Account Manager | PR | Burson

JOB PURPOSE - SUMMARY

The Account Manager is confident in managing workloads and projects, consistently demonstrating strong strategic thinking and sound judgement. They are trusted by clients to understand issues, agreements, and priorities, and to deliver end to end work seamlessly and reliably. Highly collaborative and approachable, they are valued by both colleagues and clients. A critical strength of the role is the ability to manage client expectations, identify priority projects, and strategically deploy internal resources to ensure timely, high-quality delivery that meets agreed standards.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES AND ACCOUNTABILITIES

Understanding the Agency

• Understand and champion Burson Strategies, its values, offering, and ways of working.
• Demonstrate a clear understanding of the roles and responsibilities across group agency resources, building effective and profitable relationships while acting as a key intermediary between clients, account teams, and internal departments.
• Contribute to the delivery of Agency financial performance goals, maintaining regular dialogue with leadership on account and financial performance.

Creativity

• Accurately interpret and articulate client feedback, comments, and actions, confirming alignment in writing to ensure shared understanding.
• Lead creative briefings that are clear, concise, insightful, and inspirational.
• Actively contribute informed opinions during the creative process to ensure all work remains on-brand and on-brief.
• Lead creative presentations to clients (face-to-face where possible), clearly articulating how ideas address strategic objectives, brand guidelines, and briefs.
• Serve as a brand guardian, demonstrating a strong command of client tone of voice, brand positioning, and messaging.

Commercial Management

• Maintain a thorough understanding of Client–Agency contracts across all relevant accounts.
• Guide and support the account team on correct financial processes, implementing regular forums to ensure shared understanding of account financials.
• Accurately scope and estimate work following the receipt of new briefs, ensuring all projects are delivered within agreed budgets through regular WIP review and re-estimation where scope changes occur.
• Take a lead role in monthly financial meetings, ensuring WIP actions are completed by month-end deadlines.
• Oversee financial health across accounts, including revenue streams, billing practices, and identification of potential financial risks.
• Ensure timely reconciliation and invoicing of all jobs.
• Review debtor reports weekly and proactively follow up with clients and accounts payable teams where required.
• Maintain and update finance trackers regularly, demonstrating awareness of performance against monthly forecasts.

Strategy

• Develop an in-depth understanding of the client’s market and operating environment, contributing to competitor and sector analysis where required.
• Gather and interpret business data and market insights from clients and competitive sources to ensure the Agency is fully immersed in the client’s business.
• Understand and respond effectively to the client’s business, communication strategies, and objectives.
• Continuously demonstrate a deep understanding of the client’s brand and business when evaluating work and shaping strategic recommendations.
• Apply critical thinking to major campaign execution, ensuring relevant content is delivered through the most effective platforms and channels.
• Ensure paid media strategies align with campaign objectives and wider business goals.

Delivery

• Acknowledge all client briefs, requests, and enquiries promptly, clearly outlining next steps and delivery timelines.
• Demonstrate exceptional attention to detail across all written and presentation materials.
• Manage strategic projects to high levels of client satisfaction, with support from Account Executives and Account Directors, ensuring delivery within agreed timelines.
• Communicate clear Agency recommendations and confidently handle major strategic PR enquiries.
• Proactively manage client expectations through regular updates, flagging risks or issues in advance.
• Take responsibility for quality assurance, ensuring no work is shared with clients unless it meets agreed standards and is free from errors or inconsistencies.
• Clearly communicate feedback to clients, articulating rationales and managing creative challenges constructively.
• Develop and maintain detailed timing plans for client campaigns, updating as required and negotiating timelines where appropriate.
• Compile concise case studies at the conclusion of each campaign to capture outcomes and learnings.

Team Management

• Set clear performance goals and objectives for direct reports, ensuring collaboration and mutual agreement.
• Contribute to and support performance and career management processes, ensuring regular, constructive review discussions focused on development and progression.
• Motivate and inspire teams to deliver strong outcomes and consistently high performance.
• Maintain effective dialogue with leadership on team performance and issues.
• Address team challenges proactively and constructively.
• Identify training and development needs and work closely with HR to agree and implement development plans.
• Coordinate team participation in key client meetings.
• Ensure effective delegation of tasks and responsibilities across the team.

Relationship Management

• Demonstrate flexibility in managing multiple client relationships simultaneously.
• Maintain a consistently professional tone in all verbal and written client and internal communications.
• Aim to maintain daily client contact, where appropriate, to strengthen relationships and ensure alignment.
• Build strong, trusted relationships and act as the primary day-to-day contact for mid-level client stakeholders on assigned projects.
• Share informed, confident opinions with clients, demonstrating passion, honesty, and transparency around potential challenges.
• Confidently chair client meetings and play an active role in meetings led by senior team members.
• Collaborate with partner agencies where appropriate to deliver integrated solutions.
• Provide line management and on-the-job support and coaching where applicable.
• Effectively manage personal workload, recognising when support is required and proactively offering assistance to others.

Self-Development

• Actively pursue self-development and learning opportunities.
• Take responsibility for regularly reviewing personal performance and development objectives.
• Consistently attend and actively participate in Hub-led training and development programmes.

PROFESSIONAL, TECHNICAL SKILLS AND PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE REQUIRED

• Strong understanding of the digital ecosystem and content formats.
• Demonstrated excellence in media writing, editorial development and editing, and oversight of audio-visual content including press releases, statements, speeches, op-eds, communications kits, social media videos, features, documentaries, and educational materials.
• Proven ability to collate data and develop in-depth content such as industry and sector reports and surveys.
• Strong media relations experience across both traditional and digital platforms.
• Sound knowledge of the evolving media landscape.
• Ability to critically assess and articulate what constitutes an effective PR or communications campaign.
• Excellent project and campaign management skills.
• Highly effective written and verbal communication skills.
• Natural communicator with strong interpersonal skills.
• Previous experience managing and coaching teams.
• Experience working with senior and executive-level clients and stakeholders.
• Strong negotiation and influencing capabilities.
• High level of commercial awareness and business acumen.
• Strong organisational skills with exceptional attention to detail.
• Collaborative team player with clear leadership capability.
• Proactive problem-solver who consistently adds value beyond role expectations.
• Confident, flexible, and resilient, with the ability to manage multiple priorities.
• Fast learner, open to feedback from clients and supervisors.
• Demonstrates enthusiasm, professionalism, pride, and commitment.
• 3–5 years of relevant professional experience.
• Undergraduate degree or advanced diploma.

BURSON EAST AFRICA LIMITED – COMPANY OVERVIEW

At Burson East Africa Limited, our diverse talent network delivers proven results for some of the world’s most recognised brands. We create campaigns that influence decision-makers, shape reputations, manage risk, engage stakeholders, and drive business impact. Our priority is placing the right people, in the right roles, at the right time. Guided by our principle of agile mobility, we collaborate seamlessly across time zones, languages, and cultures to help our clients make informed decisions and tell compelling stories.