HAVAS PLAY - CDI - SOCIAL ACCOUNT DIRECTOR

Role Summary

Account Director that sits within the Client Services Team at Havas Play, with a particular focus on Social, delivering multi-market social-first campaigns for clients across the entertainment and retail spaces.

Purpose of Role

The Account Director is the most senior day-to-day account lead, with full responsibility to delegate out the work that comes in and have an eye on all work going out. They are process driven, commercially minded and solutions focused. They will lead on projects that require cross-agency collaboration, working with all areas of the business, with the aim of delivering client satisfaction, retention and growth. Leading their team by example, offering them confidence, support and coaching throughout, the AD will be aware of and manage workload of all team members, flagging any capacity pinches ahead of them becoming a problem. The AD is responsible for the team’s response to briefs and on time delivery of campaigns and projects (with support and guidance from Managing Partner). They will work with cross‑functional teams (Strategy, Insights, Creative, Talent & Creator, Production etc.) to bolster ideas and push the boundaries and encourage the team to create award‑winning work. They have an in‑depth and current knowledge of the Social Media landscape and broader industry, and should be a trusted source to both the team and clients for advice and guidance on campaign planning, executions and potential growth opportunities. An AD requires strong interpersonal skills, understanding demands of both clients and connecting the different teams in the business to deliver on briefs and campaigns; as well as being abreast of all of the financial procedures throughout their accounts. They take ownership and responsibility of client retainers, projects and the overall financial management of their accounts.

Key Responsibilities

• Multiple Account Management: Ability to oversee multiple accounts and increased workloads through proof of delegation (both upwards and downwards) of other tasks and responsibilities. Working across multiple clients and projects at one time whilst maintaining a high work standard. Staying calm and displaying a positive attitude whilst under pressure, and successfully delegating in order to keep work manageable. Leading on all senior client communication, including monthly check‑ins, planning for the future of our relationship, identifying areas of growth, discussing scope, team, performance and more. Ability to proactively drive projects forward, bringing in wider agency expertise & personnel in the process; ensuring all steps & stakeholders are factored into project timelines. Connecting teams within the business to deliver on client work. Supporting on managing the capacity of the account teams, keeping work to scope and having a handle on any over or under delivery.
• Writing and Presentation Skills: Have strong creative and corporate writing skills, to be used across external documents such as client proposals and reports, as well as internal documents such as toolkits and case studies. Ability to adapt your communications based on the needs of your clients & your team. Effectively communicate both verbally and in writing to be clear & concise in client‑facing comms as well as when briefing suppliers and the internal team. Have great attention to detail and ensure all written work is delivered to a high standard of quality. Demonstrate confidence in competently talking clients through a document or pitching an idea, outlining the process you’ve taken to answer the brief. Instill confidence by showcasing your understanding of the client’s brand/business when “selling” the idea to them. Reviewing and reinforcing a high standard of comms and presentation amongst the teams going out to clients and businesses.
• Approach, initiative & problem solving: Be positive, proactive and solutions‑driven – always think one step ahead. Aspire to be fully accountable for day‑to‑day operations at the same time as empowering the team (particularly Senior Social Media Manager, Social Media Manager and Senior Social Media Exec) to feel in control and accountable themselves. Be in the day to day work, anticipating potential problems and issues. Always think ahead – leaving enough time for planning, scope and budgets to be created ahead of work beginning.
• Relationships: Have a strong working relationship with your clients and be seen as the trusted point of counsel. Be an active listener to really understand your clients world. Feel comfortable and confident challenging & pressing the agency view, always with a solution‑based mindset. Be approachable and accessible to every member of your team. Work fluidly with different departments such as strategy, insights, creative, and production, being able to follow the processes of these teams. Manage line reports staying close to their development, ambitions and objectives. Sets the standard for your team to learn & develop from.
• Strategic skills & answering briefs: Champion for the agency’s processes. Have a strong POV on how to interrogate and answer a brief creatively, and how to position and articulate ideas to the client. Be confident in the brief process from interrogating the brief, to insight, strategy and creative briefing, delegating to your team and drawing on other business team leads where necessary. Demonstrate clear strategic thinking in your day‑to‑day work across your accounts and how this is framing the client’s campaign against their business objectives. Have a good understanding of how to structure a brief response.
• Campaign execution & administration: Oversee all plans and activations, including rights activation, live events, content generation, influencer engagement and coordinating suppliers. Understand time to execute projects. Write scopes and negotiate these with client (with support of MP). Ensure you have the right team in place, with the right capacity and skillset. Make sure your team is aligned on the objectives for the client and as an agency team. Maintain motivation of your team – ensuring no one is overwhelmed with workload or falling behind on deliverables. Oversee the Snr Social Media Manager/ Social Media Manager administrative processes on your accounts (status reports, campaign reporting, budget trackers) and ensure they are being updated and delivered to the client on time.
• Client services & industry knowledge: Understand your client’s business so that you are in the best possible position to advise, challenge and upsell. Stay abreast of new innovations within the industry to be able to contribute effectively in brainstorms and be proactive about new ideas for current or prospective clients.
• Growth & New Business: The AD should look to identify ways to grow their clients organically – capitalising on these moments and taking initiative. Generate accurate reports for the Senior Management, breaking down team performance against set goals and targets, along with plans of how to improve moving forwards. Support on delivering a target of 10% YOY organic growth. An AD should have contacts within the industry, making sure they nurture and grow these relationships in order to bring in new opportunities to the business. An AD should be instrumental in helping deliver new business pitches outside of their D2D client accounts, understanding briefs, galvanising teams and delivering on time.
• People Management: Management of day‑to‑day running of the team including keeping all members of the team up‑to‑date with account work and ensure that regular internal status meetings and/or check‑ins are arranged. Continuous assessment of teams and distribution of work.
• Time Management & Finance: AD encompasses good logical planning, strong communication and the ability to manage expectations both internally and externally. Efficient time management is essential. Ensure that you and the team are delivering work on time and are conscientious with deadlines. Anticipate pinch points on your accounts. Be aware of your teams time – any under‑capacity or those feeling the pressure with too much on.
• Finance: Be competent with the finance processes: Building and negotiating SOWs · Tracking hours/revenue (Monday.com). Monitoring your team are setting up new job numbers, processing POs and invoices efficiently. Clear understanding of driving client account profitability. Clear understanding of resourcing processes. Be inquisitive about your clients and what else they’re up to. Understand which other agencies they work with and how the relationship is working.

WHAT SKILLS DO I NEED?

• Minimum 2 years experience as a Senior Account Manager within a Social Media Agency.
• Experience working across online and offline social across entertainment clients.
• Solid experience of managing a busy team.
• Varied and tested experience in professional client relationship management.
• A high level of experience in budgeting and finance management.
• Significant experience in managing multiple projects simultaneously.
• Enthusiastic and positive approach to challenges.
• Resourceful and proactive in dealing with issues.
• The ability to plan and strategise at a senior level.
• A persuasive and confident approach to creative projects.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Effective team management capabilities.
• A keen attention to detail.