Chief Operating Officer jobs in United Kingdom

Managing Director

Full time, permanent role

Hybrid working with 2-3 days a week in the London office

Competitive base salary plus bonus and LTIP

• If you choose to apply please ensure to connect with Suzie Walker | LinkedIn and Jeandre Kairuz as we are only able to respond to 1st connections *

We are looking for an entrepreneurial Managing Director for a high-growth, full-service digital agency. Reporting to the Board, our client is looking for a senior agency operator to lead day-to-day business and drive the next phase of global growth. The successful candidate will be a "hands-on" operator who leads from the front and is actively involved in new business, client strategy, and problem-solving.

This role will play a crucial role in shaping the future direction of a successful international agency, scaling the business, and mentoring a talented team to achieve sustainable, profitable growth, with a stake in that success. With responsibility for delivery, team management, operations, new product development, and major partnerships.

As Managing Director, you will be responsible for the holistic performance of the agency. The successful candidate will:

• Lead, mentor, and manage the day-to-day operations of the agency, overseeing Client Services, Strategy, Paid Media, Creative, and Operations.
• Serve as the primary day-to-day leadership contact and decision-maker for the delivery teams.
• Build and coach a high-performing senior team (Account Directors, Heads of Departments) to create leadership depth.
• Establish a clear operational cadence, setting a weekly / monthly / quarterly rhythm for leadership meetings, business reviews, and decision-making.
• Drive operational rigor by standardising delivery, implementing playbooks, improving scoping, ensuring QA, and managing project profitability.
• Support and progressively assume full P&L ownership and accountability, focusing on driving revenue growth and improving gross margin.
• Work with the Board to set and then execute a 12-month growth plan for key markets (notably UK and US), with clear quarterly targets.
• Lead enterprise sales efforts, major pitches, and complex RFP responses, shaping the agency’s offer and pricing for higher profitability.
• Instil a discipline of data-driven decision-making, from forecasting and pipeline management to ROI reporting and Board-level dashboards.
• Act as a hands-on, senior-level partner for key accounts, actively participating in client strategy, managing escalations, and ensuring client satisfaction.

• Senior Agency Leadership: 10+ years in a full-service digital agency, with 5+ years in a senior leadership role (GM, COO, MD, or Group Director) with operational and team management responsibility.
• P&L Ownership: A proven track record of managing a multi-million-pound/dollar P&L, with demonstrable success in growing both revenue and gross margin.
• Commercial Acumen: Strength in enterprise sales, RFPs, complex scoping, and managing multi-stakeholder accounts.
• Operational Rigour: Deep experience in the business of an agency—scoping, resourcing, utilisation, delivery management, and scaling processes.
• Team Builder: A natural coach and mentor who can build, inspire, and retain a senior-level team.
• Data-Literate: Fluent in the key metrics of an agency: pipeline health, utilisation, NRR, contribution margin, etc.

Please submit your CV via LinkedIn. Candidates who have applied via LinkedIn will be reviewed as a priority. Please ensure to connect with Suzie Walker | LinkedIn and Jeandre Kairuz | LinkedIn we are only able to respond to 1st connections.

Suzie Walker Executive Search is a firm of specialist headhunters with an expert team recruiting senior interim and permanent senior leaders for B2B and B2C marketing and digital / tech roles in FTSE 350 and private equity-backed companies.

www.suziewalkerexecutivesearch.co.uk