Executive Director Client Engagement

About Us: VMLY&R

VMLY&R is a global brand and customer experience agency that harnesses creativity, technology, and culture to create connected brands. But what does that mean? It means we're a creative agency that is built on the promise of collaboration and human connection. Creating connected brands isn't just what we do — it's what we're known for and who we are. We empower our clients to excel at the intersection of "brand" and "customer experience," starting with simple goals: Create work that becomes part of people's lives; promote value for our clients; and, in the best of cases, help the world.

We're committed to building a united global network of creators and thinkers, regardless of their age, race, skin color, religion, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression. With over 12,000 employees across the globe, our influence is made stronger by applying our collective experiences to tell stories that not only sell products and experiences, but also guarantee positive representations of all communities.

Our unique culture is rooted in a great deal of care for you and your success. Above all else, we are committed to strengthening your experience by ensuring your inner potential continues to be discovered.

We also offer about a dozen employee resource groups (ERGs) that allow you to tap into your personal identities, interests and passions. Our ERGs celebrate ethnic diversity, life as a working parent or caregiver, neurodiversity, the LGBTQ+ community, wellbeing, and more. Regardless of your interests, there is no shortage of opportunities to get involved, so tap into our global network and find where you can make your ideas come to life.

The Executive Director Client Engagement has full responsibility for the talent and performance of the Client Engagement teams and for the health of the clients serviced in his/her specific VMLY&R office, in partnership with the Chief Client Officer. The Executive Director oversees practice operations including talent development, client team staffing, training, business planning and partnership management.

The Executive Director is also very involved in current clients and new business prospects, partnering with senior executives at major VMLY&R clients to ensure their business goals are met. He/she works closely with colleagues in creative, strategy, and technology to ensure that clients are able to take advantage of the full power of the agency.

Responsibilities

• Manage the overall agency practice for his or her office, directly supporting the Chief Client Officer in Client Engagement vision and operations
• Proactively identify opportunities for practice evolution
• Engage with C-level clients across the business, developing, maintaining, and strengthening senior level relationships with key clients
• Expert in understanding and addressing clients’ business problems, and determining how to strategically engage, grow and integrate complementary VMLY&R practices to deliver a vision and solutions to address them
• Lead extensive and critical engagements with clients
• Support/provide strategic direction related to client and project challenges
• Responsible for transparent business and outcome communication to all audiences: internal, external, and clients, as appropriate for each group
• Engage with other department leads and office leads to enable the capability of the department and execute the agency’s mission and positioning
• Serve as point of contact for agency and client senior leadership
• Support new business opportunities for engaged clients and prospective clients
• Support organizational resourcing based on client needs (communicating, managing, executing) and oversee the management of department head count
• Responsible for interviewing and making recommendations to hire at the Director levels as well as oversee resources acquisition for all levels junior
• Model desired client partnership and business leadership behaviors
• Actively engage in the professional development of direct reports

Required Skills

• Deep understanding of agency and client financial management practices
• Strong interpersonal skills and ability to resolve conflict with productive outcomes
• Bias for action
• Ability to effectively work across departments with diplomacy and a firm understanding of other’s roles and perspectives
• Able to view problems in context at the system level and align solutions with the strategic direction of our clients and company
• Proactive, adaptable, and flexible
• Life-long learner with demonstrated commitment to continuous improvement
• Strong attention to detail
• Excellent organizational, presentation, and presentation development skills
• Demonstrated ability to operate under tight deadlines with complex business/technical solutions
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Ability to provide proactive and assertive leadership in problem solving, managing financial success of projects, and reducing waste
• Ability to manage multiple high-level engagements effectively and efficiently
• Actively contributes to team and department culture
• Ability to concurrently lead, nurture, and grow multiple clients

Required Experience

• Minimum of bachelor’s degree or equivalent (marketing, business, communications); graduate degree a plus
• At least 15-20 years of experience, including large-agency interactive and client-side experience
• Extensive experience in team, resource and large departmental or functional management of 50+ individuals
• Proven performance in leading and building effective teams and practices to their best results

Our Benefits

As the world leader in communications services, we rely on the creativity of our people to deliver the best work for our clients. In return, we invest in our employees by offering them a diverse suite of benefits from best-in-class carriers, with enough choice and flexibility to keep them and their families healthy and happy today and tomorrow.

• Corporate gift matching program
• Paid time off for volunteering
• Paid parental leave
• Ranked No. 1 in advertising for our adoption assistance program
• Corporate discounts
• VMLY&R Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) team, which guides, celebrates, and promotes cultural literacy; increases employee engagement; recruits and retains a diverse workforce; and builds internal opportunities for people to learn and grow.

The base salary for this position at the time of this posting may range from $155,000 to $390,000. Individual compensation varies based on job-related factors, including location, business needs, level of responsibility, experience, and qualifications.

VMLY&R is an equal opportunity employer and considers applicants for all positions without regard to race, color, religion or belief, sex, age, national origin, citizenship status, marital status, military/veteran status, genetic information, sexual orientation, gender identity, or physical or mental disability. We believe in creating a dynamic work environment that values diversity and inclusion and strives to recruit a diverse slate of candidates to help us achieve that goal.