OverviewSourceCode's Senior Media Strategists are the editorial heartbeat and newsroom leaders of our account teams. We're looking for a seasoned media relations powerhouse at the Account Manager / Senior Account Manager (AM/SAM) level who refuses to stay on the sidelines. This role is designed for a media specialist who wants to act as the vital bridge between data-driven insights and world-class media execution.
As a Senior Media Strategist, you will own the media architecture for key accounts, acting as the primary client-facing authority on the media landscape. You will spend your days hunting for the next big narrative hook, translating complex data into pitchable trends, and mentoring junior team members in the art of the pitch. While you will manage the commercial health and budgets of your media programs, your primary mandate is to ensure our clients dominate the news cycle. Opportunity is earned and is celebrated across the wider team.
What You'll DoThis role encompasses six media-first pillars: Media Strategy & Narrative Architecture, Top-Tier Media Relations & Outreach, Data Insights & Trend Hacking, Strategic Client Media Counsel, Media Mentorship & Team Leadership, and Media Program Operations.
Media Strategy & Narrative Architecture- Campaign Architecture: Build multi-layered, long-term media, thought leadership, and influencer campaign strategies that map directly to high-profile client business goals.
- Premium Content Creation: Lead the creation of high-profile press materials, complex strategic pitches, and sophisticated thought leadership platforms.
- Editorial Quality Control: Review and approve all media content from junior team members, offering sharp editorial feedback to ensure flawless writing consistency across projects and teams.
- Cross-Client Leverage: Deeply understand the full SourceCode client roster, strategically identifying and leveraging cross-client opportunities to create larger, trend-driven media moments.
Top-Tier Media Relations & Outreach- Media Network Expansion: Act as the primary anchor for key media relationships, continuously building your personal network within top-tier business, tech, and trade publications.
- High-Level Placement: Deliver high-level media outreach efforts, pitching complex, nuanced tech stories to top-tier media and securing consistent, impactful coverage.
- Rapid Response Leadership: Read trade publications daily to flag relevant breaking news and connect shifting macro trends to clients to fuel immediate, high-impact rapid-response commentary.
Data Insights & Trend Hacking- Insight-Driven Pitching: Act as the bridge between research and implementation, using tools to analyze open data, draw out themes, and shape client media strategies.
- Pivot Strategy: Continuously track media open data and account performance to identify where pitching approaches need to pivot, optimizing strategies in real time to ensure success.
- Morning News Sweeps: Oversee and quality-check daily media monitoring and morning competitor sweeps, ensuring relevant trends are extracted and shared with teams via Slack each morning.
Strategic Client Media Counsel- Media-Facing Authority: Act as the client-facing lead for all things media, providing expert guidance and counseling to clients regarding press opportunities, reputational risks, and the nuances of the media landscape.
- Data-Backed Advice: Provide strategic counsel based on hard media insights, ensuring that data explicitly drives client decision-making and aligns expectations with media realities.
- Client Satisfaction Target: Manage media deliverables to exceed expectations, maintaining a client satisfaction survey score of greater than 80% across your accounts.
Media Mentorship & Team Leadership- Media Relations Mentorship: Provide ongoing media relations training and mentorship to the wider team, teaching junior team members pitching best practices, phone/email etiquette, and reporter research.
- Line Management: Directly line manage and coach a team of up to 2 direct reports, utilizing Rippling to document 1:1s, track professional goals, provide actionable feedback, and address performance issues.
- Team Motivation: Ensure the entire account team clearly understands client media priorities, keeping the team disciplined, aligned, and motivated to hit deadlines and exceed KPIs.
Media Program Operations- Commercial Alignment: Manage media budgets and client Scopes of Work (SOWs) with precision, ensuring media services are delivered on time, within scope, and aligned with commercial realities.
- Organic Business Growth: Recognize and identify opportunities for organic account growth or upselling (e.g., adding an influencer or analyst relations track), flagging them to portfolio leads to win.
- Account Operational Tracking: Develop and manage media project timelines, utilizing agency tools to ensure operational efficiency.
Requirements- 5-8 years of progressive public relations agency experience, with a heavy emphasis on media relations, narrative strategy, and running account teams.
- Core Characteristics: You are an accountable, people-first, and highly disciplined professional. You are bold, ambitious, curious, and imaginative. You are a natural problem solver (not a problem presenter) who balances creative storytelling with tactical, data-driven thinking.
- Media Landscape Mastery: Deep, demonstrable knowledge of tech and business media landscape, with a proven track record of securing high-profile tier-one coverage.
- Strategic Autonomy: Proven capability to manage complex materials, take loose executive direction, and independently translate it into a bulletproof client media plan.
- Business & Resource Acumen: Strong understanding of account operations, budget tracking, resource allocation, and team utilization constraints.
- Elite Communication: Exceptional written, verbal, and presentation skills, with the maturity and confidence required to serve as an indispensable day-to-day counselor to clients.
Benefits- Robust benefits program
- Unlimited vacation with PTO minimums
- 401k with company match
- Monthly mental health stipend, 2 'NOPE' days/year, and quarterly wellness challenges
- Profit-sharing program
- Workplace flexibility
- Professional learning and development allotment
- 6-month paid parental leave
- Transit benefits
- Paid volunteer and professional development days
Hybrid (NYC-Based)Designed to balance focused remote work with the collaborative energy of our headquarters located conveniently near Penn Station.
- In-Office: Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday
- Remote: Monday, Friday
Remote (East Coast)We are also accepting applications for this role as a remote position for candidates residing anywhere within the East Coast.
Salary Range: $98,000 - $115,000
