Managing Director - Strategic Accounts

The Managing Director (MD) will work as Aquent Studios' commercial and engagement leader for a key enterprise relationship. The role is responsible for the overall direction of the account, relationships with senior leaders, growth of the partnership, and the value we create. Working closely with business, marketing, and product leaders, the MD brings a clear point of view, helps identify and solve important business challenges, and shapes new opportunities for Aquent Studios.

The role requires a deep understanding of how large technology companies operate, along with strong experience in marketing, digital, product, or related areas. The MD must be equally comfortable advising senior clients, shaping and selling new work, and staying involved through implementation to ensure the work delivers what was promised. They will build and lead multidisciplinary teams, develop new capabilities and solutions, and look for ways to apply what works more broadly. This is not a traditional agency account role. Success is measured by the strength of the client relationship, the value of the work delivered, what we build together, and whether our client chooses to expand the partnership.

This is a full-time staff position based in the Bay Area,CA (hybrid schedule). Package includes robust medical, dental, and vision plans, 401(k) matching, paid parental leave, flexible PTO, and dedicated stipends for continuous learning and career development.

Key Responsibilities:

Account Strategy, Executive Relationships and Growth

• Set the direction for the account across business units, product teams, and corporate brand and marketing and in-house agency functions, with clear priorities for growth and delivery.
• Build strong relationships with senior marketing, product, operations and technology leaders, bringing useful market perspectives and ideas before a formal request is made.
• Identify, shape and close new opportunities, expand into new parts of the organization, and maintain a clear view of the pipeline, renewals and growth opportunities.

Marketing Advisory and Transformation

• Advise leaders on marketing strategy and transformation across product marketing, digital engagement, content and creative operations, martech, AI adoption and operating model design.
• Lead executive discovery, diagnostics and working sessions that clarify the business issue, align stakeholders and define the case for change.
• Translate insight into future state designs, business cases, roadmaps and practical first phases that connect strategy to measurable outcomes.

Solution and Delivery Leadership

• Bring together the right Aquent Studios capabilities to solve the client problem across strategy, creative, content, data, and technology.
• Stay accountable for the work from initial sale through implementation, ongoing delivery, renewal and growth, while managing Program Managers who deliver the day-to-day execution.
• Set clear expectations for quality, performance and business results, address significant issues quickly, and ensure the value committed to the client is delivered and visible.

People Leadership

• Create a culture where people are encouraged to speak up, share ideas, and contribute to how the business grows and improves.
• Challenge the team to experiment, encourage creativity, and share ideas to iteratively make things better.
• Lead with trust and provide autonomy, empowering employees to take ownership of their work and results.
• Build an environment where the work is interesting and meaningful. Help people see the impact of their work so they feel connected to the outcomes and motivated to accomplish great things together.
• Coach and share feedback to support people in growing their skills, expanding their capabilities, and taking on greater responsibility.

Business and Financial Leadership

• Own the financial performance of the account, including revenue, profit, growth, retention and forecasting, and make sound decisions on pricing, investment and resourcing.
• Develop proposals, scopes, renewals and commercial terms that work for the client and for Aquent Studios.
• Look for practical ways to improve quality, speed and cost through better processes, automation, reusable solutions and responsible use of AI.

Team and Capability Building

• Build and lead teams that bring together strategy, creative, product, data, technology and operations.
• Hire, coach and develop employees who can manage client relationships, shape new work and deliver strong results with increasing independence.
• Turn successful work with this client into approaches, case examples and capabilities that can be used across Aquent Studios, while protecting client confidentiality.

Candidate Profile - What We Are Looking For

• 8+ years of relevant experience within major global technology companies, or in consulting or agency roles supporting them closely over time.
• A Bachelor's degree or equivalent professional experience; strong academic performance or evidence of intellectual curiosity and initiative (independent projects, leadership roles, relevant certifications, or self-directed learning).
• Strong expertise in a strategic marketing or digital discipline such as product marketing, digital marketing, customer experience, marketing operations, content, martech or AI enabled marketing. B2B or enterprise experience is a strong advantage.
• Experience leading advisory or transformation work from initial problem definition through implementation to measurable results.
• A track record of building and scaling a program, team, practice, offering, or capability, including leading multidisciplinary and technical employees.
• Active use of AI and modern technology, with clear examples of how it has changed the way teams work or create value.
• Strong executive communication, judgment and influence

Standout Traits

• You are a builder and an advisor. Senior leaders trust you because you understand their business, bring useful perspective, and know how to turn ideas into action.
• You can move from senior client conversations to shaping new work to helping teams deliver it. You know when to create a repeatable approach and when the situation calls for judgment and a tailored solution.

What Success Looks Like

• Stronger relationships with senior client leaders and earlier involvement in important business conversations.
• Consistent growth, with new work across additional product groups, functions and areas of need.
• Work that moves from idea to implementation and delivers clear, measurable results.
• Strong account performance, supported by a capable team and solutions that our client chooses to expand or use again.