Strategic Account Director

Role purpose

• Owns the strategic media answer: where growth will come from, what audience or behaviour must change, what JTBD media must solve, and what principles guide the response. Value is in growth logic, category interpretation, competitive understanding and audience prioritisation not channel planPning or buying.

Scope of role

• Strategic brief interpretation
• Category & competitive analysis
• Growth source definition
• JTBD refinement
• Strategic audience hypothesis
• Strategic media principles
• Strategic KPI logic
• PCA growth interpretation

Responsibilities

Core accountabilities

• Interpret the client brief into a clear media growth challenge.
• Understand category dynamics, competition, brand position and consumer behaviour.
• Define the source of growth: recruit, switch, retain, increase frequency, trade-up or cross-sell.
• Define the strategic audience hypothesis.
• Define the role media must play in solving the business problem.
• Provide the Journey Planner with clear strategic direction.
• Define strategic KPI logic before planning begins.
• Identify strategic implications from PCA for future campaigns.
• Mandatory artifacts owned
• Strategic Brief Interpretation
• Converts the client brief into a strategic media challenge.

Growth Strategy Canvas

• Defines source of growth, JTBD, behaviour change and strategic focus.

Category & Competitive Read

• Summarises market, competitor and consumer implications.

Growth Audience Hypothesis

• Identifies the audience from which growth is expected.

Strategic KPI Logic

• Defines which strategic KPIs matter and why.

Strategic PCA Implications

• Captures what results mean for future strategy.

Decision rights

• Growth source logic
• Strategic JTBD interpretation
• Strategic audience prioritisation
• Media strategy principles
• Strategic KPI rationale
• Strategic implications from PCA

What this role is NOT accountable for

• Building detailed TV, OOH, search, social or programmatic schedules.
• Negotiating with media owners.
• Loading plans into systems.
• Chasing creative assets.
• Reconciling invoices or trafficking campaigns.
• Producing routine weekly reports.

Qualifications

Required competencies

• 6-9 years leading strategy for major campaigns or clients.
• Strategic thinking
• Connect business problems to media opportunities.

Category understanding

• Interpret market, consumer and competitor dynamics.

Audience thinking

• Define growth audiences and behaviour change.

Data interpretation

• Use research and audience data to support strategy.

Storytelling

• Articulate the strategic answer clearly.

Cross-functional leadership

• Guide planners and specialists without doing their roles.

Measurement logic

• Define strategic KPIs and success criteria.