Director, Curation & Activation Partnerships

About the Role Equativ is seeking a commercially driven Director, Curation & Activation Partnerships to grow Maestro, our programmatic curation and media activation platform, across North America. The role develops agency and holding-company partnerships, helping programmatic and curation teams build scalable strategies while exploring AI-powered and agentic media activation. This hands-on individual contributor owns revenue growth and long-term partnerships. Curation expertise isn't required from day one; commercial judgment, programmatic knowledge, curiosity, and the ability to turn technology into business opportunities matter most. What You'll Do Build & Grow Strategic Agency Partnerships - Build relationships with agency programmatic, investment, trading, data, and curation teams. - Help agencies use Maestro to launch curation offerings, activate data, access differentiated supply, and unlock value. - Develop white-label and co-branded curation partnership opportunities. - Partner with Customer Success to move agreements into successful onboarding and activation. - Expand relationships across agency teams, brands, markets, and use cases. Develop Market & Ecosystem Knowledge - Develop expertise in Maestro, curation, and evolving agency buying strategies. - Track programmatic developments across DSPs, SSPs, identity, audience data, contextual targeting, and supply-path optimization. - Understand AI-driven advertising, agentic media planning and buying, Model Context Protocol (MCP), and Ad Context Protocol (AdCP), and their potential for media activation. - Translate emerging technologies, data partnerships, and market insights into differentiated curation opportunities. Contribute to Go-to-Market Strategy - Align with the VP, Curation Activation on target agencies, priority segments, and growth opportunities. - Own a pipeline of agency partnerships, from prospecting and negotiations through activation, revenue generation, and expansion. - Work with Marketing, Product, Customer Success, and Demand Sales to accelerate adoption and growth. - Represent Equativ at industry events, agency meetings, and networking opportunities. - Bring client feedback and competitive insights into Maestro's go-to-market and product strategy. Who You Are - 5+ years of experience in programmatic advertising, digital media, business development, or agency partnerships. - Track record of developing partnerships, winning business, and growing revenue. - Understanding of agencies and holding companies, including programmatic planning, buying, and activation. - Knowledge of DSPs, SSPs, and programmatic deal structures. - Familiarity with audience data, contextual signals, and data-driven advertising. - Strong communication and negotiation skills across commercial and technical stakeholders. - Experience managing a sales pipeline and delivering against revenue targets. - Curious, adaptable, and eager to learn emerging advertising technologies. Nice to Have - Experience with programmatic curation, curated marketplaces, or data-driven activation. - Relationships with North American agency programmatic, investment, or curation teams. - Experience with holding-company trading desks or agency technology and data teams. - Exposure to data providers, contextual platforms, or content intelligence. - Experience with technology partnerships, white-label offerings, or reseller models. - Familiarity with CTV, retail media, AI-powered advertising, agentic workflows, MCP, or AdCP.