Job Description

Account Lead

Location: Atlanta GA, Dallas TX

Jackson Spalding is an award-winning PR and marketing agency that helps brands stand out to move those who matter most. Fiercely creative and strategic, we work alongside our clients to help them connect with their audience and reach their goals. Jackson Spalding was built on the principle that there had to be a better way to run an agency. That means that we stay curious, have an open mind and ask questions to make sure we consistently achieve excellence with integrity.

About The Role

Jackson Spalding, an award-winning marketing and public relations agency, is seeking an account lead to join its Client Advisory discipline, a group responsible for leading and growing client relationships while delivering outcomes over outputs. The ideal candidate has experience developing and leading small- to medium-sized client relationships and accounts in an integrated agency setting, including project, budget and team management.

Responsibilities

In simplest terms, the successful candidate will be responsible for leading agency-of-record client relationships and ensuring our team brings an outcomes over outputs mentality centered on results, rigor and relationships. Responsible for client-facing decision making and communications, this leader is a sought-after strategic counselor, partner beyond daily outputs, who is trusted with decisions impacting a client's business. They also possess a business mindset, managing resources, teams and financial results.

• Cultivate and deepen relationships with colleagues and client contacts, becoming a go-to advisor and integrator across teams.
• Develop and steward fully integrated strategic and tactical plans, ensuring each service or project ladders up to the broader client goals and long-term relationship health.
• Own and manage account budgets, scopes, results and reporting for large portions or the entirety of assigned client business, in partnership with JS discipline teams.
• Assemble, resource and lead cross-functional teams, ensuring work is delivered with excellence, on time, and on budget.
• Serve as a strategic peer and counselor to clients, applying experience, critical thinking, and insight to guide decision-making.
• Translate insights into clear recommendations, articulating path-to-success elements such as deliverables, timelines, team structure, KPIs, and budget.
• Lead internal and client meetings, using meeting facilitation principles to drive clarity and momentum.
• Develop and deliver compelling presentations and materials that translate complexity into clarity.
• Model JS values daily, leading with diplomacy, caring candor, and inclusive leadership.
• Anticipate and resolve conflict with maturity, using constructive conflict methods to move work forward.
• Bring a tech-forward mindset to the work, leveraging emerging tools including AI to increase efficiency, deepen insights and elevate the quality of client deliverables.
• Proactively identify risks and opportunities across accounts, adjusting strategy or resources as needed.
• Coach and grow project leaders, helping them grow in their careers and ability to serve clients.
• Ensure the team understands the client's business, competitive landscape and industry, and guide them accordingly.

Business Development

Build and nurture relationships with new and existing clients, establishing trust beyond day-to-day deliverables. Contribute meaningfully to new business efforts, including insights, strategy, narrative development and presentation. Identify and articulate growth opportunities grounded in client needs, business goals and market conditions. Drive year-over-year account growth through proactive, strategic recommendations and integrated service activation. Use data, insights, and AI-supported analysis to shape stronger recommendations and strengthen growth opportunities. Develop thought leadership (personally or through others) that supports credibility and visibility for JS.

Education

Bachelor's degree required

Requirements

The ideal candidate has 610 years of experience leading and managing client relationships, accounts teams and integrated work, preferably at an agency. Required experience includes, but is not limited to:

• 610 years of experience leading client relationships, integrated teams, and strategic work across marketing and communications.
• Strong public relations and marketing experience with hands-on experience delivering related work.
• Minimum 23 years managing integrated budgets, scopes, and financial stewardship in a client-facing environment.
• Demonstrated ability to grow accounts year-over-year, with a track record of identifying and converting opportunities.
• Mastery of project management tools and principles, ensuring clarity, accountability, and predictable delivery.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, with demonstrated experience developing messaging, POVs and strategic plans and presenting them confidently in person and virtually.
• Strong business acumen, with experience in both B2B and B2C sectors preferred.
• Tech-forward mindset with comfort learning and applying AI-enabled tools to improve analysis, storytelling and delivery.
• Ability to translate client business goals into clear, actionable integrated plans.
• Experience coaching and developing others, including giving constructive feedback and growing team capabilities.
• Commitment to inclusive leadership, skilled in optimizing diverse team strengths and creating equitable team dynamics.
• Highly collaborative, able to lead and influence across teams, personalities, and locations.
• Strong time management skills, able to handle multiple workstreams with clarity and composure.

This role may require intermittent travel.

Employee Benefits

We believe that great work starts by taking care of our people. Below are just some of the benefits we provide for the JS team.

• World-class health care insurance
• Profit sharing
• Unlimited sick days
• 401k match + personal financial planning
• Flexible work environment: This means that for roles where it makes sense, you'll have the option to spend some of your time in our incredible workspaces and some of your time working remotely whether from home or elsewhere.

About Jackson Spalding

Jackson Spalding is a public relations and marketing agency that helps brands break through to earn measurable audience attention, affinity and action. Through its integrated PR, digital marketing, advertising, brand strategy and creative services, the agency helps organizations better share their stories. Jackson Spalding was founded in 1995 with a vision to be the most trusted and respected agency in the industry and is proudly independently owned. With offices located in Atlanta, Dallas, Los Angeles and Athens, Ga., Jackson Spalding's clients include celebrated brands like Chick-fil-A, The Coca-Cola Company, Delta Air Lines, Google, L.L.Bean, Orkin, Primrose Schools, among others. Jackson Spalding was recognized as one of the best PR agencies in America by Forbes in 2023, has been featured on Best Places to Work lists, and has earned awards ranging from the SABREs to ADDYs.

EEO

At Jackson Spalding, we embrace and celebrate our differences. They are what inspire, unite, and motivate us to strive for a better way. In alignment with our purpose to cultivate meaningful relationships rooted in mutual respect, we are dedicated to fostering a sense of belonging throughout our agency. Jackson Spalding is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate in any aspect of employment against any person on account of race, ethnicity, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or veteran status.

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