The Blakeney Group is looking for an Account Director to join our team at a time of exciting growth. Account Directors sit at the core of Blakeney. They are part of the leadership team, driving accounts and leading engagements with clients, and work alongside Associate Directors and Directors to deliver outstanding work for clients, while supporting and training colleagues.
We are looking for someone who enjoys working at a fast pace, has an excellent eye for detail and a passion for crafting the perfect strategy. If you enjoy politics and public affairs, and love working with interesting clients to solve complex problems, then Blakeney is the right place for you.
What we are looking for
You will need to be confident, sharp, creative and energetic. We are especially looking for originality and personality. Therefore, the following are guidelines, not strict prerequisites:
- Experience in developing and implementing corporate communications and/or public affairs strategies
- The ability to run day to day accounts; supporting client leads when it comes to client reporting, contact and counsel
- Passionate about current affairs and able to confidently advise clients on complex challenges
- An excellent writer that can comfortably go from writing a press release to an integrated communications strategy in a day
- A team player: great interpersonal skills, and someone who brings a sense of fun to their work
- Great time management and the ability to multi-task
What you will do
- Providing client counsel with proactive and reactive media opportunities
- Planning and leading sell-ins to media and identify key opportunities for clients, plus support managers in reactive outreach
- Building relationships with key journalists, government officials, influencers etc
- Leading on day-to-day account co-ordination, including being quality control for status reports, action planners and meeting contact reports
- Being the eyes and ears for clients; being hungry for opportunities and helping us demonstrate added value
- Assisting senior colleagues in fulfilling their responsibilities to keep accounts on track and within budget
- Being a key part of the Blakeney team supporting marketing and business development
- Identifying new business activity and supporting on pitching and proposals, acting as an ambassador for Blakeney
- Line manage and mentor colleagues where appropriate
Why Blakeney
- We work on issues that genuinely matter and are often in the public eye
- We believe senior advice should feel senior – calm, confident and well judged
- We take an integrated approach, working closely with top-tier media and digital specialists
- We are ambitious, but deliberate – we care deeply about quality, culture and reputation
- This role offers real influence over clients, people, and the future direction of the practice
If you are a senior public affairs professional looking for a role where your political relationships, leadership and judgement will genuinely shape a growing business, we would love to hear from you.
About Blakeney
We are not an agency. We are an expert team of consultants that has worked for Prime Ministers and Secretaries of State, global media organisations, top-tier management consultancies, winning political campaigns, and FTSE 100 businesses. We build brands, shape policies, and fight for the people solving some of the world’s most complex problems. We do that using our market-leading expertise in media, government relations, communication strategy, and digital engagement.
Marketers and politicians have long understood that the best communications should change the way we think about the world. But corporate communications have lagged behind, often focusing on data at the expense of emotion, and short-term tactics at the expense of longer–term outcomes.
We started Blakeney to change that. Our approach aims to bring rigour, structure, insight, and emotional intelligence to the organisations and individuals who want to shift traditional narratives and drive the change today’s society needs.
From us, you can expect:
- A highly competitive salary
- An industry-leading benefits package with you in the driving seat
- 33 days a year of holiday allowance, including bank holidays
- Hybrid working so you can work in a way that suits you
- Top-tier health insurance
- Generous, simple, and transparent bonus scheme based on company and personal performance
- Lots of work socials and company events
- Active focus on personal development and your part in building our culture
- Training budget tailored to your overall career – not just our business plan
- A progressive approach to work-life with a focus on your physical and mental health (including mental health training, ‘Recharge Days’, time back to you for keeping fit and ways of giving back to society)
- Pension scheme