Senior Business Director

UMT•Brooklyn, NY

1d•$150,000 - $180,000

About The Position

The Senior Business Director is a senior client and business leader responsible for the success, growth, and health of a significant, complex account. The role calls for demonstrated success at the Business Director level, executive influence, commercial judgment, and organizational leadership. This person serves as a strategic advisor to senior clients, leads integrated teams, stays close to the work, and helps shape clients’ engagement with culture. The Senior Business Director owns the overall health, performance, growth, and senior client relationships for a flagship national account. They guide integrated work from strategic direction through client presentation, drive organic growth, and co-own account financial health with Program Management. They also lead and develop Business Supervisors and contribute to agency leadership through new business, recruiting, departmental standards, cross-functional improvements, and developing future Business Leadership talent.

Requirements

10+ years of experience leading integrated client relationships within a creative, marketing, or communications agency, including demonstrated success operating at the Business Director or equivalent level.
Proven experience owning senior client relationships, complex integrated campaigns, organic growth, account economics, and cross-functional team leadership for a major consumer brand.
Demonstrated experience coaching and developing account leadership talent while independently navigating high-stakes client and business decisions.
Exceptional business judgment and ability to connect marketing decisions to client goals, organizational dynamics, and commercial outcomes.
Executive presence and communication skills, including the ability to read complex rooms, tailor counsel to stakeholders, and navigate sensitive issues with discretion.
Strong strategic fluency and ability to turn ambiguity into actionable direction without prescribing creative solutions.
Commercial acumen across scopes, staffing models, forecasting, profitability, and investment decisions.
Ability to lead multidisciplinary teams, resolve tension constructively, and create accountability without relying solely on hierarchy.
Growth mindset, curiosity, and proactivity in identifying unmet client needs and translating them into opportunities.
Cultural fluency and understanding of how contemporary culture, audiences, and communities influence brands and business.
Sound prioritization and decision-making in a high-volume, fast-moving, highly visible client environment.
Coaching orientation and ability to improve the performance, confidence, and judgment of other leaders.
Ability to balance client needs, creative ambition, executional feasibility, team sustainability, and financial health.

Nice To Haves

Experience leading a large, complex, or matrixed national account across multiple stakeholders and workstreams.
Experience in QSR, retail, CPG, telecom, financial services, sports, entertainment, or another high-velocity consumer category.
Experience working within or leading an integrated agency team or multi-agency ecosystem.
Experience leading culturally specific or multicultural marketing while connecting the work to broader brand and business strategy.
Track record of identifying and converting organic growth opportunities.
Experience leading scope development, staffing recommendations, forecasting, and profitability management.
Experience supporting new business pitches, agency initiatives, recruiting, or talent development.

Responsibilities

Own the overall health, performance, growth, and senior client relationships for a flagship national account.
Serve as a trusted strategic advisor to Director-level stakeholders, shaping agendas, influencing decisions, and constructively challenging clients with a clear point of view.
Translate business, consumer, category, and cultural dynamics into clear strategic direction and stronger creative work.
Lead integrated teams across Business Leadership, Strategy, Context, Creative, Program Management, Production, Analytics, and Partner Agencies, clarifying objectives, priorities, roles, and decisions.
Ensure work meets Translation’s standards for strategic rigor, creative ambition, cultural excellence, and client readiness before presentation.
Develop and drive the organic growth strategy, identifying and converting opportunities across stakeholders, business units, audiences, and workstreams.
Co-own account financial health with Program Management, including revenue, profitability, staffing, forecasting, scope performance, and investment recommendations.
Anticipate relationship, delivery, and commercial risks and intervene before they affect the client partnership, work quality, team health, or profitability.
Lead, coach, and develop Business Supervisors through clear expectations, ongoing feedback, performance reviews, and development opportunities.
Contribute to agency leadership through new business, recruiting, shaping departmental standards, cross-functional improvements, and developing future Business Leadership talent.