Group Director, Global Business Development (Pitch Strategy)

Company Description

Publicis Groupe, known for its world-renowned creativity, best in class technology and data assets, and digital and consulting expertise, is one of the world’s largest communications group in the world. With more than 85,000 people in over 100 countries, the Groupe has capabilities in Creative with agencies such as Leo Burnett and Saatchi & Saatchi, Media within Publicis Media, Digital business transformation with Publicis.Sapient, and Health & Wellbeing with Publicis Health.

Since 2014 and the acquisition of Sapient, Publicis Groupe has undergone a profound transformation by scaling a new model connecting data, creativity and technology. We have continued on that journey with the 2019 acquisition of Epsilon to further scale our data led offering and provide true momentum to our clients own transformation.

This model, with a country led approach, is called the “Power of One” and gathers all the capabilities of the Groupe under one roof, putting clients at the core of the organisation. 

The newly formed Global Marketing organization is charged with bringing together Publicis Groupe’s marketing and digital business transformation offerings across creativity, media, data and technology, to drive business growth. The Business Development team sits inside this Marketing organization, responsible for New Business across the Groupe globally.

This role is a seasoned leader who is key to driving success in new business conversion. You will be responsible for independently leading pitches as well as supporting the Regional Business Development Head. You will be required to articulate the pitch strategy and elevate the story telling to deliver a winning proposition.  You will also have ownership of the full pitch project management. 

To succeed in this role, you will need impeccable project management, organisational skills and attention to detail. You will also bring a deep understanding and strategic flair for how to articulate and interpret our Groupe proposition and unique capabilities to exceed the needs of a client pitch brief. You will need proven collaborative and leadership skills with the ability to connect with multiple teams across brands, geographies and practices. You will thrive in a fast paced and agile environment. 

Job Description

PRODUCE WINNING WORK

• Elevate the strategic proposition and commercial offering, highlighting the Groupe capabilities that align with our Groupe proposition
• Lead pitch teams in telling a simple yet differentiating story that delivers a consistent message from capabilities to comms, pricing and talent
• Deep understanding of the macro forces at play in the marketplace to identify the core challenges in client’s worlds and how we add value
• Know the changing advertising agency landscape, identifying our competitors’ points of difference (and their weaknesses)

LEAD TEAMS

• Lead large-scale new business pitches: casting and guiding cross-functional teams, building strategies to win and pinpointing any barriers to overcome
• Motivate pitch winning teams through high stress, high speed, demanding processes, so new business is something people WANT to be part of.
• Effectively consult, manage and challenge all levels of management and personnel to deliver growth results
• Coach teams to enhance peak performance in rehearsals
• Establish collaborative relationships across Publicis Groupe agency brand and practices to ensure a consistent strategy is deployed on pitches
• Know, select, engage and deploy the best fit teams from across the Groupe to deliver on the client challenge
• Leads from the front, inspiring and mentoring broader BD team by regularly sharing stand out work, useful models and innovative trends and insights

DESIGNING, ACTIVATING AND OWNING THE PITCH DELIVERY PLAN

• Full accountability for a first-class pitch management process from kick-off to post-pitch contact strategy, across all of our Groupe brands
• Manage flow of communication, including collection and distribution of information from client teams + intermediaries with pitch teams and senior management
• Lead with a robust understanding of all aspects of the Groupe, from media/creative planning, data, tech, tools, and commercials and understand how these stand up vs our competitors

CLOSE COLLABORATION

• Key ambassador for our Groupe proposition and PO1 approach
• Lead close collaboration across the Publicis Groupe to unlock Power of One opportunities and ensure a consistent, winning strategy is deployed across all pitches
• Ensure accountability across key pitch stakeholders to meet deadlines and deliverables
• Accountable for the team's accurate and timely entry of pitch details in Publicis Groupe's Centra