Account Director, Cities & Public Affairs

ABOUT BERLINROSEN

BerlinRosen is a fast-growing, full-service communications firm with more than 300 communications and campaign strategists in New York, Washington, D.C. and Los Angeles. Since its founding in 2005, BerlinRosen has powerfully expanded its presence in real estate, architecture, design, urbanism, land use, social impact/ESG, nonprofit, fine arts, education, media, racial justice, healthcare, hospitality, lifestyle, technology, issue advocacy and workers’ rights communications. We have received more than 50 awards and recognitions, including being the only agency to be named #1 on Observer’s PR Power List for three consecutive years, #2 in City & State’s New York Political PR 75 (2024), PR Week's Outstanding Large Agency (2023),  PRNews’ Large PR Agency of the Year (2021) and 5/5 Stars on Forbes’ latest Best PR Agencies in America list.  

People of color, people with disabilities and women are strongly encouraged to apply. BerlinRosen is committed to building and maintaining a diverse staff and recognizes that its continued success depends on hiring and retaining high-quality, creative professionals with a variety of backgrounds and experiences. Opportunities for advancement exist, and we are committed to helping all staff develop and grow.

 

ABOUT THE CITIES TEAM

BerlinRosen’s Cities practice comprises over 70 communications professionals who bring a unique campaign-style approach to strategic communications. We work with visionary clients in New York, Los Angeles and other major cities across the country on issues ranging from healthcare, urban planning, affordable housing, issue advocacy, social impact and progressive policy, public affairs, higher education, real estate, travel, lifestyle, arts & culture and more. Whether it’s winning community and political support, policy change, elevating new projects and brands or launching some of our city's most visited attractions, we help our clients shape the future of cities.

We work with thought leaders, award-winning institutions and major foundations, including Enterprise Community Partners, the New York Housing Conference, the New York Building Congress, the Regional Plan Association and more. 

 

ABOUT THIS ROLE

BerlinRosen is seeking an experienced public affairs strategist to join us as an Account Director to support our housing and land use work. In this role, you will create strategies, manage campaigns, and promote programs that persuade stakeholders, grow coalitions and drive media coverage in support of your clients’ public affairs priorities at the local, state, and federal levels. You will work with a team of expert colleagues and lead the day-to-day account flow by managing junior staff and client relations.     

You will have the unique opportunity to join a talented and growing team working on an exciting mix of projects and issues facing the future of New York City and State, as well as locations around the country—including land use and urban planning, social equity, supportive, affordable housing, economic development, and health care.

Role location: This role is based in our New York, N.Y. office on a hybrid basis. The Cities team is in-office 3 days per week.

 

ACCOUNTABILITIES AND QUALIFICATIONS

As an Account Director on the Cities team, you will…

• Lead development of large-scale public affairs strategies along with teammates
• Drive high-touch, daily client communications with the same client leads: brainstorming, flagging concerns and problem-solving
• Manage a team of junior staff on each account you lead, strategically influencing deliverables’ quality and staff development by delegating, modeling smart practices and providing feedback
• Coordinate across internal and external teams to deploy integrated services (media relations, digital advertising, research) to meet your clients’ goals
• Conceptualize and drive new story angles and other media opportunities for clients, such as landing feature stories even when there is no news to announce or drafting a persuasive and compelling pitch on behalf of a client for a high-profile interview, award or conference
• Work closely with senior team leaders on capacity planning to ensure that the team is running efficiently
• Place numerous stories through persistence and creativity, identifying new targets and trying new approaches until the story lands
• Contribute to business dev