Influence Director

Ogilvy UK; City Of London; Hybrid; GBP 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading global marketing agency seeks a senior Influence Director in London to lead influential programs across a large drinks portfolio. You will oversee campaign delivery, cultivate key client relationships, and mentor your team. The ideal candidate has significant experience in managing large-scale campaigns and driving team efficiencies. The position offers hybrid work flexibility and competitive benefits.

Benefits

25 days annual leave + 1 Volunteer Day

Wellbeing and Health benefits

Flexible Working Model

Life Assurance

Qualifications

• Proven experience as an Influence Director or in a senior role with a track record of leading campaigns.
• Ability to lead and mentor a team, promoting professional growth.
• Experience managing account profitability and driving new business.

Responsibilities

• Oversee strategic delivery and ensure campaign quality.
• Build and maintain senior client relationships, acting as a strategic advisor.
• Drive innovation and lead the team in high-stakes environments.

Skills

Leadership

Problem-solving

Commercial acumen

Client relationship management

Job description

Influence Director – Large Drinks Portfolio

Department: PR & Influence
Location: London
Contract type: Fixed‑Term (12 months)
Full Time/Part time: Full Time
Remote/Hybrid Working: Hybrid
Reporting into: Influence Business Director / Client Partner

About Ogilvy

Ogilvy UK has been creating iconic ideas that deliver impact at scale for clients ever since David Ogilvy founded the company in 1948. Ogilvy UK specialises in bringing together brand advertising, customer experience marketing, PR, influence and consulting, all fuelled by Behavioural Science. Our world‑class award‑winning creative campaigns deliver solutions for clients including Sainsbury’s, Argos, Mondelēz International, Unilever, TK Maxx and Pernod Ricard. In 2023, Ogilvy UK celebrated their 75th anniversary and was the most awarded agency in Europe. Ogilvy is home to the largest influencer marketing practice globally, and hosts the world’s biggest festival of behavioural science and creativity, Nudgestock – now in its 12th year.

The Role

As an Influence Director, you are a senior leader within our team, responsible for the overall strategic success and delivery of our most significant influencer programmes. You will own key relationships and projects end‑to‑end, making independent decisions and holding your team accountable to ensure senior leaders remain confident in our delivery. In this role, you will be expected to anticipate and resolve complex problems, manage up by bringing solutions, and develop systems that improve team efficiency. A critical part of your leadership will be to mentor junior colleagues, champion Ogilvy’s values, and encourage a culture of continuous improvement. You will be the central point of contact for senior clients and internal stakeholders, enabling cross‑functional communication and ensuring the highest quality of work.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Oversight & Delivery

• Provide senior oversight across all campaigns within your portfolio, ensuring delivery is on‑strategy, on‑time, and meets the highest standards of quality.
• Act as the final point of escalation for all project‑related issues, making independent decisions to resolve complex challenges and protect client relationships.
• Develop and implement new systems and processes to improve team efficiency, quality control, and overall campaign effectiveness.

Strategic Leadership

• Lead the design and definition of industry‑leading influencer strategies for our key clients, setting the vision and ensuring all activity ladders up to their core business objectives.
• Drive innovation within the team, identifying new opportunities, technologies and creative approaches to keep our offering at the forefront of the industry.
• Lead and deliver compelling creative and strategic solutions in high‑stakes client meetings and new business pitches.

Client Partnership & Counsel

• Own and cultivate senior‑level client relationships, evolving from a delivery partner to a strategic advisor.
• Provide proactive senior counsel to clients on industry developments, competitive threats and strategic opportunities, building their confidence in Ogilvy as a long‑term partner.
• Ensure the commercial health of your client portfolio, taking responsibility for account profitability and client satisfaction.

Senior Communication & Integration

• Serve as the primary conduit between your team and senior agency leadership, communicating progress, challenges and successes with clarity.
• Enable effective cross‑functional collaboration at a senior level, ensuring influence is seamlessly integrated with other capabilities across the agency.
• Mediate high‑level conflicts and navigate complex stakeholder environments to ensure positive outcomes.

Commercial & Resource Management

• Hold ultimate responsibility for the financial performance of your client portfolio, including forecasting, profitability and budget management.
• Identify and pursue opportunities for organic growth within existing clients and play a lead role in new business acquisition.
• Oversee team resource allocation, ensuring workloads are balanced and the right talent is assigned to the right tasks.
• Lead and inspire a team of managers and executives, providing clear direction, formal mentorship and career development plans.
• Foster a positive and inclusive team culture that champions Ogilvy’s values, and address behaviours that do not align.
• Delegate tasks thoughtfully to empower your team, while monitoring overall progress to ensure accountability and successful delivery.

Skills for Your Growth to Influence Director

• Practice Leadership: Move from leading a client portfolio to shaping the strategic direction, operational structure and thought leadership of the entire Influence department.
• P&L Ownership: Transition from managing account profitability to taking full ownership of a significant departmental P&L, driving major new business wins and shaping the commercial future of the practice.
• C‑Suite Partnership: Evolve from a senior client advisor to a C‑suite level strategic partner, building and maintaining relationships with the most senior client stakeholders.
• Talent & Culture Development: Broaden your focus from team leadership to shaping the long‑term talent strategy, recruitment and culture for the entire department or practice area.

What You Will Need

• Proven experience as an Influence Director or similar senior role, with a strong track record of leading large‑scale, multi‑market campaigns.
• Demonstrated ability to lead, inspire and formally mentor a team, delegating work effectively and fostering their professional growth.
• Excellent commercial acumen with experience managing account profitability and contributing to new business.
• Sophisticated problem‑solving skills with experience in anticipating high‑level challenges and creating effective solutions.
• The ability to confidently lead senior‑level client conversations, mediate conflicts and act as a trusted strategic partner.

How we help you Thrive

• 25 days annual leave + 1 Volunteer Day
• Enhanced Maternity, Adoption and Shared Parental Leave
• Flexible Working Model with core working hours: 10am – 4pm
• Wellbeing and Health: Up to £25.00 per month towards physical or online exercise class membership, Unmind membership, LifeWorks tool and annual eye tests.
• Season Ticket Loan and Cycle to Work Scheme
• Life Assurance

Our ambition is to attract the very best diverse talent to Ogilvy, and to be the employer of choice in the UK. We want everyone to feel welcome when they join us, and once they’re here, for them to want to stay with us, grow their career and feel they belong.

We are an equal opportunity employer and are committed to creating an inclusive, welcoming environment for everyone who wants to work at Ogilvy. For us, diversity, equity and inclusion are integrated into everything we do. Your race, colour, ethnic, religion, gender, gender identity, national origin, sexual, marital status, disability have no bearing on our hiring decisions, but we encourage everyone to feel free to express their true selves in an environment we are consistently striving to make as inclusive as possible.

We aim to facilitate an accessible and positive application experience for all candidates. If you require any adjustments from us to support you through the process or expect to require any adjustments to working conditions to be able to best perform in the role, we are happy to consider all reasonable adjustments. If you live with a disability and would like to take advantage of our offer of a guaranteed interview under the Disability Confident Scheme, please ensure you fill out our voluntary Equal Opportunities Questionnaire when applying.