New Business Director

Verve; Dublin; On-site; EUR 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

Verve, an experiential marketing agency in Dublin, is recruiting a New Business Director to drive growth and conversion of high-value opportunities while enhancing the agency's market presence. This pivotal role demands extensive experience in business development and an understanding of experiential marketing.

The ideal candidate will lead strategic responses to client briefs, foster collaboration among teams, and represent Verve as a progressive leader in the brand experience sector.

Qualifications

• Strong experience in marketing and business development within a live experience or creative agency.
• Proven ability to lead and structure major pitches and proposals.
• Exceptional writing and presentation skills.

Responsibilities

• Lead the development and delivery of growth strategy across markets.
• Build and manage a pipeline of new business opportunities.
• Support the development of responses to client pitches.

Skills

Business development

Experiential marketing

Presentation skills

Commercial acumen

Storytelling

Collaboration

Job description

Verve is an experiential marketing agency that creates award-winning live experiences for world-famous brands. Our work covers brand experience, sponsorship activation, events and B2B, and we focus on creating live experiences that have lasting impact. Our offices are in Dublin, London, Amsterdam and Singapore and we are a proud B Corp.

We are seeking a Dublin-based New Business Director (London considered with regular Dublin travel) to identify, shape, and help convert high-value growth opportunities across the Verve offices, while promoting the agency in the market.

This is a pivotal role sitting at the intersection of our client service, creative, and commercial teams. You will act as a key connector, bringing structure, insight, and momentum to how Verve wins and grows. We are looking for someone with business development experience and a strong grounding in experiential marketing — someone who is commercially sharp, strategically curious, entrepreneurial, and a genuine team player.

Key Responsibilities

Growth & Business Development

• Lead the development and delivery of Verve’s growth strategy across local and international markets, while managing the allocated growth and marketing budget.
• Build and manage a clear pipeline of new business opportunities, from early-stage prospecting through to pitch conversion.
• Provide structure and momentum to growth activity, supporting department leads with RFPs and strategic responses, and providing comprehensive monthly RFP and pipeline reporting to senior leadership.
• Identify organic growth opportunities to deepen existing client relationships and expand revenue streams.

Please note: While this role currently has no direct reports, there may be scope to build and manage a team as the department scales in the future.

Strategic Guidance

• Lead and support the development of responses to major client briefs, pitches, and credentials, ensuring they meet requirements and have clear narrative frameworks.
• Translate complex brand, business, and cultural challenges into sharp, inspiring direction for internal teams.
• Help clients understand the role of live experience as a long-term business growth driver, rather than a single activation.
• Support major pitches, turning ideas into compelling, visually clear, and client-ready presentations.
• Actively guide and support internal teams with best‑practice communications and pitch decks to elevate overall output.
• Act as a key connector between senior management and department heads across all 4 offices, driving proactive knowledge sharing with the wider group.

Agency Reputation

• Support Verve’s reputation as a progressive leader in the brand experience space, providing guidance on external messaging and narratives for Verve’s social platforms.
• Help develop and manage PR opportunities with support from our external PR agency.
• Identify and manage relevant awards, speaker, and judging opportunities for the agency.

Effectiveness & Cultural Intelligence

• Turn event results and data into powerful case studies and future growth tools.
• Track cultural, category, and industry shifts to turn market intelligence into client‑facing insight.

Key Skills and Experience Required

• Agency Background: Strong experience in marketing and business development within a live experience, experiential, or creative agency environment.
• Experiential Expertise: Strong understanding of how brands leverage live experiences, sponsorship, activations, and culture to drive business impact.
• Pitch Winning Track Record: Proven ability to lead, structure, and land major pitches, proposals, and corporate RFPs.
• Storytelling & Presentation: Exceptional writing, storytelling, and deck‑creation skills, with the confidence to guide and inspire senior stakeholders.
• Commercial & Cultural Acumen: A sharp eye for consumer behaviour and market trends, balanced with strong financial awareness (including budget oversight and pipeline reporting) and a focus on agency value.
• Collaborative Leadership: Ability to turn ambiguity into clear direction while working at pace across multiple team disciplines and connecting stakeholders across international offices.

Our Ideal Candidate

• Commercially sharp and strategically curious.
• Proactive, opportunity‑focused, and entrepreneurial (but organised!).
• Calm under pressure when deadlines are tight.
• Generous with ideas and highly collaborative, a natural knowledge‑sharer.
• Passionate about culture, brands, and human behaviour.

Hours and Location

This is a permanent, Dublin‑based role operating on a hybrid working model (office‑based with optional WFH days). London will also be considered for the right candidate, with regular travel to Dublin required. The role involves close collaboration with teams across our Dublin, London, Amsterdam and Singapore hubs, which may include occasional international travel.

Our Commitments

Great Place To Work Certified

Exceptional work is rooted in an exceptional workplace. Certified in September 2025 based entirely on employee feedback, our culture is built on trust, inclusion, and genuine care for our people.

Sustainability Leaders

Verve is proudly ISO 20121, ISO 14001, and B Corp certified, one of the few event agencies to hold all three. We are deeply committed to driving positive environmental and social change through our workplace and our events.

Diversity & Inclusion

We know that to realise our ambition, we depend on diverse talent with a range of backgrounds, skills, and capabilities. We actively support and empower an inclusive, equal‑opportunity culture.