Account Director

Inspired Thinking Group (ITG); Manchester; Hybrid; GBP 65,000 - 95,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

25 days holiday + bank holidays + Well

Smart Working up to 40% from home

Wedding/honeymoon leave + 3 extra days

Pension scheme

Corporate Medical Cash Plan

Electric car salary sacrifice

Charitable payroll giving

Professional qualifications funding

Monthly Employee of the Month £250

Volunteer Day

Job summary

Inspired Thinking Group (ITG) is seeking an experienced Account Director to lead food-focused workstreams for the Co-op account. You will act as the senior day-to-day lead across store POS, local marketing and integrated campaigns, ensuring activity is connected, scalable and delivered effectively from national campaigns to in-store execution.

You will translate strategy into practical delivery across retail environments, manage budgets, forecast costs, and guide a collaborative team to drive

Qualifications

• Proven ability to lead cross-functional food-related workstreams.
• Strong stakeholder management and client relationship skills.
• Demonstrated budgeting, forecasting and financial oversight.

Responsibilities

• Lead store POS, local marketing, and integrated campaigns for Co-op.
• Guide stakeholders across store, local, and campaign activity.
• Provide proactive recommendations and drive delivery quality.
• Oversee creative and production collaboration, timelines, and risks.
• Manage budgets, monthly MI reporting, and financial performance.
• Build and own Annual Development Plan and identify growth opportunities.
• Own reporting on delivery performance and financials; mentor a team.
• Collaborate with ITG teams to ensure best-practice delivery across disciplines.

Skills

Leadership

Client relationships

Budgeting

Strategic thinking

Project management

Communication

Stakeholder management

People management

Job description

This role leads food-focused workstreams across the Co-op account, with responsibility spanning store POS, local marketing, and integrated campaigns. You will act as the senior day-to-day lead across these areas, ensuring all activity is connected, scalable, and delivered effectively — from national campaigns through to in-store execution. You will play a key role in translating strategy into practical delivery across retail environments.

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead client relationships across food-related workstreams
• Guide stakeholders across store, local, and campaign activity
• Provide clear, proactive recommendations
• Store POS & Retail Delivery
• Oversee the delivery of all store POS and in-store assets
• Ensure accuracy, consistency, and quality across formats
• Work closely with the production hub and print partner (HHG) on production

Local Marketing

• Lead local marketing strategies and toolkit delivery
• Ensure scalable and adaptable solutions for regional activity, always looking at an automation first approach
• Maintain alignment between national and local output

Campaign Delivery

• Oversee integrated campaigns across food categories
• Ensure alignment between national campaigns and store execution
• Creative & Production Oversight
• Collaborate with Creative and Production teams to deliver high-quality work
• Maintain oversight of timelines, resourcing, and delivery risks

Commercial Management

• Lead on budget tracking, forecasting, and cost management
• Ensure efficient delivery within agreed budgets
• Own monthly retainer and project finance reporting as part of the monthly MI report

Account Development

• Create and own the Annual Development Plan for your area regularly reviewing and updating to ensure we are on track to meet objectives
• Identify opportunities to grow store, local, and campaign workstreams
• Drive improvements in efficiency and execution
• Hold monthly account review sessions with clients

Reporting & Performance

• Own reporting across delivery, performance, and financials
• Lead monthly client reporting and forward planning sessions
• Line manage and mentor a team, providing guidance, feedback, and development support
• Ensure effective workload management and clear roles across the account team
• Foster a collaborative, positive, and high-performing team environment
• Act as a senior escalation point for any delivery or client challenges

Ways of Working & Collaboration

• Work closely with internal ITG teams across creative, production, and the Campaign Production Hub teams to ensure a quality and efficient delivery
• Work closely and collaboratively with other Account Directors to share best practice, implement change, drive efficiencies and ensure we 'show-up' to the client as a unified team
• Drive best practice across briefing, delivery, trafficking, and reporting processesI
• Identify and implement improvements to ways of working to increase efficiency and quality
• Ensure strong integration across all disciplines working on the account

This role leads food-focused workstreams across the Co-op account, with responsibility spanning store POS, local marketing, and integrated campaigns. You will act as the senior day-to-day lead across these areas, ensuring all activity is connected, scalable, and delivered effectively — from national campaigns through to in-store execution. You will play a key role in translating strategy into practical delivery across retail environments.

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead client relationships across food-related workstreams
• Guide stakeholders across store, local, and campaign activity
• Provide clear, proactive recommendations
• Store POS & Retail Delivery

• Oversee the delivery of all store POS and in-store assets
• Ensure accuracy, consistency, and quality across formats
• Work closely with the production hub and print partner (HHG) on production

Local Marketing

• Lead local marketing strategies and toolkit delivery
• Ensure scalable and adaptable solutions for regional activity, always looking at an automation first approach
• Maintain alignment between national and local output

Campaign Delivery

• Oversee integrated campaigns across food categories
• Ensure alignment between national campaigns and store execution
• Creative & Production Oversight

• Collaborate with Creative and Production teams to deliver high-quality work
• Maintain oversight of timelines, resourcing, and delivery risks

Commercial Management

• Lead on budget tracking, forecasting, and cost management
• Ensure efficient delivery within agreed budgets
• Own monthly retainer and project finance reporting as part of the monthly MI report

Account Development

• Create and own the Annual Development Plan for your area regularly reviewing and updating to ensure we are on track to meet objectives
• Identify opportunities to grow store, local, and campaign workstreams
• Drive improvements in efficiency and execution
• Hold monthly account review sessions with clients

Reporting & Performance

• Own reporting across delivery, performance, and financials
• Lead monthly client reporting and forward planning sessions

Team Leadership & Development

• Line manage and mentor a team, providing guidance, feedback, and development support
• Ensure effective workload management and clear roles across the account team
• Foster a collaborative, positive, and high-performing team environment
• Act as a senior escalation point for any delivery or client challenges

Ways of Working & Collaboration

• Work closely with internal ITG teams across creative, production, and the Campaign Production Hub teams to ensure a quality and efficient delivery
• Work closely and collaboratively with other Account Directors to share best practice, implement change, drive efficiencies and ensure we 'show-up' to the client as a unified team
• Drive best practice across briefing, delivery, trafficking, and reporting processesI
• Identify and implement improvements to ways of working to increase efficiency and quality
• Ensure strong integration across all disciplines working on the account

Requirements

• Leadership: Strong people manager with the ability to develop and support team members
• Client Partnership: Builds trusted, long-term relationships and acts as a strategic advisor with senior clients
• Commercial Acumen: Highly confident managing budgets, forecasting, and financial performance
• Strategic Thinking: Understands the bigger picture and aligns delivery to client and business objectives
• Creative Judgement: Strong eye for quality and detail across creative and production outputs
• Communication & Influence: Clear, confident communicator with clients and senior stakeholders
• Problem Solving: Proactively identifies and resolves challenges
• Resilience & Pace: Thrives in a fast-paced environment with multiple priorities

Shared Expectation:

• While each AD role has a primary focus area, all Account Directors are expected to:
• Support across other areas of the account as required
• Collaborate closely to ensure a joined-up, consistent client experience
• Contribute to overall account performance, growth, and team success

Benefits

Work's a treat!

Perks at ITG — alongside a competitive salary, here's what you can look forward to:

• Time off that works for you — 25 days' holiday + bank holidays, a paid Wellbeing Day, flexible bank holidays to honour cultural or religious observances, and the option to buy or carry over up to 5 extra days
• Flexibility & lifestyle — Smart Working with up to 40% from home, and after 12 months, the option to work from abroad for up to 90 days a year
• Family & life milestones — Enhanced family friendly leave, 3 extra days for your wedding/honeymoon, and an Employee Assistance Programme whenever you need support
• Financial perks — Pension scheme, Corporate Medical Cash Plan, electric car salary sacrifice scheme, and tax-efficient payroll giving to your favourite charities
• Growth & recognition — Funding for professional qualifications, monthly Employee of the Month awards (£250 bonus), and referral bonuses of up to £1,500
• Community & wellbeing — Regular Wellbeing Workshops, 30+ Wellbeing Champions, a paid Volunteer Day, and an online perks platform with discounts on top brands, days out, and gym memberships

We Value Diversity

We champion and welcome diversity in our workforce and ensure all job applicants receive equal and fair treatment, regardless of age, race, gender or gender identity, religion, sexual orientation, disability, or nationality.

We are not only committed to increasing the visibility and recognition of talent from under-represented groups within our organisation, but the wider industry too.

At the end of the day, we make sure we take time to look after ourselves, each other, and the planet, because we're always stronger together.

ITG have a number of community groups available to employees and exist to offer a safe space for like-minded colleagues, with shared interests to connect, socialise and check in with each other.