Business Director at Alfred & Victoria Associates

Job Objective

• Intense is a growth marketing agency that focuses on connecting clients to its target audience by having an impact on sales. It has been in existence since 2015 and has grown to have multiple subsidiaries, which include but are not limited to a performance marketing agency, a creative communication agency, and a marketing tech company. We are seeking to hire a Business Director whose primary objective is to create a new business strategy to develop a robust new business pipeline.
• You manage a mix of inbound and outbound marketing, working with CRM systems and analytics to target potential clients. You will also lead the agency’s new business pitch process to secure new clients, manage C-suite relationships, and understand the marketing, technology, and media landscape.
• You lead the overall relationship from business growth, sales strategy, integrated acquisition planning, and technology innovation to team management. As the fast pace of our client’s business changes, we look to our Business Director to be the strategic partner to help facilitate and guide this change, which means you will be well-versed in the agency’s products, services, and case studies to match both client and agency business objectives and promote the agency as the first point of contact for a potential client.

Key Responsibilities
Key Result Areas:
Supporting Activities:

• Lead various large-scale new business projects from initial contact to client conversion.
• Translating agency objectives and targets into annual plans with the agency department leads; identifying particular sectors, types of work, and a plan for targeting this desired client list.

Business Direction and Leadership:

• Representing the agency as the first point of contact for prospective clients; understanding their needs and objectives and presenting this to the leadership team.
• Managing and completing detailed prospective Requests for Information (RFIs) and Requests for Proposals (RFPs).
• Supporting the refinement and roll-out of the agency's new business development process. Managing the new lead capture process, qualifying and prioritizing opportunities.
• Tracking the agency wins and losses and reviewing performance; conversion rate and costs.
• Collaborating with the Head of Innovation and Data Scientist to use an innovative approach to data analytics, to target (possibly existing) new clients with highly personalized solutions and messages, improving response and conversion rates substantially and dramatically improving ROI.
• Analyzing and managing the new business budgets and financial information to make informed commercial decisions.
• Engaging the agency with the annual plan to ensure their commitment and supporting teams as pitches arrive throughout the year.
• Leading and owning the business development plan and agreed levels of income generation.
• Developing and maintaining current knowledge of marketing, technology, and media landscape and competitive activity.
• Presenting the agency’s USP and positioning the agency to maximum effect.
• Influencing prospective client engagement.
• May be required to shape, manage, and train in the new business process as the agency enters into a pitch situation.
• Establishing the fee for a pitch with the Finance Head, possibly in partnership with the senior leadership team.
• Identifying event opportunities to target prospective clients, possibly in conjunction with the agency marketing team.
• Ensuring that there is no conflict of interest in working with a potential client.
• Possibly partnering with the marketing team to create, develop, and manage client events, webinars, conferences, etc.
• Involved in recruitment and selection decisions.
• Focused on the personal and professional development of their team.
• Work with HR to attract and retain top talent and build creative capabilities across the company.
• Research competition, investigate benchmarks, and provide suggestions for improvement.

Job Requirements

• BSc Degree in Business Administration, Marketing.

Required Qualifications:

• MSc in Marketing, Business Development, or professional certification with a relevant body.
• CIM Certification at the highest level.

Relevant Experience:

• At least 8-10 years of previous experience in a similar agency and at least 2 years at a Business Director level.
• Experience working in an advertising agency is preferred.
• Deep knowledge of performance marketing (Ads on Google, Meta, and YouTube).
• Confident in assessing a client brief to determine a match between the client objectives and the agency’s capability to deliver on the brief.
• Confident in knowing when to make an informed decision to say no to a client brief.
• Knowledgeable about the agency’s competitors and their market position.
• Skilled at relationship management, identifying prospects, responding to prospects, and supporting the team to convert prospects into clients.
• Good strategic thinker with the ability to undertake strategic planning.
• Strong influencing ability and gravitas for internal and external engagement. Skilled at establishing and building empathetic and commercial relationships.

Skills & Competencies:

• Supervisory/management experience.
• Expert in developing and defining strategy; refining plans from creation through development and implementation.
• Innovation and branding identity experience.
• Expert at managing multiple projects simultaneously.
• Expert in developing and defining design strategy; refining designs from creation through development and implementation.
• Knowledge of strategic brand development, digital, and marketing equities.
• Experience successfully partnering with agencies and freelancers.
• Experience thinking strategically and working outside the box on issues.
• An integrated and creative approach to media and its application to advertising.
• Great understanding of the advertising process.
• Acute observation and an eye for detail.
• Strong interpersonal, presentation, leadership, and communication skills.
• Time and project management skills.

Soft Skills:

• Emotional Intelligence (EQ): The ability to understand, manage, and leverage emotions—both your own and others’—is essential for fostering a positive work culture and managing diverse teams. A high EQ helps in navigating client expectations, managing conflict, and motivating the team to perform at its best.
• Empathy: Being empathetic toward team members, clients, and stakeholders is vital for a Digital Business Director. It enables them to understand different perspectives, especially when dealing with client pain points or team challenges.
• Delegation: Effective delegation is key in a fast-paced agency environment. The director must trust their team members with tasks while also ensuring they provide guidance when needed to keep projects on track.
• Mentoring and Coaching: The ability to mentor and develop junior staff and managers is vital. This ensures the growth of internal talent while also helping them stay motivated and engaged in their work.
• Creative Problem Solving: Growth marketing requires continuous innovation. The director should have a knack for coming up with creative solutions.