The best industry players are account managers at heart

I’ve always believed the best players in our industry, irrespective of job title, are brilliant account managers at heart. Entrepreneurial, great at building and nurturing relationships but also very happy to ‘carry the boards’. In fact, many of those I know started off in account management.

You really notice the people with these skills in new business pitches - as a microcosm of the creative process. Those on winning teams aren’t afraid to step out of their lane and get stuck in beyond their usual remit or take ownership of the process and the time to build a relationship with the clients.

On the other hand, the best account managers are both creative and strategic, nurturing and shaping ideas alongside the creatives, producers and planners, and driving innovation. That’s not to dilute the skills and experience that sets the different disciplines in agencies apart; it’s about understanding that everyone can play a meaningful role at every step of the creative process and should share accountability.

The role of CEO has traditionally been client facing, and as a service industry I believe that must always be the case. But with today’s leaders needing to have a sharper focus on talent than ever before, leading with empathy and compassion, there is no reason why those who possess those qualities in other client-facing roles – of which there are now many - should not find themselves in the driving seat.

Jemima Monies is chief marketing & operations officer at adam&eveDDB