Sr. Manager, Supply Activation

FreeWheel, a Comcast company, provides comprehensive ad platforms for publishers, advertisers, and media buyers. Powered by premium video content, robust data, and advanced technology, we’re making it easier for buyers and sellers to transact across all screens, data types, and sales channels. As a global company, we have offices in nine countries and can insert advertisements around the world.

Job Summary

The Senior Manager, Supply Activation is a strategic leader within FreeWheel's Global Programmatic Operations organization, responsible for building and leading the Supply Activation function and driving the programmatic optimization strategy for FreeWheel's publisher partners.

This role leads a team of Account Managers focused on enabling publisher success across the FreeWheel Marketplace through supply optimization, product adoption, and activation of advertiser demand. The Senior Manager acts as a cross-functional partner to Publisher Relationship teams, Product, Product Marketing, Sales Marketing, and Engineering - ensuring publishers are equipped with the tools, insights, and strategies needed to maximize programmatic revenue and marketplace performance.

Sitting within the Programmatic Activation pillar, this leader will work in close coordination with Demand Activation to ensure cohesive supply-demand strategy across deal lifecycle management, optimization, and troubleshooting. The ideal candidate brings deep expertise in CTV programmatic dynamics, strong people leadership, and a proven ability to translate complex technical concepts into actionable business recommendations.

Job Description

Core Responsibilities

Team Leadership & Development
• Build, lead, mentor, and develop a team of Supply Activation Account Managers, providing coaching, strategic direction, and performance feedback.
• Establish clear team goals, KPIs, and operational processes to ensure consistent execution and high-quality publisher support.
• Oversee team workload, prioritization, and resource management to ensure coverage aligned with business goals.
• Foster a collaborative team culture that emphasizes ownership, accountability, adaptability, and pride in the quality of work.

Supply Strategy & Publisher Optimization
• Set the strategic direction for publisher supply optimization across the FreeWheel Marketplace, ensuring scalable, data-driven approaches to improving demand activation and revenue performance.
• Partner with senior Publisher Relationship leads to align on supply strategy, marketplace opportunities, and key improvement areas for each partner.
• Guide the team in conducting in-depth analysis of publisher performance and delivering actionable insights and optimization strategies.
• Maintain expert-level understanding of CTV demand patterns, DSP buying behaviors, auction dynamics, and how advertiser demand is activated across the marketplace.

Cross-Functional Partnership & Product Influence
• Collaborate closely with Product, Product Marketing, and Sales Marketing to drive adoption of new programmatic products and features, ensuring publisher teams clearly understand value propositions.
• Provide structured, insight-driven feedback to Product and Engineering teams, representing the voice of the publisher and marketplace needs.
• Participate in strategic planning forums, roadmap discussions, and cross-functional working groups to advocate for publisher-focused enhancements.
• Coordinate with Demand Activation leadership to ensure cohesive activation strategy across the full deal lifecycle - from supply readiness through demand fulfillment and optimization.

AI-Assisted Operations & Workflow Innovation
• Champion the adoption of AI-assisted workflows across the Supply Activation function, driving the team to leverage tools like Microsoft Copilot, Glean, and large language models for operational scalability.
• Identify and implement AI-driven approaches to streamline processes such as reporting, documentation, publisher analysis, knowledge management, and cross-functional communications.
• Develop AI-enhanced frameworks, templates, and best practices that enable the team to operate with greater speed, consistency, and analytical depth.
• Stay current on emerging AI capabilities and evaluate their applicability to programmatic operations workflows, advocating for adoption where business value is clear.

Stakeholder Engagement & Escalation
• Join Publisher QBRs, strategy sessions, and escalations as a senior programmatic expert and leader.
• Serve as the senior escalation point for complex programmatic challenges impacting publisher performance or marketplace behavior.
• Partner with senior publisher stakeholders to provide programmatic insights, trend analysis, and strategic guidance.

Operational Excellence
• Build and refine operational frameworks, best practices, documentation, and enablement materials for the Supply Activation function.
• Identify opportunities for workflow improvements, automation, and increased efficiency across programmatic operations.
• Standardize a scalable approach to supply optimization and programmatic support across all Account Managers and publisher segments.

Minimum Qualifications

• 5–7+ years of experience in programmatic operations, publisher account management, or ad tech account leadership; CTV or digital video experience strongly preferred.
• 2+ years of proven experience managing or leading teams, including coaching, strategic direction, and performance management.
• Deep knowledge of the programmatic ecosystem, including SSP and ad server technologies, DSPs, auction mechanics, identity and addressability, and cross-platform video supply.
• Strong track record of managing strategic publisher or programmatic partner relationships with measurable business impact.
• Exceptional analytical, consultative, and communication skills with an ability to translate complex topics for both technical and business audiences.
• Proficiency with analytics and reporting tools (e.g., Looker or similar BI dashboards).
• Demonstrated experience leveraging AI-assisted tools to improve team workflows, operational processes, or analytical output (e.g., Microsoft Copilot, Glean, large language models).
• Demonstrated strength in cross-functional collaboration and influencing without authority.
• Highly organized, proactive, and motivated to drive continuous improvement and achieve team goals.
• Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience building or scaling a new function, team, or operational capability from the ground up.
• Background in SSP or ad server environments with direct publisher-facing responsibilities at a strategic level.
• Familiarity with CTV supply chain workflows, including deal types (PMP, PG, open exchange), yield optimization, dynamic floor pricing, and marketplace health metrics.
• Understanding of addressability, audience signals, and how identity impacts supply-side monetization strategy.
• Experience with programmatic product development cycles - translating operational insights into product requirements.
• Exposure to linear programmatic, set-top box inventory, or emerging CTV supply formats.
• Track record of driving AI adoption within a team - including designing AI-enhanced workflows, developing prompt libraries or templates, and evaluating emerging AI capabilities for operational application.

Employees at all levels are expected to:

• Understand our Operating Principles; make them the guidelines for how you do your job.
• Own the customer experience think and act in ways that put our customers first, give them seamless digital options at every touchpoint, and make them promoters of our products and services.
• Know your stuff be enthusiastic learners, users and advocates of our game-changing technology, products and services, especially our digital tools and experiences.
• Win as a team make big things happen by working together and being open to new ideas.
• Be an active part of the Net Promoter System a way of working that brings more employee and customer feedback into the company by joining huddles, making call backs and helping us elevate opportunities to do better for our customers.
• Drive results and growth.
• Support a culture of inclusion in how you work and lead.
• Do what's right for each other, our customers, investors and our communities.

Disclaimer: This information has been designed to indicate the general nature and level of work performed by employees in this role. It is not designed to contain or be interpreted as a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities and qualifications.

Skills

Cross-Functional Collaboration, Operational Excellence, People Management, Workflow Automation

Compensation

Primary Location Pay Range: $159,318.97 - $238,978.46

Targeted Commission: $66,429.00

Our sales compensation programs offer the potential for significant upside above targeted earnings for those who overachieve their sales targets.

Comcast intends to offer the selected candidate base pay within this range, dependent on job-related, non-discriminatory factors such as experience. The application window is 30 days from the date job is posted, unless the number of applicants requires it to close sooner or later.

Base pay is one part of the Total Rewards that Comcast provides to compensate and recognize employees for their work.    Most sales positions are eligible for a Commission under the terms of an applicable plan, while most non-sales positions are eligible for a Bonus.  Additionally, Comcast provides best-in-class Benefits to eligible employees.  We believe that benefits should connect you to the support you need when it matters most, and should help you care for those who matter most.  That’s why we provide an array of options, expert guidance and always-on tools, that are personalized to meet the needs of your reality – to help support you physically, financially and emotionally through the big milestones and in your everyday life. Please visit the compensation and benefits summary on our careers site for more details.

Education

Bachelor's Degree

While possessing the stated degree is preferred, Comcast also may consider applicants who hold some combination of coursework and experience, or who have extensive related professional experience.

Certifications (if applicable)

Relevant Work Experience

7-10 Years

Comcast is an equal opportunity workplace. We will consider all qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status, genetic information, or any other basis protected by applicable law.