Head of Digital Agency

Role: Head of Digital Agency

Location: Bangalore/Mumbai (Hybrid)

Job type: Full time, Permanent 

This position offers a hybrid work model, allowing flexibility between working from home and our office. Typically, employees are expected to work 2 days in the office per week.

Why QS?

At QS, we believe that work should empower you. That’s why we foster a flexible working environment that encourages every employee to own their career whilst flourishing personally and professionally. Our company values underpin everything we do – we collaborate, respect and support each other.

It’s our mission to empower motivated people around the world to fulfil their potential through higher education, ensuring that everyone has access to opportunities that change lives.

Our diversity makes us stronger. By sharing our experiences, we learn from one another and achieve more together, driving progress across the sector.

At QS, you’ll be responsible for implementing real change in the international higher education landscape. You’ll take on meaningful challenges that see a positive impact across the business and the wider sector.

We’re confident you’ll feel right at home here. QS was named as one of Newsweek’s Top 100 Most Loved Workplaces® in the UK (October 2023), recognising the respect, trust and appreciation that drive our culture every day. And as a gold-accredited Investors in People organisation – putting us among the top 28% of workplaces globally – it’s official: QS is a place where everyone can thrive.

The role

QS is looking for an experienced digital agency leader to take ownership of our internal agency function and support scaling it for growth. This is not a greenfield build - you'll be inheriting an established team and existing client base, and your mandate is to raise the bar: sharper campaign execution, stronger processes, and a team that consistently delivers measurable results for university clients recruiting international students.

This is a leadership role, working at the intersection of media, data, and higher education marketing. You'll work with a unique client based, QS-owned platforms and paid media channels to deliver complex, multi-channel student recruitment campaigns that drive brand and reputation, leads and ultimately enrolments for our university partners.

If you're looking for a role where you can make a tangible impact, improving campaign quality, building team capability, and growing a profitable agency business - this is it.

Role responsibilities

Campaign Delivery & Performance

Own end-to-end delivery of student recruitment marketing campaigns across digital, social platforms and owned media - from strategy through to reporting

Drive continuous campaign optimisation, using audience data and performance analytics to improve outcomes and demonstrate clear ROI against client KPIs

Serve as the internal subject matter expert on student demand behaviour, media best practice, and competitor activity in the international higher education space

Client Management & Growth

Lead the client management model for agency delivery - covering onboarding, campaign strategy, in-flight reporting, and retention

Build strong, commercially-focused client relationships that position QS as a trusted digital marketing partner for university recruitment teams

Identify opportunities to grow client value through expanded services and improved campaign performance

Team & Operations

Manage and develop the existing team, instilling a high-performance culture focused on quality, accountability, and efficiency

Implement and refine ways of working - including briefing, trafficking, reporting workflows, and cross-functional collaboration with central marketing, content, and automation teams

Work closely with the product team to feed client and operational insights into the product roadmap

Key skills and experience

You're an experienced agency or ad operations professional who thrives in a structured, delivery-focused environment. You know how to get the best out of a team, run tight processes, and keep campaigns on track without losing sight of the bigger commercial picture.

Specifically, you'll bring:

Agency or ad operations leadership experience, ideally from a media owner, publisher, or specialist agency — you understand both the sell-side and the execution side of digital campaigns

Higher education sector knowledge — you're familiar with international student recruitment marketing and the complexity of multi-market, multi-channel university campaigns

Hands-on campaign management expertise — you've run complex media plans and know what good looks like across paid social, digital display, content, and lead generation

Strong analytical capability — you're comfortable working with audience data, traffic analytics, and channel performance metrics to drive optimisation decisions

Operational rigour — you build efficient processes, hold teams to high standards, and create clarity around roles, workflows, and accountability

People leadership — you develop talent, manage performance constructively, and create an environment where people do their best work

A proactive, solutions-first mindset — you spot problems before they escalate, propose practical fixes, and drive things forward without waiting to be asked

So, who are we and what do we do?

QS is the world leader in higher education services, analytics, insights and intelligence. From consultancy to student mobility, academic partnerships to branding solutions, our services power both institutional and individual success.

We’re behind the world’s most widely read university rankings (Meltwater 2023). Our QS World University Rankings® reach hundreds of millions, shaping decisions and guiding futures.

Since launching in 1990, our impact and influence have only grown. Today, we work with more than 2,000 of the world’s leading higher education institutions, over 12,000 employers, and governments seeking change and socioeconomic development through higher education.

Join QS and you’ll join an 800-strong community of problem-solvers, creators, collaborators and change-makers based in 40+ countries and 11 international offices, including Australia, Malaysia, India, Romania, Singapore, France, Germany, the USA and our headquarters in London.

With every talented new hire, business acquisition and bold initiative, we’re strengthening our reach and delivering even greater value to institutions and learners worldwide. Are you ready to shape the future of higher education?

We take investing in our people very seriously.

As standard you will have: 

Competitive base salary  

Access to an annual bonus scheme (for qualifying roles only) 

21 days annual leave – increasing to 23 days after 5 years’ service + 8 days casual leave 

15 days holiday for the year 2026

Enhanced maternity and paternity leave  

Access to Provident Fund and Pension Fund Scheme  

Group Medical Insurance 

A vibrant social environment and multicultural and multinational culture 

But that’s not all. Outside of these standard benefits we also offer resources to allow professional growth and wellness initiatives to nurture a healthy mindset:

Free subscription to the Calm App – the #1 app for sleep, meditation, and relaxation

A focus on welfare which is led by our global wellness team, with mental health first aiders globally

Access to a variety of diversity and inclusion initiatives and groups

Strong recognition and reward programs – including a peer-to-peer recognition platform, quarterly and annual QS Applaud Awards, Connect with your Career annual personal development event

Support for volunteering and study leave

Free subscription to LinkedIn learning – with over 5,000 courses and programmes at your fingertips

Options to join our outstanding global Mentorship programme

Like what you’ve heard? Great, apply now!

As a candidate, we know the application and interview process can be daunting and so it’s important that you have a great experience with us. Our dedicated Talent Team will work hard to ensure you are fully informed at all stages and you are really excited by this opportunity to do meaningful work in the education space.

Equal opportunities

QS Quacquarelli Symonds is proud to be a fair and equal organisation where everyone has the same opportunity to achieve their full potential, irrespective of their background or personal attributes. We celebrate our diversity and believe through sharing our experiences we can learn from one another, be stronger together, and enable our business to thrive. 

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