How to Hire AdTech Roles: AdOps, Media Buyers and Affiliate Managers
By Carla Costantini · October 5, 2026
Short answer: hiring well in AdTech starts with separating three roles that are often confused. AdOps runs the technical operation of campaigns, the Media Buyer decides where and how to invest the budget, and the Affiliate Manager builds and grows the partner network that drives conversions. Each role requires different skills, and assessing them with the same criteria is the most common hiring mistake.
Demand for these profiles grows with the market. eMarketer projects that programmatic will account for nearly 9 in 10 digital display ad dollars worldwide in 2025, and that U.S. affiliate marketing spend will reach nearly $12 billion in 2025, up 11.9% year over year.
What each role does
| Role | Core responsibility | Metrics it moves | Typical tools |
|---|---|---|---|
| AdOps (Ad Operations) | Set up, launch and monitor campaigns; fix delivery and tracking issues | Delivery rate, fill rate, discrepancies, setup errors | Ad servers, DSPs, SSPs, Google Ad Manager |
| Media Buyer | Plan and optimize media investment against business goals | CPA, ROAS, CPM, conversion volume | DSPs, Meta, Google and TikTok ad platforms, analytics tools |
| Affiliate Manager | Recruit, activate and retain partners; negotiate commissions and control traffic quality | Revenue per partner, active partners, fraud rate | Affiliate and tracking platforms (e.g., Impact, CAKE, Everflow) |
Skills to assess in each role
AdOps
- Technical command of ad servers and the programmatic ecosystem.
- Diagnostic ability: finding why a campaign is not delivering or not tracking.
- Rigor and attention to detail in setups with many variables.
Media Buyer
- Analytical thinking and data fluency to make fast decisions.
- Judgment to reallocate budget across channels based on results.
- Proven experience with budgets at a scale similar to the role.
Affiliate Manager
- Commercial and negotiation skills with partners.
- An active network in the relevant verticals.
- Ability to detect low-quality or fraudulent traffic.
Common AdTech hiring mistakes
- Using one profile for all three roles. A strong Media Buyer may not be able to fix a tracking issue, and a strong AdOps specialist is not always commercially minded.
- Assessing tools instead of judgment. Platforms change; diagnostic ability and data-driven decision-making last.
- Not validating concrete results. Ask for examples with metrics: budget managed, ROAS achieved, partners activated.
- Ignoring the vertical. An Affiliate Manager with iGaming or fintech experience brings a network that takes years to build.
- Searching only in the local market. AdTech talent is scarce and spread across the region.
Where the talent is in LATAM
Latin America holds a growing pool of AdTech professionals, driven by performance marketing companies, mobile apps, fintech and iGaming operators with regional teams. Argentina, Brazil, Mexico and Colombia concentrate the most experience, with professionals used to working with U.S. teams and budgets in overlapping time zones.
The PeopleFirst Talent Partners perspective
At PeopleFirst Talent Partners, a boutique tech recruiting firm, AdTech searches show a clear pattern: the best predictor of future performance is not the list of tools, but how a candidate explains a decision with data. That is why every evaluation centers on real cases with metrics, tailored to the specific role.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between AdOps and a Media Buyer? AdOps makes sure campaigns work technically; the Media Buyer decides where to invest to hit business goals.
What skills should an affiliate manager have? Commercial and negotiation skills, an active partner network, command of tracking platforms and the ability to detect fraud.
How do you assess a Media Buyer in an interview? With a case study: share campaign data and ask how they would reallocate the budget, and why.
Can U.S. companies hire AdTech talent in LATAM? Yes. The region has professionals experienced with U.S. accounts and budgets, plus time-zone overlap.
Carla Costantini, Global Talent Partner at PeopleFirst Agency