Group Account Director

At AKQA (part of WPP) we believe in the imaginative application of art and science to create beautiful ideas, products and services. With an entrepreneurial and collaborative approach, we design adaptive digital services and applications that capture the imagination, delivering impressive returns for our clients.

Client leadership at AKQA builds trusted partnerships, provides cross-functional direction, and ensures our teams deliver exceptional work that meets both client ambition and cultural relevance. Group Account Directors are the most senior day-to-day client leaders on their accounts, responsible for the health of the relationship, the growth of the business, and the quality of the work. Equal parts strategic partner, commercial leader, and trusted advisor, they set the standard for how we show up for our clients.

We are seeking a Group Account Director to lead relationships with two of the world’s most recognized global brands, spanning an everyday consumer powerhouse whose digital products touch millions daily, and an iconic automotive brand focused on modern mobility and elevated customer experiences. These engagements are digital-product and experience-led, requiring deep expertise guiding the conception, design, and delivery of sophisticated platforms at scale. Just as importantly, this is a growth role: we are looking for a strategic leader who can deepen partnerships, anticipate emerging opportunities before they are explicitly articulated, and translate them into ambitious, high-impact work. You will thrive in dynamic, fast-moving environments, bringing steadiness, foresight, and momentum to high-visibility accounts.

ROLE REQUIREMENTS

• Serve as the most senior day-to-day client leadership voice on the account, owning the overall health, growth, and profitability of the relationship
• Lead digital product and services engagements, bringing deep fluency in how sophisticated digital products are conceived, designed, and delivered
• Drive organic growth by anticipating client needs, including those not yet explicitly expressed, and shaping them into clear, compelling opportunities
• Act as a trusted strategic advisor to senior client stakeholders, with the credibility to guide, challenge, and align
• Provide cross-functional direction to multidisciplinary teams, keeping everyone focused on the priorities that matter most
• Partner closely with creative, strategy, product, and technology leadership to ensure the work meets both client ambition and user needs
• Oversee commercial management across the account, including scoping, forecasting, resourcing, and margin performance
• Lead with foresight and momentum in a dynamic environment, keeping initiatives on track from planning through delivery
• Mentor and develop the account team, fostering collaboration, accountability, and professional growth

QUALITIES AND CHARACTERISTICS

• Significant senior client leadership experience within an agency environment, with a track record of leading relationships and multidisciplinary teams
• Deep digital product and services experience, with a strong understanding of how sophisticated digital products are designed and delivered
• A proven growth mindset, with a track record of deepening client relationships and uncovering opportunities before they are fully defined
• The instinct to read between the lines, sensing unspoken client needs and translating them into clear, actionable work
• Comfortable thriving in dynamic, fast-moving environments, bringing calm, foresight, and decisiveness
• Strong commercial acumen across forecasting, scoping, resourcing, and profitability
• Exceptional communication and relationship-building skills, with the judgment to advise and align at senior levels
• A natural leader who people want to follow, invested in the growth of the team and the quality of the work

Location

• This is a full-time role open to candidates based on the West Coast or working Pacific Time hours, with a regular cadence of travel for in-person client collaboration.

Explore our extensive range of benefits here

We believe great work happens when we're together, fostering creativity, collaboration, and connection. That's why we’ve adopted a hybrid approach including required in-office days. If you require accommodations or flexibility, please discuss this with the hiring team during the interview process.

AKQA is an equal opportunity employer and considers applicants for all positions without discrimination or regard to particular characteristics. We are committed to fostering a culture of respect in which everyone feels they belong and has the same opportunities to progress in their careers.

About WPP

WPP is the trusted growth partner for the world’s leading brands. We unite cutting-edge media intelligence and data solutions, world-class creativity, next-generation production, transformative enterprise solutions and expert strategic counsel in a single company – powered by exceptional talent and our agentic marketing platform, WPP Open, to help our clients navigate change, capture opportunity and deliver transformational growth. For more information, visit WPP.com.