Account Director, Client Services (Olympics)

THE JOB / Account Director, Client Services (Olympics)

CLIENT SERVICES / Responsible for leading Octagon’s client business and day-to-day management of client programs.

***Our headquarters are in Stamford, CT, but the location of this position can be flexible with a priority given to candidates open to hybrid work (2-3 days week in office) in one of our East Coast office locations - - Stamford, CT, New York, NY, Charlotte, NC, or Atlanta, GA. We will also consider a remote-based working arrangement for qualified candidates with East Coast working hours as a prerequisite.”

Octagon is searching for an Account Director to join our team as a key leader in the Olympic space. Are you a collaborative self-starter interested in working with a variety of internal partners and external agencies? In this role you’ll work closely with the account Vice President and manage a team responsible for the strategy and implementation of our clients Olympics partnership. There will be a strong focus on project management, integration and team development while working closely with senior clients and key stakeholders. Overall, you'll be responsible for rights holder relationship development, client management, planning and ideation, experiential program management, development and implementation. To be successful you’ll need to be an excellent communicator and understand global partnerships and activations.

THE WORK YOU’LL DO

• Leads and oversees the day-to-day of the client’s global Olympic sponsorship
• Support client on overall sponsorship strategy & see through to execution
• Lead project management of partnership across internal and external workstreams – leading integrated groups in the collaboration, planning and development of partnership execution
• Craft strategic recommendations for the sponsorship that are relevant, rooted in fan passions and aligned with both brand initiatives and the client target audience
• Lead all aspects of the relationship with our key sponsorship partner(s) including the property and vendors, and be the key day-to-day point of contact on behalf of the client
• Lead delivery, management, and development of core sponsorship branding assets and integrations
• Build, manage, and track the program budget for internal reporting and client reports
• Oversight and management of direct reports, while also supporting career development
• Other related duties/projects as reasonably assigned
• Domestic & international travel to support client’s programming; includes non-traditional hours, nights, and weekends

THE BIGGER TEAM YOU’LL JOIN

Recognized as one of the “Best Places to Work in Sports”, Octagon is the global sports, entertainment, and experiential marketing arm of the Interpublic Group.

We take pride in being Playmakers – finding insightful, bold ways to create play in our work, our lives, and in the world. We believe in the power of play to create big ideas and unlock potential for our clients and talent.

We can put ourselves in the shoes of fans because we ARE fans – of sports, entertainment, and culture at large. This expertise allows us to continually evolve the fan experience across sports and entertainment alongside some of the biggest brands and talent in the world.

The world needs play more than ever. Are you a Playmaker?

WHO WE’RE LOOKING FOR

• Have a passion for and expertise in sports, entertainment, music and/or celebrity & lifestyle culture
• A minimum of 7+ years’ experience in sports sponsorship or experiential marketing
• Possesses significant (industry, property) marketing partnership/sponsorship experience, ideally within an agency setting and excel at handling expectations with multiple partners and managing complex projects
• Experience working with global rights holders, with Olympics experience strongly preferred
• Confident and comfortable presenting to senior clients and partners
• Keen sense of business process and how sports sponsorship, event marketing, communications, and events are used impacts the bottom line and drives brand objectives
• Versatile and able to develop, create and implement POVs, strategic marketing plans and program development documents for several programs simultaneously
• Have experience overseeing executional deliverables and program activations across multiple projects
• A highly driven and motivated individual
• Exceptional communicator
• Experience leading teams to exceed client expectations
• A commitment to developing talent underneath and around you
• Hands-on men