strategy

Who we are We are a global community that is driven by the creative spirit of Los Angeles. Through an inspiring mix of music, news, and culture, we bring joy and connection – online, in-person and on the radio. Always excellent, accessible, and often unexpected, we are a constant source of fuel for the imagination, education and good vibes. At least, that is what our members tell us.

As NPR’s flagship member station in Southern California for more than 30 years and a community service of Santa Monica College, KCRW is the next generation of public media.

How You’ll Make an Impact The Sr. Manager, Growth & Creative Strategy leads KCRW’s digital audience acquisition strategy–combining campaign creative direction, performance marketing, and rapid experimentation to reach new audiences. They play a key leadership role within KCRW’s marketing strategy, ensuring we effectively use our paid marketing spend to reach more of the public.

The Sr. Manager, Growth & Creative Strategy exercises independent judgment and decision-making authority translating KCRW’s programs, events, and products into scalable audience growth opportunities.

Success looks like:

• Measurable growth in new audiences, with clear performance targets and accountability
• Campaigns that lead to meaningful audience actions (e.g. app downloads, newsletter signups, repeat visits, event participation)
• Creative that reflects KCRW’s voice and performs across platforms
• Fast, iterative campaign execution with continuous optimization
• Actionable insights that inform broader audience strategy

This is a full-time, exempt position reporting to the VP of Marketing & Membership. This role manages our graphic designers. What You’ll Do* Determine campaign growth strategy, audience targeting, and channel mix based on performance data and organizational priorities

• Identify and prioritize growth opportunities across platforms, partnerships, and emerging channels
• Exercise discretion over allocation of paid media budgets across channels, audiences, and campaigns
• Make data-driven decisions that directly impact marketing spend efficiency and return on investment
• Manage paid media budgets and optimize spend across campaigns and audiences
• Lead creative ad strategy and oversee a team producing high-volume, performance-driven campaign assets
• Using established brand guidelines, set direction for campaigns, balancing brand expression with performance
• Oversee the planning, execution, and optimization of campaigns across platforms (Meta, Google, YT, etc.), ensuring alignment with growth strategy and performance goals
• Analyze performance data to identify insights, opportunities, and new experiments
• Identify growth opportunities through partnerships, influencers, and content creators
• Build workflows that enable rapid production, testing, and iteration
• Integrate AI tools into creative development, copy, and production processes
• Test new tools and approaches to accelerate marketing effectiveness
• Share learnings to inform cross-functional audience strategy
• Champion a culture of experimentation across creative and marketing
• Supervise and evaluate the performance of the graphic designers, including assigning work, setting priorities, and providing ongoing guidance
• Direct and oversee external vendors, agencies, and contractors supporting campaign execution and creative development

What You’ll Need* 6–8+ years of experience in digital or growth marketing

• Experience managing and developing creative or marketing teams
• Proven success running performance campaigns across major platforms
• Strong creative instincts across messaging, storytelling, and design
• Experience developing campaigns from concept through execution
• Familiarity with AI tools in marketing workflows
• Data-driven mindset with the ability to translate insights into action
• Strong cross-functional collaboration skills
• Understanding of Los Angeles’ cultural landscape
• Strong organizational and leadership capabilities
• Comfort operating in a new and evolving, experimental environment

What We Offer* Compensation $95,000-$115,000 annually

• Sick leave award
• Vacation leave accrual
• Paid holidays
• Health insurance (including medical, dental, vision, FSA, life, and AD&D) eligibility
• 403(b) with company match
• Passionate office environment surrounded by an incredible community of curious and talented colleagues
• KCRW is a qualifying employer under the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program - read more here to determine your eligibility

KCRW aims to be representative of Southern California, and candidates with traditionally underrepresented backgrounds and perspectives are encouraged to apply. KCRW is an equal opportunity employer and actively recruits to promote diversity in our workforce. Qualified applicants are considered for employment without regard to age, race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, pregnancy, status as a parent, national origin, disability, family medical history or genetic information, political affiliation, military service, or other non-merit based factors.