One North is a full-service digital agency helping businesses solve complex problems in creative ways. We’re makers, technologists, and relationship builders guiding our clients and our people toward what’s next. Unlike traditional agencies, we stitch together a deep level of expertise across disciplines so that we can do the work of multiple teams. With capabilities in brand and communications, digital experience, technology and infrastructure, and optimization and insights, we can take on any challenge. We deliver the human element to digital so that your big ideas come to life. One North is a TEKsystems company.

Position Overview

The Client Account Director is responsible for leadership and overall management of the client relationship and primary contact to the client's senior team. The Client Account Director will drive long-term business growth targets and has accountability for the budget and planning.

Reporting into the Managing Director, Client Account Services, the Client Account Director plays a crucial role in the development of the client relationship, including exploring new ideas, discovering solutions to critical problems, illuminating clients’ organizational blind spots, and navigating the road ahead for client engagements. The ideal candidate should have strong relationship management skills, an entrepreneurial spirit, and a proven record of accomplishment working in design / digital agencies delivering strategy, design, and technology solutions that transform businesses. The Client Account Director function serves as the glue between the client, the One North agency team, and the selling team as the constant in the relationship across projects and initiatives.

The Client Account Director drives business built on integrity and trust – trust with our clients and trust with their teams. This person brings a point of view and pragmatism while driving innovation, creative excellence, and profitable quality service. In short, the Client Account Director is our partner in making our clients, and subsequently us, a success.

In this role, the Client Account Director will be responsible for strategic account planning, client retention and growth, as well as the development of executive-level client relationships for a portfolio of small to large clients. The ideal Client Account Director should leverage their experience working in design agencies to bring solutions and services to clients informed by strategic insights in digital and technology that add value to their business and leverage One North capabilities.

Responsibilities

Client Relationship

• Brings smart thinking to the client while operating for agency growth and profitability.
• Maintains a big picture view and thinks creatively to solve problems, especially when dealing with complex business challenges.
• Works collaboratively and develops strong partnerships with clients, agency resources, and account team.
• Delivers strong ideas, brilliant creative, and flawless execution through the management of interdisciplinary team and with other team leads.
• Takes appropriate risks with a relentless focus on results.
• Demonstrates passion for the agency, the work, and the client’s business.
• Accountable for own actions, agency team performance, and client results.
• Supports the Client Account Manager on the communication between the One North team and the client.
• Proactively maintains knowledge of client’s businesses, industries, and trends (as it relates to projects) to become a trusted resource in both internal and client conversations.

Team Management and Leadership

• Coaches and develops Client Account Managers in their roles and responsibilities.
• Establishes work ethic and quality of client management expectations.
• Challenges and inspires the team while understanding and managing the team's strengths and weaknesses.
• Develops growth and development plans for team, monitors progress, and provides timely feedback.
• Pulls together the right people to solve the client's marketing/business problems.
• Supports Project Managers and practitioner teams with what’s needed to develop and nurture ideas throughout the process.
• Accountable for setting the highest standards and driving performance metrics.
• Leads QBRs (quarterly or semi-annual client business reviews), ensuring team members' contributions and active participation.

Creative Advocacy/Work Product

• Creates an environment and atmosphere that encourages the pursuit of big ideas. Takes a leadership role in actively nurturing and contributing to the development of creative ideas.
• Guides the development of sell-in strategy in partnership with Strategy and Creative teams, pre-conditions the client, and protects the big idea once sold.
• Excellent judge of creative/digital work and able to argue a case in any client/agency forum.
• Champions the agency perspective and is persuasive and articulate when communicating work and ideas.
• Responsible for selling in ideas in partnership with practitioners.
• Stays connected to the work, striking the right balance of detail versus high-level knowledge to add value on both dimensions and help clients realize their vision with One North’s capabilities.

Sales/Organic Growth

• Responsible for Account Growth Plans, including strategy behind it.
• Builds appropriate scopes of work to staff plans to drive and meet financial goals.
• Uses sound business acumen to develop sound strategies and fully integrated solutions.
• Understands and is able to sell-in strategic, creative, communications, and technology implications for big ideas.
• Has the ability to author a high-level POV weaving in data, analysis, and insight; and incorporating team content, thinking, and perspective to clients.
• Engages in meaningful discussions with clients and partners to take actions to improve the business.
• Identify new opportunities “from the work” to be pursued in collaboration with the Client Account Manager, One North Client Development, and TEKsystems internal sales team members.
• Responsible for driving negotiations in coordination with selling team.
• Responsible for pricing strategy and actively involved in the estimating process for scopes of work.
• Reviews SOW to ensure alignment to strategy and scope.
• Spearheads sales opportunities with existing client relationships.
• Handle several clients and projects in coordination with the connected sales teams.

Finance/Billing

• Accountable for the healthy financial management of the workstream, monitoring all such activities carried out by the project team.
• Provides reporting on account health.

Skills & Qualifications

• 6 or more years of experience working as an Account Director, Group Account Director, VP or SVP, Consulting Manager, or Client Partner capacity serving Fortune 2000 and upper middle market clients.
• Prior agency (digital, communications, or marketing) experience required.
• Poise, executive presence, and outstanding communication skills.
• Experience overseeing and developing a team of people responsible for the day-to-day account efforts.
• Experience retaining and growing multiple large accounts.
• Experience achieving growth and sales targets.
• Exposure to managing challenging external stakeholders.
• Highly collaborative, ability to work effectively with agency multidisciplinary teams and to build and maintain strong partnerships with client and extended teams.
• Strong interpersonal skills (externally and internally) and emotional intelligence, proactive self-starter, strong presence, outstanding communication skills and strong service orientation.
• Strong digital and experience design capabilities and proficiency in marketing.
• Must be a growth-minded individual that drives conversations and pursuits forward.
• Must be comfortable engaging in exploratory discussions in business functions where you do not have deep expertise.