YouTube Principal Strategist

Tinuiti is the largest independent full-funnel marketing agency in the U.S. across the media that matters most, with $4 billion in digital media under management and more than 1,200 employees. Built for marketers who demand growth and accountability, Tinuiti unites media and measurement under one roof to eliminate waste—the biggest growth killer of all—and scale what works. Its proprietary technology, Bliss Point by Tinuiti, reveals the truth around growth and waste, and how to capitalize on it. With expert teams across Commerce, Search, Social, TV & Audio, and more, Tinuiti delivers measurable results with brutal simplicity: Love Growth. Hate Waste.

We support 100% remote work for this role!

Research shows that while men apply to jobs when they meet an average of 60% of the criteria, women and other marginalized folks tend to only apply when they check every box. So if you think you qualify, but don't necessarily meet every single point on the job description, please still get in touch.

As a Principal Strategist, you are the senior thought leader for your channel(s) of expertise across your Portfolio. You pair deep mastery in at least one discipline (but likely more) with a clear understanding of how the media channels work together to drive business outcomes. You champion a product‑ and measurement‑led approach, turning insights into simple “what, so‑what, now‑what” choices that move executive decisions. You partner with senior Client Partners and Pod or Portfolio leaders on high‑stakes client touchpoints, new logos and cross‑sell opportunities, and strategy resets. You model modern craft by using AI responsibly to improve the speed and quality of strategy work, while staying ahead of how AI impacts targeting, creative, and measurement. You set the bar for the Tinuiti Way in your channel(s), advise on cross‑training and channel mentorship, support interviewing for channel talent, and operate with an owner mindset that creates clarity, drives action, and leaves behind repeatable practices that scale.

Key responsibilities

Client‑Centric

• Lead executive client touchpoints to frame ambition, trade‑offs, and a multi‑quarter roadmap; convert insight into decisions and funded next steps.

• Act as senior channel strategist for large clients: interrogate briefs, run competitive/scenario planning, reduce churn risk via formal account reviews and playbooks, and neutralize political headwinds with clear decision criteria.

• Support new business and cross‑sell: shape win themes, differentiated solutioning, and executive narratives; quantify value, risk, and confidence.

• Drive and shape effective client meetings that deliver valued thought exchange and actionable insights on a consistent basis.

• Build and maintain trusted client relationships with the appropriate stakeholders across your brand portfolio, as defined in partnership with Client Partner leadership.

The Tinuiti Way

• Act as the primary internal and external champion for YouTube, positioning YouTube as the world’s most dynamic media platform—reframing it from a standard video channel to a holistic discovery engine that bridges Search, Social, TV, Audio, SEO, and the Creator economy.

• Evangelize YouTube’s role as the "connective tissue" of modern media, guiding cross-functional teams on how to integrate the platform into their respective flows, providing clarity on when to leverage the unique strategic advantages of Google Ads versus DV360 to drive holistic results

• Identify a best-in-class partner ecosystem—spanning contextual targeting, brand safety, and suitability—to ensure our brands operate in a secure, high-impact environment that defines industry standards

• Lead the agency-wide adoption of YouTube by codifying high-level decision frameworks and heuristics, advising on how the platform is briefed, planned, and reviewed to ensure YouTube is a consistent, high-performing component of the Tinuiti media mix.

• Partner with Growth & Innovation as a two-way conduit for thought leadership. You will translate the "newest and best" Google pilots into tailored client strategies while feeding market-specific needs back to internal teams to shape the agency’s product roadmap.

• Elevate the agency’s collective YouTube IQ by advising on cross‑training pathways into/out of YouTube across multiple channels and teams; participate in interviewing and calibrating channel candidates; mentor the craft community.

Product‑Led

• Be a power user and advocate for the Bliss Point App Suite and Tinuiti’s custom YouTube tool set, connecting capabilities, data structures, and limitations to executive decisions and outcomes.

• Lead a continuous feedback loop between clients and Product teams to identify gaps and sponsor pilots that advance Tinuiti’s proprietary YouTube capabilities

• Build AI-driven resources to automate campaign management and accelerate training, freeing the team for high-value strategic work

• Collaborate directly with Google and internal developers to enhance industry tools and co-create first-to-market measurement and automation solutions.

• Construct action‑driving narratives using App outputs (“what, so‑what, now‑what”); ensure instrumentation hygiene and fast issue triage with Product partners.

• Operate the feedback loop: bring client needs to Product; prioritize systemic issues; sponsor pilots that free capacity for higher‑value work and improve adoption/quality.

Data & Measurement‑Driven

• Align the full YouTube suite (Shorts, VRC, Demand Gen, YT TV) with elite measurement frameworks—including Brand Lift, Search Lift, Conversion Lift, Geo Experiments, and MMM—to build high-conviction, full-funnel investment cases.

• Design and evangelize advanced testing frameworks leveraging advanced measurement and Tinuiti’s proprietary solutions to quantify YouTube’s performance throughout the entire journey, ensuring it is a proven driver of business outcomes rather than an afterthought.

• Integrate standardized dashboards and decision-making rituals into the planning flow to maintain rigorous data hygiene and ensure YouTube is an optimized, integrated component of the omnichannel mix

• Identify gaps in the measurement narrative and partner with Google to pilot bespoke attribution models and first-to-market tools that capture YouTube’s true incremental impact on the user journey.

• Translate complex after-action reviews into simple, reusable frameworks that iterate agency standards, improve decision velocity, and accelerate YouTube growth for our brands and the agency.

Owner Mindset

• Influence outcomes at executive altitude: set standards, decision criteria, and read cadences in your engagements; hold partners (Product/Analytics/Channels/Ops) accountable by influence.

• Model AI‑enabled professionalism: use AI responsibly to elevate analysis, creative/brief quality, scenario planning, and speed—without compromising rigor or privacy.

• Create leverage: produce clear frameworks, playbooks, and narratives that accelerate decision velocity and raise day‑to‑day execution quality—without taking on operational mechanics.

Ways of working and values

• Greatness attracts Greatness: Model world‑class craft, seek feedback, and bring timely innovations responsibly.

• Clients grow, we grow: Tie every recommendation to business outcomes with simple, credible evidence.

• Culture of ownership: Own your craft (raise standards, keep learning, use AI responsibly to improve speed and quality), own client success (drive clear decisions, deliver measurable outcomes, remove risks proactively), and own Tinuiti’s growth (spot opportunities, enable cross‑sell, codify playbooks others can use).

Professional & Technical Qualifications

• Experience: 10+ years of experience leading enterprise-level YouTube programs, with a proven track record of influencing C-suite stakeholders and driving high-level partnership initiatives with Google

• Craft: Deep literacy across the digital landscape, with the specialized ability to articulate how YouTube impacts and integrates with Search, Social, TV, Audio, and SEO to drive holistic performance

• Platform & Activation Mastery: Expert-level proficiency in both Google Ads and DV360, with the technical authority to navigate complex targeting, reservation inventory, and a map of 3rd party partners (e.g., Pixability, Channel Factory) for brand safety and suitability.

• Measurement Authority: Advanced mastery of the full YouTube measurement suite—including Brand Lift, Search Lift, Conversion Lift, Geo-Experiments, and MMM—coupled with the ability to leverage Tinuiti’s proprietary measurement solutions to prove incremental value.

• Product & Innovation Leadership: Proven ability to identify gaps in platform stories or measurement capabilities and collaborate with internal Product teams and Google to co-develop first-to-market solutions.

• AI literacy and practice: Skilled in using AI-driven resources to accelerate training, automate campaign management, and optimize.

• External presence: Highly credible vertical or channel POVs; ability to represent Tinuiti in the market.

• Leadership: An exceptional storyteller who can evangelize the YouTube ecosystem and educate cross-functional teams on how to integrate the platform into their respective workflows, ensuring YouTube is never a siloed component of the media mix.

KPIs (directional; set as Rocks)

• Growth influenced: expansion/cross‑sell dollars influenced; pursuits supported/won; decision velocity at client touchpoints.

• Product & measurement adoption: App Suite usage/quality uplifts tied to decisions; adherence to measurement standards and decision rituals.

• Craft quality: Tinuiti Way standards adoption; QA pass rates; reduction in rework/issue recurrence for your channel(s).

• Executive impact: C‑suite satisfaction with strategy sessions; funded initiatives; trajectory resets achieved.

• Thought leadership: assets delivered (decks, frameworks), external talks/POVs, platform/partner co‑initiatives launched.

• Utilization/allocatability: billable work and influence measured against targets set by Resource Management / Business Operations

We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us to request accommodation.

Unlimited PTO: At Tinuiti, we believe you deserve time to rest, recharge, and enjoy life unplugged. When you prioritize time for yourself, you're able to bring your best self to work. That’s why we offer unlimited paid time off, a fully remote environment, and flexibility to take the time you need, when you need it. On top of that, we provide 20 paid holidays, including multiple long weekends, to ensure you have dedicated time to step away and disconnect. We're proud to offer above-industry standard work-life balance, consistently rated as one of the most loved benefits by Tinuitians year after year.

Healthcare: Medical, Dental, Vision, Life & Disability, Flex Spending Accounts

Retirement: Match up to 4% of your contributions at 100%

Perks and Wellness: Fringe, Forma, Unlimited Telemedicine and Teletherapy available at no cost, Thankful giving, Equity

Parental Leave: Birthing parents receive 16 weeks of leave with 100% pay (partners 12 weeks) after the birth or adoption of a child.

Learning and Development: On-demand learning, mentorship program, leadership and management development programs and resources

Disclaimer: This description has been designed to indicate the general nature and level of work performed by employees within this position. The actual duties, responsibilities, and qualifications may vary based on assignment or group. Tinuiti is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, religion, national origin, marital status, age, disability, veteran status, genetic information, or any other protected status.