SEO & GEO Business Director in Leeds

We are Havas Market, part of the Havas Media Network. We believe in the fusion of commerce and performance to drive limitless performance. We break down barriers between commerce and performance to build cohesive multichannel purchase experiences that powerfully combine tech and human flair.

Havas Market expertise spans four core specialist services: paid media (PPC, paid social, shopping international), owned (SEO, CRO, content, creative, localisation), commerce (Amazon, Marketplaces, Retail Media, social commerce) and earned (digital PR, social). We help clients such as Kia, Hyundai, BBC, TOAST and Merrell to:

• Connect with the human behind the click – we harness human-led planning and technology to create experiences that connect more deeply and drive superior digital performance.
• Capture meaningful metrics that matter – we focus on meaningful results that drive business impact, not just superficial metrics, ensuring client strategy delivers real commercial success.
• Combine curious minds and powerful technology – we turn data into actionable insights, all powered and delivered by cutting-edge technology, giving clients a competitive edge in market.

The SEO & GEO Business Director role is a high-profile role, overseeing a team comprising 10+ strategy specialists, across London and Leeds. With capability spanning SEO strategy and Content who sits as part of an integrated offering, integral for delivering against the ‘Limitless Performance’ agency proposition – a new approach we believe uniquely equips us to disrupt the market and drive growth.

Reporting into the Head of SEO & GEO, you will be responsible for the day-to-day running of the SEO Strategy and content team to oversee client work where an SEO strategy is in play. You will line manage 2+ SEO Strategy ADs and will be accountable for driving integration across these disciplines, as well as ensuring consistency across locations, to ensure we truly break down established silos in terms of ways of working.

You will need to work closely with the HOD to ensure we have a coherent SEO and GEO product that is seamlessly rolled out for all clients into an established channel strategy and activation best practice. As such, you will need to review and enhance our ways of working, delivery mechanisms, oversee annual client strategies, QA processes and playbooks. You will feed into our commercial performance – ensuring the team is effectively delivering against client scopes, working profitably, and driving high client retention through best in class SEO delivery. As part of this, you will have the opportunity to feed into commercial proposals to ensure we’re positioned to maximise profitability across the department.

You will lead our relationship with Ledger Bennett, our B2B department to establish and oversee efficient ways of working from the dedicated SEO Pod across their clients. You will likely be required to lead pitches where logical (based on location, client etc.), as well as continue to build your personal PR – both internally and externally – through thought leadership and events.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Work with the HOD to establish and lead on the implementation of a future facing approach to SEO and GEO – translating a compelling new business proposition into a coherent best practice approach for the team to follow.
• Own comms across 4 AD’s to enhance ways of working and process to ensure we have a consistent approach to SEO delivery across all parts of the team to break down silos (Strategy, tech, DPR, through to PPC & data).
• Manage client profitability – ensuring you’re aware of client scopes, burn rates and are proactively communicating issues to the SEO Team, CS/CPT and HOD.
• Ensuring our SEO team is delivering against an innovative and future facing strategic framework and operationally have consistent roadmaps that drive delivery improvement.
• Responsible for the quality of output across teams, be the point of escalation to resolve business priorities (i.e. under delivery, SLA’s, commercial objectives).
• Work with HOD to lead on the construction of new client scopes as appropriate.
• Actively champion the use of Brand Insights AI with clients and the wider team.
• Feed into resourcing requirements across the SEO team, ensuring we're maximising capacity across locations while balancing resource costs within target through efficient resource management.
• Support HOD with new business, and where appropriate, ensure new business opportunities are effectively delivered against to drive growth.
• Support HOD in the development of new, proprietary product solutions to either drive efficiencies or deliver diversified income streams.
• Work with ADs and CS/CPT to identify and convert upsells/cross-sells from across the Network.
• Ensure all functions of the SEO team are meeting the expectations of our clients, being a point of escalation for our Management and Client teams to resolve and improve delivery.
• Ensure our capabilities are recognised by the industry, ensuring ongoing development of case studies, thought leadership and awards both internally and externally.
• Champion what it means to operate in a Network culture – enabling people to connect with the agency brand they work within, whether that’s Havas Market, Ledger Bennett etc.
• Manage the Ledger Bennett SEO Pod, ensuring high quality of work is delivered through efficient resource management and foster a collaborative and functioning team of B2B search experts.
• Lead training for the SEO team to build a best in class offering at the forefront of industry evolution.
• Alongside HOD, lead on core elements, i.e. team meetings, socials etc., to ensure the team receives the right communication and transparency into how we’re operating and where we’re going.
• Proactively drive recruitment priorities with our Talent partners, including offshore resourcing.

ESSENTIAL SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE:

• Significant experience leading large teams within an agency environment.
• A proven track record of growing revenue across clients and success with new client acquisition.
• Organisational excellence across SLA’s, best practice, process, and team management.
• Highly organised, capable of managing and prioritising multiple workstreams.
• Highly numerate with a functional expertise in BI technology.
• Demonstrable experience of building high performing teams.
• Ability to motivate and lead a large team.