Director, Client Engagement

We’re looking for an ACE Director, Client Engagement who’s ready to get familiar and friendly with VSA clients. You’ll serve as the primary lead and point of contact, and become the “owner” of new and existing exciting client engagements. Given your general relationship-ready demeanor, entrepreneurial spirit and tidy way of keeping our client’s best interests at heart, you’re likely the king/queen of this kind of thing. You’re the go-to for everything client engagement—and you’ve got a deck full of ways to enhance those relationships and build opportunities in the branding and design space. 

Our ideal Director, Client Engagement has experience in spades—from branding, marketing and digital to strategy, writing and relationship management. While your focus is primarily on clients and business growth, you’re also adept at handling internal interpersonal relationships in order to best serve the client. You're also as excited as we are about introducing new human centric  brand and creative solutions to the world.

Responsibilities

• It goes without saying that you’ll maintain positive relationships with clients, handling the “health and wellness” of our engagements.
• You will also maintain active stewardship of a strong VSA reputation…REPRESENT.
• You will strategically frame opportunities, develop approaches, and supervise executions, selling and managing across VSA’s capabilities/offerings.
• You will guide clients towards a strategic relationship by delivering insights that resonate with their brand, their industry, their customers and their markets.
• You will also help magnify the voice of the client, keeping their interests, business opportunities and strategic needs front and center throughout the entirety of a project.
• You will identify ways to improve the work quality, team mix and client happiness, working closely with practice leads to strengthen all engagements.
• You will lead the proposal effort, managing the SOW and MSA process from development to signature on their designated accounts, keeping track of all acronyms along the way.
• Details, details, details: In partnership with Project Management, Finance and Legal, you will accurately define scope, pricing, and timing.
• THEN you will run the execution, delivery and maintenance (AKA “cinching the deal”).
• You will influence and steer the “product,” supporting a balance between the account team’s responsibilities and your own.
• You will encourage collaboration within the team to promote camaraderie and a positive atmosphere. That means you should be a hard-working supporter of work outcomes, with the foresight to raise risks when vital.
• You should also seek to deepen or expand SME each year, and when appropriate, promote this expertise externally.

Requirements

• A Bachelor’s degree in marketing, advertising, communications, business, or a related field (a Master’s degree is a big plus)
• 8 or more years of work experience, with recent experience in an agency environment—digital experience is an asset
• 3 years of client service manager-level experience with consistent track record
• Strong domain knowledge of the client and industry in which they operate: its company, culture, market and competitors
• Previous ePrevious experience and deep interest in advising clients through brand transformations
• Experience in pursuing and winning new business growth; via existing accounts, RFPs, pitches, and their own networking
• Strong presentation and communication skills, with the ability to develop powerful presentations and articulate confidently
• The drive and the knowhow to go above and beyond to ensure client’s issues and requests are resolved
• The capability to find opportunities within the client’s organization and define the business problem that VSA will help solve
• A demonstrated ability to be forward-thinking and innovative while understanding client needs and the limitations of VSA’s business processes and technologies
• Skills in problem solving, judgment, critical thinking and decision-making
• Strong people and influence leadership skills
• An interest in connecting people, building relationships to brands, and a desire to do this with some of the most talented people in the country

This is a hybrid position in Chicago