Department: Performance Media  
Reporting to: Director of Performance Media  
Location: London / Bournemouth / Bristol / Barcelona / Hybrid 

ABOUT: 
 
GAIN is a creative-led, insight-driven company that blends data, tech and creativity. We believe the best ideas emerge where intelligence and creativity unite, where insight sparks imagination, and where innovation turns possibility into progress.  
 
We are explorers of new frontiers, shaping bold strategies that move people, brands, and businesses forward. Individually and together, our specialist teams provide the vision, data, and confidence brands and organisations need to make braver, more impactful decisions. 
 
Today as GAIN, we work as a united force, using data to fuel creativity, and technology to unlock new possibilities. We don’t just embrace innovation, we engineer it, transforming information into action, and ideas into breakthroughs.  
 
This is where rebel thinking, smart technology and data-driven creativity shape the future. 
 

THE ROLE: 
 
The Head of Owned Media is GAIN's senior specialist and capability leader across SEO, organic search, social, authority and link building, responsible for setting the standard for our work today while defining how the capability needs to evolve for the future. 

Search and discovery are changing rapidly. Traditional search engines increasingly sit alongside AI-powered search, generative answer engines and new discovery environments. We are looking for a progressive leader who understands this shift and is excited by the opportunity to evolve GAIN's Owned Media proposition around it. 

Reporting to the Director of Performance Media, you will lead a team of specialists and take responsibility for the quality, development, innovation and commercial performance of the capability. You will combine deep technical and strategic expertise with strong people leadership, ensuring our teams consistently deliver exceptional work for clients while continuing to develop their skills and expertise. 

You will be expected to remain close to the craft. This is not simply a people-management role. You will provide senior technical leadership on complex client challenges, challenge established approaches, introduce new methodologies and ensure GAIN remains at the forefront of SEO, Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO), AI-enabled search and the wider evolution of organic discovery. 

You will work closely with Client Portfolio teams, Strategy, Data, Technology, AI and other specialist capabilities across GAIN to create integrated solutions that deliver measurable business impact. 

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES:

The Head of Owned Media is accountable for: 

• Setting the strategic and technical direction for GAIN's Owned Media capability across SEO, organic search, social, authority and link building 

• Leading, developing and inspiring a multidisciplinary team  

• Ensuring consistently high standards of strategy, technical delivery, execution and measurable client performance 

• Evolving GAIN's proposition in response to changing search behaviours, AI-powered discovery, GEO and emerging technologies 

• Building AI-enabled workflows, automation and tools that improve the quality, speed and scalability of our work 

• Acting as the senior subject-matter expert for Owned Media across GAIN, providing authority and confidence to clients, prospects and internal teams 

• Developing new services, methodologies, frameworks and intellectual property that differentiate GAIN in the market 

• Ensuring the capability operates commercially, with strong utilisation, effective resource deployment and sustainable contribution to margin 

• Developing world-class specialists and future leaders within the discipline 

TECHNICAL & CAPABILITY LEADERSHIP: 

You will be the senior technical authority for Owned Media within GAIN, continually raising the quality, sophistication and relevance of the capability. 

Responsibilities include: 

• Define and continually evolve GAIN's approach to SEO, organic search, social, authority building and digital discovery 

• Maintain deep knowledge of technical SEO and ensure best practice is consistently applied across complex and enterprise-level client environments 

• Provide senior oversight and strategic direction for major client programmes, pitches and complex organic-search challenges 

• Establish clear standards for technical SEO, content optimisation, authority and link building, measurement, reporting and strategic planning 

• Challenge teams to move beyond traditional SEO metrics and demonstrate the relationship between organic visibility, discovery, customer behaviour and business growth 

• Coach and mentor senior specialists, ensuring technical knowledge and strategic thinking continually develop across the team 

• Build strong relationships with search platforms, technology partners and relevant industry communities 

• Represent GAIN as a recognised authority on the future of search and organic discovery through client conversations, industry events, content and thought leadership 

THE FUTURE OF SEARCH: AI, GEO & DISCOVERY: 

The Head of Owned Media will play a central role in defining what the next generation of Owned Media looks like at GAIN. 

You will: 

• Develop GAIN's approach to Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) and visibility within AI-powered search and answer environments 

• Build our understanding of how brands are discovered, referenced and represented across traditional search engines, AI assistants, generative search experiences and emerging discovery platforms 

• Establish methodologies for measuring brand visibility and influence across both traditional and AI-mediated search journeys 

• Explore how technical SEO, content, structured data, digital PR, authority signals and brand credibility influence visibility within generative search environments 

• Lead experimentation around emerging search technologies, separating meaningful opportunities from short-term industry hype 

• Work with GAIN's AI and Technology specialists to develop proprietary approaches, tools and workflows that create competitive advantage 

• Ensure new capabilities can be translated into credible, repeatable and commercially viable client services 

AI-ENABLED WAYS OF WORKING: 

We want AI to change how the capability operates, not simply become another tool in the technology stack. 

You will identify and implement opportunities to use AI and automation across areas such as: 

• Search and audience research 

• Keyword, topic and intent analysis 

• Technical auditing and diagnostics 

• Content opportunity identification and optimisation 

• Competitor and market intelligence 

• Authority and link analysis 

• Data analysis and insight generation 

• Reporting and performance commentary 

• Quality assurance and workflow automation 

• Identification of emerging trends and changes in search behaviour 

You will establish appropriate governance around these workflows, ensuring automation improves human expertise rather than compromising quality, accuracy or strategic thinking. 

CLIENT & DELIVERY EXCELLENCE:

• Take senior ownership of the strategic direction and quality of GAIN's most important and complex Owned Media engagements 

• Build trusted relationships with senior client stakeholders, translating complex search challenges into clear commercial opportunities 

• Support teams in resolving difficult technical, strategic or performance challenges 

• Ensure appropriate quality assurance is applied across strategy, implementation, analysis and reporting 

• Challenge briefs, strategies and established approaches where a better solution can be found 

• Ensure client strategies remain current as search platforms, algorithms, consumer behaviour and AI-powered discovery evolve 

• Lead or support strategic pitches, credentials and new-business conversations where specialist expertise can differentiate GAIN 

• Work closely with Client Portfolio teams to identify opportunities to grow and deepen client relationships 

PROPOSITION & SERVICE DEVELOPMENT:

• Continually assess GAIN's Owned Media proposition against client needs, competitor capabilities and wider changes within the search landscape 

• Identify opportunities for new products and services across SEO, GEO, AI discovery, authority building and organic performance 

• Turn successful approaches into repeatable methodologies, frameworks, scopes and commercial propositions 

• Lead pilots and proofs of concept before scaling successful approaches across the capability 

• Develop reusable assets, methodologies and intellectual property that differentiate GAIN 

• Collaborate across Strategy, Creative, Media, Data, Technology and AI to develop integrated propositions rather than allowing Owned Media to operate in isolation 

• Ensure propositions are commercially viable, scalable and capable of demonstrating measurable client value 

DEVELOP WORLD-CLASS EXPERTS:

You will build a specialist community that people want to join, develop within and learn from. 

You will: 

• Lead, coach and inspire the Owned Media team, creating clear expectations around quality, performance and professional development 

• Raise the technical and strategic capability of every team member through coaching, mentoring and knowledge sharing 

• Identify emerging skills required as SEO and organic discovery evolve and ensure the team develops ahead of client demand 

• Create clear development and succession pathways for technical specialists and future leaders 

• Foster a culture where experimentation, curiosity and constructive challenge are actively encouraged 

• Encourage specialists to develop their external reputation through thought leadership, events, awards, publications and industry communities 

• Create an environment where people are expected to question established approaches and continually look for smarter ways to deliver better results 

COMMERCIAL & OPERATIONAL LEADERSHIP:

As Head of the capability, you will also ensure Owned Media operates as a healthy, scalable and commercially successful part of GAIN. 

You will: 

• Maintain visibility of utilisation, capacity, skills coverage and future resource requirements 

• Ensure work is scoped and delivered efficiently against agreed commercial parameters 

• Identify and address over-servicing, scope leakage and inefficient working practices 

• Use automation, technology and improved workflows to increase productivity without compromising quality 

• Support forecasting and workforce planning, ensuring the right balance of skills exists against current and anticipated client demand 

• Use performance data to identify risks, opportunities and areas requiring investment 

• Work with the Group COO to inform future capability, technology and talent investment 

HOW SUCCESS WILL BE MEASURED:

Success in the role will be demonstrated through: 

• A clear, differentiated and progressive Owned Media proposition 

• Consistently outstanding SEO and organic-search work across GAIN's clients 

• Evidence that GAIN is successfully evolving beyond traditional SEO into GEO, AI search and broader organic discovery 

• Measurable improvement in client performance, satisfaction and retention 

• Successful development and commercialisation of new services and methodologies 

• Increased productivity and quality through AI-enabled workflows and automation 

• Strong utilisation, sustainable commercial performance and effective resource planning 

• Growth in the technical capability, engagement and progression of the team 

• Strong collaboration with Client Portfolio teams and other GAIN capabilities 

• A growing external reputation for GAIN within search, organic media and AI-powered discovery 

Requirements

We are looking for an established search leader who combines deep technical credibility with the ambition to redefine what an Owned Media capability can become. 

You will bring: 

• Significant experience within SEO, organic search or Owned Media, ideally gained within an agency, consultancy or similarly complex client environment 

• Proven experience leading and developing high-performing specialist teams 

• Deep technical understanding of SEO, including technical SEO, content optimisation, authority development and link building 

• Experience developing strategies for complex, enterprise and ideally international brands 

• A strong understanding of how AI is changing search, discovery and customer behaviour, with practical knowledge of GEO/AEO and emerging optimisation approaches 

• Evidence of experimenting with or implementing AI-enabled workflows, automation or new technology within a search environment 

• Strong knowledge of industry platforms including Google Search Console, Google Analytics and leading SEO research, crawling and analytics tools 

• The ability to interpret complex data and translate it into clear strategic and commercial recommendations 

• Strong commercial awareness and experience contributing to pitches, scopes, client growth and new propositions 

• Excellent communication and presentation skills, with the confidence to advise senior client and executive stakeholders 

• A track record of developing people, raising standards and creating a culture of learning and experimentation 

• The ability to operate strategically while remaining sufficiently close to the work to challenge thinking, coach specialists and guide complex engagements 

Above all, you will be curious about where search is going next. You won't be wedded to established SEO conventions simply because they have worked in the past. You'll be excited by the opportunity to challenge them, experiment with what comes next and build an Owned Media capability designed for the future. 

HOW YOU’LL WORK: 

Rebel Thinking: We don’t accept “good enough”. Rebel Thinking is about curiosity with courage. We make it safe to question assumptions, challenge the obvious, and explore smarter, braver ways forward, even when it feels uncomfortable. This is how new ideas, better products, and real breakthroughs happen. 

Make It Happen: “We turn intent into momentum.” Making it Happen is about turning ambition in to action. We move fast, learn fast and push through obstacles together. Progress beats perfection, and momentum creates impact.  

Swarming Our Expertise: “Individually smart. Collectively unstoppable.” Swarming our Expertise means we win together. We commit to developing our expertise so that by combining diverse skills, perspectives and experiences, we solve harder problems faster and deliver results no single expert could achieve. 

Benefits

For UK employees include: 

• Private Medical Insurance  

• Life Assurance  

• Income protection  

• Employee Assistance Programme  

• Cycle to Work salary sacrifice scheme 

• Tech & Wearables salary sacrifice scheme 

• Octopus EV Scheme 

• Discounts and deals on a range of items from hotels, holidays and hormone testing to cinema, gyms and will writing
 
   

GAIN Academy:   
At GAIN, we invest in our people as seriously as we invest in our clients. The GAIN Academy is our internal learning and development hub, a place to grow your skills, explore new ideas, and take your career in the direction you want. From Leadership and Management development, AI fluency to mentoring, experiential workshops and on-demand learning experiences, the Academy is built around you. Professional development isn't something that happens to you at GAIN, it's something you own.  
 

GAIN is an equal opportunities employer and positively encourages applications from suitably qualified and eligible candidates regardless of sex, race, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, religion or belief, marital status, or pregnancy and maternity.