An Account Manager is the link between senior agency management, senior clients and account staff. He/She drives day-to-day client management, team development and maintains high-profile influential relationships. With the “keys to quality in mind” this position ensures client satisfaction, develops strategic plans, may manage fiscal planning, shares business and industry knowledge, and makes sure their clients’ stories are told. The Account Manager manages, motivates and develops their team members.
Here are the accountabilities :
Media Relations:
• Initiate regular contact with business press and other senior-level influentials. Research and understand their interests, needs and preferences in order to provide value-added service to influentials, to brief clients, and to ultimately build relationships
• Craft and place stories to provide the business press and senior-level influentials analysis and information relevant to their audiences. Apply strategic viewpoint to influential relationships, providing broader context of client’s business and long-term positioning, and place in the marketplace (vis-à-vis competitors). Solicit feedback from influentials regarding their perception of your client/s, competition and industry position
• Reactively answer influentials’ questions, coordinate requests for product and interviews, and provide useful information. Add strategic context, offering competitive comparison and long-term corporate positioning
• Facilitate press meetings,lead press tours and/or PR events. Keep the flow of the client presentation and interview on track. Give client useful briefing prior to as well as constructive performance feedback after the interview. Provide clients trip reports that include analysis of meetings and indicators of future coverage
• Oversee team’s service to industry influentials
• Read key publications daily. Share findings and implications for the business with your client, team or broader agency as appropriate
Client Service:
• Play integral role in strategic PR planning process, ensure that plans integrate with other PR plans in client organization, and proactively adapt plan to reflect change to business and market
• Manage client satisfaction. Hold regular meetings and/or maintain regular phone or written contact to keep key clients apprised of WE work progress, address issues that appear and solicit feedback from clients, and assess PR results against client expectations. Manage the development of client scorecards and resulting actions
• Provide counsel to key clients and serve as a resource to clients, based on knowledge of the client’s industry, technology and major products; competitors' products and strategies; and emerging technology and industry trends/issues
• When called for, manage crisis communications. Anticipate potential challenges and develop a plan to put forth appropriate positioning to minimize negative perception
• Brainstorm new approaches, recognizing when situations may call for non-traditional PR approaches
• Anticipate potential PR challenges, identify opportunities, develop solutions and “Sell” and negotiate these ideas
• May forecast, propose and track budgets. Manage single or multiple accounts in the client(s) budget
• Seek opportunities to leverage agency services (i.e., Electronic Media Services, Analyst Services, Communications Training) and identify new business opportunities with existing clients
Agency Business:
• Understand and meet WE guidelines on best business practices including utilization, daily timesheets, accurate billing, timely expense reports, etc
• Make presentations to groups of all sizes – both client and agency, small and large, formal and informal
• Lead agency learning forums to share knowledge and increase leadership experience
• Participate in professional development opportunities for personal continued growth
• Participate in agency projects as requested
• Share agency vision with team and advocate team’s/clients’ goals to agency leaders
• Add information to WE database based on coverage, contact with and research of influentials
People Management:
• May oversee team financial and resource management issues, in conjunction with the business lead/VP. Track team utilization
• Coach, mentor and motivate staff
• Supervise a team and manage direct reports (typically AEs/SAEs)
• Train and identify learning opportunities for team members on media relations, client service, strategy, and agency business
• Evaluate performance and develop written performance plans for direct reports and ensure all team reviews are done on time
• Provide support to current team members who are ready for a transition
• Participate in staff planning. Give clients advance notice of changes when possible
• Contribute to team and agency recruiting efforts by posting jobs, interviewing, providing timely evaluation, influential reference checking and final selection of candidates
• Define integration process and appropriate training/shadow opportunities for new hires
You must have a minimum of 5-6 years’ experience in PR in a PR agency and/or within Healthcare industry. PR management and execution experience is essential including development of marketing plans, client management, launch strategies, product positioning, pitching stories to the media, negotiation, budget responsibility, media training a client, messaging and creative tactical ideas. Ability to manage multiple projects/events simultaneously. Detail-oriented,creative with good reputation for high quality work. Strong team player and leader with individual and team management experience. Excellent communicator in both written and spoken English.
We offer attractive and competitive compensation and benefits to our staff together with great career development training programme for those who passionately want to be succeed. Interested parties, please forward your resume to Audrey Lai, APAC Staffing Partner at alai@waggeneredstrom.com.