Senior Account Director

At AKQA we believe in the imaginative application of art and science to build modern brands, create future experiences and accelerate new business ideas. With an entrepreneurial and collaborative approach, we design adaptive digital services and experiences that capture the imagination while delivering impressive business returns for our clients.

The Client Services team is responsible for every facet of our enduring client partnerships ­– from ensuring an unwavering commitment to delivering meaningful outcomes to redefining the future of brands and businesses. With a profound empathy for our client’s business context, their customer base and society as a whole, they embrace an entrepreneurial mindset to identify and enable opportunities to nurture sustained growth. Equally, the team serves as gatekeepers to the well-being and ambitions of the internal team.

We are currently seeking a Senior Account Director to join our Paris team. You'll be instrumental in answering briefs and helping solve challenges across brand, business and experience for our cross-category clients. More than a manager or consultant, you will foster partnerships with clients to deliver measurable impact, helping come up with creative solutions to business problems and to crack open new opportunities. Your deep understanding of our clients’s brands, businesses and briefs will enable you to drive their digital transformation and effective results. And your ability to lead internal teams, acting as the liaison between client and team, will enable and empower the rest of your fellow team members to deliver the highest fidelity work. 

As part of the AKQA team, you will work in an environment that fosters a dynamic and meritocratic culture, surrounded by some of the brightest minds in their fields. 
You will report to the Managing Director and collaborate with others across the Paris studio and wider EMEA region. 

ROLE REQUIREMENTS

• Agency experience beyond handling ATL comms required, knowledge in digital experiences, services and ecosystems mandatory - you understand how to translate marketing objectives into innovation opportunities
• Establish collaborative partnerships with key clients to deliver against business objectives - you are responsible for their business performance and our client satisfaction score
• Continuously research, think, and develop thought provoking questions, ideas, pivots and proposals to our clients - you know how to organically grow clients by being 6 months ahead
• Consistently demonstrate your strategic capability and presentation skills in framing client challenges, defining project approaches and ensuring value based outcomes - you build trust with clients because you’re passionate about being in front of them
• Effectively empathise, synthesise and communicate client requirements in clear briefings - you know that the team’s success comes down to focus and clarity of the task at hand
• Motivate and coordinate multidisciplinary teams across studios, disciplines and partners - you understand that your team is your business and you should treat them with respect, empathy and inspiration
• Support continual process improvements across the AKQA’s evolving service offering - we are a continuous work in progress or your ability to identify improvements is what sets you apart

QUALITIES AND CHARACTERISTICS

• 7+ years working in a client services or account management role in digital, strategy, non-traditional advertising agency or business consulting environment
• Prior success in driving new business opportunities, from identification through to conversion, including presenting autonomously at senior levels
• Understanding of a strategic consulting and professional services approach
• Experience of managing global clients and leading accounts at a senior level
• Strong understanding of the digital landscape, customer experience perspective and transformation
• Strong problem-solving skills; able to demonstrate how you’ve made a measurable difference to an organisation, project or team
• High emotional intellect, the ability to drive projects and lead an internal team through various scenarios with clients 
• Operational savvy and know-how, in order to work with the teams and draw the balance between servicing our clients and protecting our own team and interests

Explore our extensive range of benefits here

We believe great work happens when we're together, fostering creativity, collaboration, and connection. That's why we’ve adopted a hybrid approach including required in-office days. If you require accommodations or flexibility, please discuss this with the hiring team during the interview process.

AKQA is an equal opportunity employer and considers applicants for all positions without discrimination or regard to particular characteristics. We are committed to fostering a culture of respect in which everyone feels they belong and has the same opportunities to progress in their careers.

About WPP

WPP is the trusted growth partner for the world’s leading brands. We unite cutting-edge media intelligence and data solutions, world-class creativity, next-generation production, transformative enterprise solutions and expert strategic counsel in a single company – powered by exceptional talent and our agentic marketing platform, WPP Open, to help our clients navigate change, capture opportunity and deliver transformational growth. For more information, visit WPP.com.