Account Director - FMCG & Automotive

We are a highly entrepreneurial and opportunity focused company who want to be the most desired creative company on the African continent and beyond. To achieve this, we set out to inspire our people and define ourselves as a Group with one powerful orientation at our core: WE BOLDLY GO. These few words serve as both an invitation and challenge to all our people to always do the BOLD thing, together. The idea that, in the face of considerable challenges & change, we would be daring enough to do something audacious. Challenge yourself. Be bold. Join us.

As an Account Director, you will be responsible for leading the day-to-day relationship with key FMCG and automotive clients, providing strategic direction and ensuring the successful delivery of integrated campaigns from brief through to execution. You will act as the senior agency lead across multiple stakeholders, translating client business objectives into clear strategic and creative briefs while driving strong agency output, commercial performance and client satisfaction.

The ideal candidate will have proven experience working within a leading advertising or creative agency, with a strong track record managing FMCG and automotive brands. You should be commercially minded, strategically strong and confident working with senior client stakeholders in fast-paced, highly competitive environments.

Key Responsibilities:

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• Lead the overall client relationship, building trusted partnerships with senior client stakeholders.
• Act as the key agency lead across Strategy, Creative, Digital, Social, Media, Production and other specialist teams.
• Develop a deep understanding of the client's business, brand, consumer, competitors and market environment.
• Translate complex business and marketing requirements into clear, actionable briefs and integrated campaigns.
• Provide strategic input and challenge clients constructively to deliver stronger business, brand and creative outcomes.
• Lead campaigns from strategy and briefing through to execution, rollout and post-campaign evaluation.
• Manage multiple campaigns and projects simultaneously while maintaining clear priorities, timelines and deliverables.
• Ensure effective collaboration across internal agency teams, external agencies, production partners and other stakeholders.
• Demonstrate a strong understanding of ATL, BTL, TTL, digital, social, experiential and performance marketing.
• Present confidently to senior stakeholders and lead client presentations, status meetings, campaign reviews and strategic discussions.
• Identify potential risks, challenges and project blockages early and proactively develop solutions.
• Provide clarity across briefs, debriefs, project plans, status updates and campaign delivery.
• Stay informed on FMCG and automotive industry trends, consumer behaviour and competitive activity.

Financial and Commercial Accountability:

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• Take ownership of the financial management of the account and individual projects.
• Develop and manage project budgets, ensuring work is delivered within agreed financial parameters.
• Generate and manage Change Estimates (CEs) for out-of-scope work.
• Ensure Purchase Orders are received from clients timeously.
• Work closely with Finance to ensure accurate and timely invoicing.
• Follow up on outstanding client payments where required.
• Identify opportunities to improve account profitability and grow the client relationship.
• Demonstrate a strong understanding of agency revenue, margins and return on investment.
• Balance client expectations, agency resources, timelines and commercial requirements effectively.
• Identify opportunities for organic growth and additional revenue across the account.

Client and Team Leadership:

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• Build strong, trusted relationships with senior stakeholders across FMCG and automotive clients.
• Lead senior-level client conversations and confidently navigate complex or sensitive discussions.
• Understand the commercial, reputational and competitive considerations that influence FMCG and automotive communications.
• Lead and motivate multidisciplinary agency teams to deliver high-quality work.
• Foster a collaborative and integrated way of working across Creative, Strategy, Media, Digital, Production and partner agencies.
• Provide clear direction, accountability and support to teams.
• Encourage innovative thinking and ensure agency teams consistently deliver work that meets both client and agency standards.
• Act as a senior escalation point for client and internal team challenges.

Experience Required:

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• 5+ years' experience in Account Management within an advertising or creative agency environment.
• Proven experience operating at Account Director level, managing significant client portfolios and multidisciplinary teams.
• Strong FMCG and/or automotive client experience is essential.
• Experience working with major consumer brands, automotive manufacturers, dealerships or FMCG portfolios is highly advantageous.
• Strong understanding of advertising agency structures, processes and ways of working.
• Proven experience managing senior client stakeholders and multiple decision-makers.
• Strong understanding of integrated advertising across ATL, BTL, TTL, digital, social, experiential and content.
• Strong understanding of digital platforms, social media and the broader performance marketing ecosystem.
• Demonstrated experience taking campaigns from strategy and briefing through to final execution and rollout.
• Strong commercial and financial management experience.
• Experience managing budgets, Change Estimates, Purchase Orders and client invoicing.
• Proven ability to identify opportunities for account growth and increased revenue.
• Excellent presentation, communication, negotiation and relationship-management skills.
• Ability to manage multiple projects, competing priorities and tight deadlines in a fast-paced agency environment.
• Strong leadership skills with the ability to influence and collaborate across multidisciplinary teams.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Outlook, Word, PowerPoint and Excel.

Qualifications:

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• Degree or diploma in Marketing, Advertising, Communications, Business or a related field.
• Project Management qualification or relevant training is advantageous.

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