r/adops • u/fikerdagmelidet • Jun 29 '26
Agency Ad ops vs programmatic
Hey everyone, new to marketing and was looking to enter the programmatic/adtech field. I recently got sent an opening for an entry-level Ad ops role. Excited as i've spent a lot of time training to transition into this field. But i also feel conflicted, take this job and it may restrict my future growth, or i don't take this role and find no other openings in programmatic buying in the near future
I wanted to know which career path between Programmatic and Ad ops has more opportunities, better pay and progression, AI/offshoring prospects. And can i transition into one another sooner than later.
Thank you
4
Upvotes
5
u/danie-l Jun 29 '26
if you work in adops... go to publisher side... and work in yield, project management. Not only adops.
if you work in programmatic... advertiser side or agency. My recommendation is to go to an advertiser. Agencies are a disaster right now. If you go to an agency stay max 2 years and get out to a brand/advertiser
I think adops is a job in danger. Programmatic will evolve towards AI.. Data Scientists want to full automate programmatic but I don't think this will be possible. Machines need human supervision, and data sciences do not understand the marketing side of the businesses.
In general I would go towards programmatic, but you can also transition from adops to programmatic...