Sr. Account Director (18 month contract)

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Publicis Groupe Sr. Account Director (18 month contract) in Toronto, Ontario

Company description

We are Influence + Impact. MSL is an award-winning agency, including winner of the Sabre Awards, Canadian PR Agency of the Year! As part of the fast-evolving PR and social media discipline, we are constantly innovating and making it our mission to ensure we are thinking and doing the next and the new. Which makes our environment a very agile and exciting place to work!

MSL is known as a strategic communications powerhouse, with deep expertise in consumer and corporate PR. Specializing in delivering multichannel, creative campaigns for some of the world’s most iconic brands, all our campaigns lead with creative storytelling and are rooted in big ideas driven by sophisticated data insights.

MSL is also a trailblazer in influencer marketing, having created some of the country’s most recognized campaigns. We were there over twelve years ago navigating the social influencer space and as a result, we’ve pioneered truly unique approaches to reaching Canadians through influencer content. As part of our thirst for continual evolution, we have further transitioned and made the leap to expand our capabilities into digital marketing, managing high profile social and digital campaigns for several CPG, gaming, retail, financial services, and healthcare brands.

As part of the Publicis One network, we have a close working relationship with our sister agencies, including Leo Burnett, Saatchi & Saatchi, Publicis, Starcom, Sapient, and Zenith.

We are passionate about culture. Built on a foundation of collaboration, we are excited by innovation, and our employees are encouraged to aspire to entrepreneurialism. MSL is a place where your voice is heard and your opinion counts. We are leaders in our space and on a strong growth trajectory. Our existing team of highly engaged individuals are constantly pushing themselves to succeed, working on stimulating challenges in a variety of areas that push us to think in a different way. We have a focused commitment to career development and personal success; we care about our people and cultivating a great environment where people feel proud to work.

MSL Canada has offices in Toronto, Calgary, and Montreal and is proud to be a part of MSLGROUP, Publicis Groupe’s global strategic communications and engagement network.

Overview

As a Sr. Account Director, you will be at the forefront of leading dynamic account teams to develop and deliver strategic, creative programs. Your mission is to tell the client's story with passion and relentlessly pursue the best ROI. You'll focus on executing innovative programs and nurturing client relationships, partnering with a diverse range of internal and external stakeholders to achieve success.

This is a career-expanding role where you'll work directly with MSL’s Canadian Executive Sponsor for one of the world’s largest packaged goods companies. You'll manage a portfolio of exciting brands in transformation, collaborating to evolve the role of Communications in driving talkability for major brands. You'll bring innovation to the PR function and shape fully integrated communications plans across earned, shared, owned, and paid media.

With a keen understanding of market dynamics and consumer behavior, you'll identify opportunities to enhance brand visibility and engagement. Your proactive approach to problem-solving and your knack for anticipating industry trends will position you as a trusted advisor to clients and a valuable asset to the agency.

You'll be a key member of our Senior Leadership team, playing an integral role in steering our agency’s future and talent agenda. We will empower you to lead and manage your portfolio of accounts with a goal of mutual growth—yours and MSL’s.

Responsibilities

1. Put clients at the center of everything you do. Understand their environment, business trends, and organizational dynamics to provide counsel that drives their success and reputation. Help make Canada shine on the global stage.
2. Develop solid client relationships with some of the biggest brands out there. Keep in contact with clients, anticipate their needs, offer new ideas, and provide expert counsel and outstanding overall account service.
3. Play a strategic leadership role with our team of top talent. Manage staffing mix on accounts to meet projections and budgetary requirements while ensuring each team member understands their expected performance and contribution to objectives.
4. Bring your A-game and encourage others to think outside the box. The sky is the limit with creative thinking.
5. Drive new business by participating in and leading client pitches specific to social and web strategies, investigative research, campaign analysis, monitoring, and more.
6. Build industry regard for MSL Canada’s capabilities through professional activities and community involvement, keeping MSL’s name visible and developing key contacts.
7. Coach, develop, and mentor a team of highly engaged individuals to empower them to succeed.
8. Contribute to MSL’s inclusive culture as a coach and mentor to team members.

Qualifications

1. You have broad and increasingly senior experience in public relations in B2C and B2B.
2. Experience working with large, global companies is an asset, and you understand how to win with diverse Canadian audiences.
3. Extensive experience in media relations, social media, event management, and influencer relations.
4. Passionate about evolving into the digital space and closely follow those trends and practices.
5. A proven track record of developing and leading creative public relations strategies and programs.
6. With a growth mindset, you are passionate about growing business—cross-selling/up-selling and prospecting new clients.
7. Collaborative and transparent, you keep teams and senior leadership informed to ensure alignment.
8. You have successfully grown and led high-performing teams with an adaptable leadership style to empower diverse groups to achieve goals, meet client needs, and develop new skills.
9. A desire to learn and grow—you seek to develop professionally through formal programs and new experiences, always looking to educate yourself on industry trends.
10. Strong financial acumen and organizational discipline to closely manage budgets and account profitability.

Additional information

Note that only those being considered for an interview will be contacted. Thank you very much for your interest in working at MSLGROUP Canada. We look forward to meeting you! MSL is committed to workplace diversity and will provide accommodation to applicants with disabilities throughout the hiring process.