Jobs › Okta

Senior Director of Paid Media

Okta · Chicago, IL · Digital Media-415

Posted Sep 21, 2026 · We last checked this listing on Oct 6, 2026

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Likely interview questions for this role

Written from this job description, not a generic list. Each one notes what the interviewer is really checking.

About your past

Tell me about a time you cut a large share of paid spend. How did you decide and how did you explain it?

What they are checking: Whether they manage budget for results and can defend hard calls to leadership.

Tell me about the best performance marketing team you've built. How did you hire and develop them?

What they are checking: Whether they can grow a team with the technical and creative range this job requires.

What would you do

Sales says paid leads are low quality. How do you respond?

What they are checking: Whether they dig into the data and fix targeting together with sales instead of getting defensive.

How would you build the operating model for a global paid media team across regions?

What they are checking: Whether they can set up planning, governance and measurement that scales without slowing teams down.

How do you work with brand and creative so paid ads perform and still look like Okta?

What they are checking: Whether they can balance performance testing with brand standards across teams.

How do you present paid media results to a CMO and a CFO differently?

What they are checking: Whether they can tailor the story to what each executive cares about with credible numbers.

About the work

How would you structure paid media differently for high-touch enterprise ABM and high-velocity developer and product-led growth?

What they are checking: Whether they understand the two motions need different channels, targeting, creative and success metrics.

How do you prove paid media is creating pipeline, not just taking credit for deals that would have happened anyway?

What they are checking: Whether they use incrementality testing and honest measurement instead of last-touch attribution alone.

What does AI-first mean to you in paid media, in practice?

What they are checking: Whether they have real examples of using AI for bidding, creative or analysis rather than repeating the phrase.

How would you use paid media to move pipeline that's already created, not just generate new leads?

What they are checking: Whether they think about the full buyer journey, including progression, as the posting describes.

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The full job description

As published by Okta.

Secure Every Identity, from AI to Human Identity is the key to unlocking the potential of AI. Okta secures AI by building the trusted, neutral infrastructure that enables organizations to safely embrace this new era. This work requires a relentless drive to solve complex challenges with real-world stakes. We are looking for builders and owners who operate with speed and urgency and execute with excellence. This is an opportunity to do career-defining work. We're all in on this mission. If you are too, let's talk. Senior Director of Paid Media About the Role We are looking for a visionary, results-driven Senior Director of Paid Media to lead our Global Paid Media and Performance Marketing organization within Okta’s fast-paced marketing ecosystem. This leader will define how we use paid investment across the full buyer journey—from audience development and demand capture through pipeline creation and progression—while building the operating model, measurement capabilities, and team required to scale globally. The ideal leader operates at the intersection of technology, data science, and creative storytelling. You are AI-first, commercially minded, and possess the technical depth to navigate dual go-to-market motions (high-touch enterprise ABM and high-velocity developer/product-led growth). As a trusted cross-functional partner, you possess the executive gravitas to align digital investments with corporate financial targets while maintaining the analytical rigor to interrogate unit economics alongside data science teams. What You Will Do: • Global Vision & Growth Strategy: Define and execute the multi-year global paid media strategy across Search, Paid Social, Programmatic, ABM, and emerging channels to accelerate enterprise pipeline for the Okta and Auth0 product portfolios. • Executive Leadership & Org Building: Lead, mentor, and scale a high-performing, multi-tiered global organization of media leaders, functional specialists, and regional teams (AMER, EMEA, APJ), cultivating a culture of operational excellence and continuous innovation. • Performance Strategy & Decision-Making: Establish a disciplined operating model for evaluating channel performance, translating complex media and funnel signals into clear investment recommendations, optimization priorities, and executive-level decisions. • Executive & GTM Alignment: Act as an essential strategic partner to the CMO, CRO, Finance, Product Marketing, and Sales leadership, translating paid media outcomes into commercial business impact, revenue predictability, and CAC/LTV efficiency. • AI-First Transformation: Champion the adoption of cutting-edge AI methodologies—from predictive audience modeling and autonomous bid management to generative creative workflows—to establish Okta as an industry benchmark in modern B2B demand generation. • Global Capital Allocation & Agency Governance: Direct a multi-million-dollar global media investment portfolio, optimizing ROI through rigorous governance, scenario modeling, and managing tier-one global agency and platform partnerships. • Next-Gen Measurement & Attribution: Partner with Marketing Operations, Analytics, and Data Engineering to advance MMM, MTA, incrementality testing, and closed-loop conversion signals that connect media investment to qualified demand, pipeline, and revenue. • Integrated Buyer Journey: Partner across Campaigns, Product Marketing, Web, Lifecycle, ABX, and Sales to ensure paid media is connected to the broader buyer journey — from audience creation and demand capture through retargeting, conversion, and pipeline progression. • Dual-Motion ABM & Developer Acquisition: Scale bespoke Account-Based Marketing (ABM) media programs targeting Global 2000 enterprise accounts while optimizing high-volume self-serve developer acquisition funnels. What You Will Bring: • Experience: 12–15+ years of progressive experience in Paid Media and Digital Growth Marketing, with 8+ years of people management including a proven track record of managing managers and leading distributed global teams. • B2B SaaS Mastery: Deep expertise in enterprise B2B SaaS with a clear understanding of complex, multi-stakeholder buyer journeys, long sales cycles, and multi-product portfolio positioning. • Strategic Judgment & Executive Communication: Proven ability to move from data and platform complexity to a clear point of view — identifying what matters, what action should be taken, and communicating recommendations simply to senior leaders. • Commercial & Portfolio Stewardship: Demonstrated success owning and scaling tens of millions in annual media budgets with full accountability for pipeline contribution, revenue attainment, and unit economics. • Executive Presence & Influence: Exceptional communication and storytelling skills, with the ability to distill complex digital mechanics into compelling strategic narratives for C-level stakeholders and board-level presentations. • Architectural & Technical Depth: Deep understanding of modern ad tech/martech architectures, audience graphs, CRM integrations (Salesforce), BI tools (Looker, Tableau), and conversion rate optimization (CRO) engines. • Builder Mindset & Resilience: High degree of comfort operating in high-growth, ambiguous environments, with a track record of independently driving ambiguous, cross-functional work to closure. • Innovation & Continuous Learning: Passion for staying ahead of macroeconomic shifts, digital privacy regulations, and emerging AI technologies, with the agility to pivot strategies proactively. P24311 The annual base salary range for this position for candidates located in the San Francisco Bay area is between: $269,000 &mdash; $369,000 USD Below is the annual base salary range for candidates located in California (excluding San Francisco Bay Area), Colorado, Illinois, New York and Washington. Your actual base salary will depend on factors such as your skills, qualifications, experience, and work location. In addition, Okta offers equity (where applicable), bonus, and benefits, including health, dental and vision insurance, 401(k), flexible spending account, and paid leave (including PTO and parental leave) in accordance with our applicable plans and policies. To learn more about our Total Rewards program please visit: https://rewards.okta.com/us .&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The annual base salary range for this position for candidates located in California (excluding San Francisco Bay Area), Colorado, Illinois, New York, and Washington is between: $240,000 &mdash; $330,000 USD Below is the annual salary range for candidates located in Canada. Your actual salary will depend on factors such as your skills, qualifications, and experience. In addition, Okta offers equity (where applicable), bonus, and benefits, including health, dental, and vision insurance, RRSP with a match, healthcare spending, telemedicine, and paid leave (including PTO and parental leave) in accordance with our applicable plans and policies. To learn more about our Total Rewards program, please visit:&nbsp;<a href="https://rewards.okta.com/can" target="_blank" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://rewards.okta.com/can&source=gmail&ust=1705181614985000&usg=AOvVaw29oi6BOXve4rhySFpzzvao">https://rewards.okta.com/can . The annual base salary range for this position for candidates located in Canada is between: $212,000 &mdash; $291,000 CAD The Okta Experience • Supporting Your Well-Being &nbsp; • Driving Social Impact&nbsp; • Developing Talent and Fostering Connection + Community We are intentional about connection. Our global community, spanning over 20 offices worldwide, is united by a drive to innovate. Your journey begins with an immersive, in-person onboarding experience designed to accelerate your impact and connect you to our mission and team from day one. Okta is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, ancestry, marital status, age, physical or mental disability, or status as a protected veteran. We also consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and convictions records, consistent with applicable laws. If reasonable accommodation is needed to complete any part of the job application, interview process, or onboarding please&nbsp; use this Form to request an accommodation. Notice for New York City Applicants & Employees: Okta may use Automated Employment Decision Tools (AEDT), as defined by New York City Local Law 144, that use artificial intelligence, machine learning, or other automated processes to assist in our recruitment and hiring process. In accordance with NYC Local Law 144, if you are an applicant or employee residing in New York City, please&nbsp; click here to view our full NYC AEDT Notice.

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