Executive Director, WPP Network Growth

VML Enterprise Solutions•Chicago, IL

2d•Hybrid

About The Position

WPP Enterprise Solutions (ES) designs, builds, and operates growth systems for businesses. In an AI-driven world, ES leads clients in business transformation and marketing modernization, connecting strategy to execution. With 12,000 experts globally, ES collaborates with partners like Adobe, AWS, Google, Microsoft, Salesforce, and Shopify, and innovators in AI, to deliver tailored growth solutions. VML, part of WPP, supports ES by activating transformation through creativity and experience. The Executive Director, WPP Network Growth role is a senior deputy position reporting to the Head of WPP Network Growth, with a global remit based out of a hub like New York, Chicago, or London. This role is crucial for activating high-priority ES opportunities across the WPP ecosystem, including WPP Creative, WPP Media, WPP Open, agencies, and key client relationships, ensuring the ES operating model matures effectively.

Requirements

Senior agency, consulting or enterprise growth leader with proven experience operating across complex matrix organizations.
Credible with agency leadership, GCLs, client-team leads and senior client stakeholders.
Strong commercial judgment; can distinguish real ES opportunities from general interest or internal noise.
Multi-disciplinary literacy across creative, media, CRM, data, AI, commerce, martech, content and platform transformation.
Excellent writer and briefer; able to turn ambiguity into a focused opportunity narrative quickly.
AI-enabled working style, using modern tools to accelerate research, synthesis, briefs, POVs and follow-up.
Low-ego orchestration style; able to influence through the network without creating ownership tension.

Responsibilities

Act as senior deputy to the Head of WPP Network Growth, leading high-priority ES opportunity activation across WPP Creative, WPP Media, WPP Open, agencies and priority client-team relationships.
Own a portfolio of priority WPP-sourced ES opportunities and ensure every opportunity has a clear owner, route, value case and next action.
Engage senior agency leaders, GCLs and client-team leads to identify where ES can expand or accelerate existing WPP relationships.
Convert early signals into qualified ES pursuits, including opportunity briefs, client problem framing, potential solution path and support requirements.
Define the ES activation support required for each opportunity and route requests into the appropriate ES leaders.
Coordinate closely with Growth Architecture when a WPP-sourced opportunity is complex, multi-pillar, technical or commercially ambiguous.
Maintain visibility of active pursuits, blockers, conversion status and escalation needs for the Head of WPP Network Growth.
Model the expected working standard for the Network Growth team: commercial, low-ego, fast, precise and collaborative.