Director of Performance Marketing & Growth

zdfirm Open · verified Sep 10, 2026

Austin Full-time Director Performance Marketing

Leadership Performance Marketing role at zdfirm. Austin · full-time.

Role brief

Growth Roles summary, based on the employer's posting.

What you'll do

Own paid acquisition across Google Search/PPC and the broader digital budget
Connect spend to CPA, ROAS, acquisition cost, revenue, and business results
Increase acquisition volume while protecting or improving unit economics
Use AI and automation before adding staff, agencies, or contractors
Set SEO outcomes with technical specialists and build a repeatable growth playbook

What you bring

Bring roughly six to twelve years of experience, ideally as a senior manager or director who stays close to execution
Have personally managed at least $3M+ in annual paid digital spend
Show hands-on Google Search/PPC ownership and recent PPC work within the last three years
Own a history of improving performance metrics while scaling paid acquisition
Have applied AI or automation in marketing and a stable employment record

Who this fits

You’ll suit a hands-on, data-led operator who works independently and takes direct responsibility for acquisition results rather than relying on agencies or large teams. Experience in high-spend direct-response settings such as legal marketing, home services, insurance, consumer finance, marketplaces, or performance agencies is a strong plus. The role is listed in Austin, and the listing does not state remote, travel, or visa conditions.

From the employer

About Zinda Operating Group

Zinda Operating Group is building an AI-first marketing platform and managed-services operation for law firms. We combine performance marketing discipline with modern AI and automation to run acquisition at a level most legal marketing teams can't match.

Zinda Law Group is our first major client, a real business with real marketing spend and real data. It's where we build and prove the model: better economics, faster iteration, and a system that actually works under live budget pressure.

Once proven, this system expands, to other law firms, new practice areas, acquired companies, and partners. This is a foundational hire for that expansion, not a caretaker role for a single account.

The Role

We're hiring a Director of Performance Marketing & Growth to personally own paid acquisition performance for our flagship client, using AI and automation as the primary lever for scale, not headcount.

This is a hands-on role. You will be in the accounts, in the data, and in the numbers — not just reviewing dashboards or managing an agency relationship. You'll be accountable for the results, and for building the playbook that lets this model expand beyond one client.

What you'll do

Own paid digital performance end-to-end, with primary focus on Google Search/PPC, across a significant and growing budget
Drive core performance metrics: CPA, ROAS, acquisition cost, revenue, and own the outcomes, not just the reporting
Scale paid acquisition volume while holding or improving unit economics, growth without degrading efficiency is the mandate
Use AI and automation as your first additional resource before requesting additional headcount, agencies, or contractors
Take accountability for SEO strategy and results in partnership with technical specialists, you don't need to be a technical SEO expert, but you own the outcome
Build the operating model and playbook that lets this performance system extend to new practice areas, acquired companies, and partner firms
Work directly with leadership to translate one proven account into a repeatable, expandable platform

What you bring

Roughly 6–12 years of total experience, ideally at the Senior Manager or Director level, we're looking for someone still close to the work, not a career executive several steps removed from it
A track record of personally managing $3M+ per year in paid digital spend
Hands-on ownership of Google Search/PPC, not just agency oversight
Direct, personal accountability for CPA, ROAS, acquisition cost, revenue, or similar performance metrics in past roles
Demonstrated ability to scale paid acquisition while maintaining or improving economics
Real, applied experience using AI or automation to improve marketing performance, not just familiarity with the concept
Active, hands-on PPC work within the last 3 years
A stable track record, we look closely at tenure patterns and want to understand the story behind any short stints
Background in high-spend, direct-response environments is a strong plus: personal injury/legal marketing, home services, insurance, consumer finance, marketplaces, or performance agencies

What Success Looks Like

Connects advertising spend directly to qualified cases and business outcomes.
Moves quickly, tests continuously, and makes decisions using data.
Reduces wasted spend and improves lead quality.
Operates independently without relying on agencies or large teams.

Our Core Principles

Excellence Always
Only the Best
Failure is Not an Option
We All Take Out the Trash
Run the Firm Like a Business

Zinda Operating Group is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, veteran status, or other protected status as required by applicable law.

By submitting this application, I understand Zinda Operating Group may use review publicly available information about me in order to assess my suitability for employment.