Newington sits within SEC Newgate, an award winning strategic communications firm, which ranks in the Top 30 groups in the world. Our team consists of circa 600 staff, working in 30 offices across 4 continents.
We understand business, politics and the media and how it affects our clients. Our people are professional and creative, with diverse backgrounds and share a commitment to the highest professional standards. Clients choose us to build their reputation, change perceptions and achieve their business objectives.
Our Local Division works with developers, communities and local government across the UK and is at the forefront of ethical stakeholder engagement. As specialists in this field, we help clients to engage with relevant local communities to identify and address their concerns. By developing relationships with key stakeholders and influencers, we minimise risks in the planning process in order to present schemes to planning committees with the best possible chance of receiving planning consent.
As Account Director, you will:
- Provide strategic counsel to clients, ensuring that the strategy delivers the best possible outcome, whilst being prepared to deliver candid but constructive advice;
- Develop effective programmes of engagement, directing their delivery for our clients;
- Have strong political knowledge, and be able to communicate how the changing political landscape affects your clients or prospects;
- Have a strong commercial awareness, including a willingness to actively pursue new business;
- Write compelling and high quality proposals, news updates and briefs;
- Build a network of business and political contacts;
- Lead a team of consultants, helping to develop their skills;
- Identify what motivates each team member, and how to get the best out of them;
- Be a role model within the agency, developing a collaborative culture across the organisation, supporting specific work-streams as required by the Senior Management Team;
- Demonstrate creativity in your approach to problem-solving, going beyond the routine to develop industry-leading campaigns on behalf of your clients.
The ideal person will have:
- The ability to analyse a client’s objectives and partner with them to create and implement a comprehensive communications strategy;
- Strong communication skills, both written, and verbal;
- A methodical approach to programme management, by prioritising workload and defining timescales;
- Leadership skills and the ability to develop their team, growing them as consultants and using a coaching style to help them achieve their potential;
- A strong knowledge of and enthusiasm for politics;
- A collaborative style, seeing the success of the whole organisation as important;
- The knowledge and experience of managing budget, and will understand how profit is made.
We offer:
- Training and opportunities to learn, plus formal mentoring and line manager feedback to grow;
- Salary: £45,000+ (depending on experience);
- Benefits: performance related bonus, flexitime working, company drinks on a Friday, yearly trip away, season ticket loan, employee assistance programme, cycle to work scheme and more.