Account Director

Leverenz & Associates; Oregon (IL); Hybrid; USD 72,000 - 88,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

401K

Flexible work from home

Generous PTO

Job summary

A dynamic public relations agency is seeking an Account Director to lead multiple clients and oversee a team. The ideal candidate will possess over five years of relevant experience in public relations, demonstrating strong skills in storytelling and media relations. This position emphasizes strategic messaging development and creative thinking, supporting clients in various industries. The role offers flexibility, competitive compensation starting at $80K+, and great benefits such as 401K and generous PTO.

Qualifications

• More than five years of experience in corporate communications, public relations, or investor relations, preferably in an agency.
• Experience pitching stories in all tiers of news with a portfolio.
• Ability to juggle multiple clients and supervise junior staff.
• Experience briefing and working with creatives in communications and social media.
• Understanding of a professional services billing.

Responsibilities

• Lead multiple clients and supervise staff.
• Develop strategic messaging for clients.
• Draft media materials and pitch media for client coverage.
• Provide recommendations for content across multiple channels.
• Participate in agency initiatives for development.

Skills

Curiosity

Storytelling solutions

News analysis

Strategic messaging development

Media pitching

Influencer leverage

Content creation recommendations

Big creative ideas

Business development support

Active participation in learning

Education

Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism, Public Relations, Communications, or English Literature

Job description

We are seeking a career-oriented PR professional who is interested in growing their career at Leverenz & Associates. This is an Account Director role and the right candidate will be able to lead multiple clients, supervise staff, and be a leader in the agency. This can be 60%, 80% or full-time role.

You think about the intersection of business, consumers, and the news. You have established relationships with current members of the media and you pay close attention to business news, pop culture, and trends that affect the way news is reported. You notice themes around what people talk about every day. You read the news as part of your lifestyle. You have worked in journalism, corporate communications, public relations, or crisis communications for at least five years.

As a member of the Leverenz & Associates team, you will have the opportunity to put a wide range of work and life experiences to task within the context of brand strategy and public relations. You will then be given the tools, team, connections, and autonomy to make it happen. Our clients put a great deal of trust in us and expect bright, creative, connected thinkers who are an extension of their team. Our clients are entrepreneurs or entrepreneurial thinkers across private equity, real estate, design, healthcare, entertainment, and non‑profit organizations.

The ideal candidate:

• Your curiosity allows you to develop a strong understanding of client industries, audiences, and revenue models
• You have collaborated with a team to develop storytelling solutions that meet client goals and objectives
• You’re inclined to read and understand news that directly and indirectly affects clients, and you can analyze and distill meaningful insights from it
• You are excited about developing strategic messaging for clients and support creation of media plans and proposals that take an integrated approach to driving awareness with target audiences
• You generate story ideas and topic angles, draft media materials, and pitch media to earn client coverage while helping journalists and editors
• You’re insightful about leveraging influencers (e.g. client fans, investors, partners, bloggers and other relatable voices) to impact clients, their brands, and their storytelling goals
• You provide thoughtful recommendations for content creation and distribution across multiple channels to support paid, owned and earned channels
• You get excited thinking about big, creative ideas that challenge the client and can make a big impact
• You support business development, plan creation, and pitching
• You participate in office-wide initiatives, seminars and meetings to further professional learning and intellectual capital
• You actively participate in agency and individual development and growth

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism, Public Relations, Communications, English Literature
• More than five years of relevant experience in corporate communications, public relations, or investor relations, preferably in an agency or consulting environment
• Experience pitching and placing stories about clients in all tiers of news and have a portfolio to share
• Experience juggling multiple clients and supervising junior staff
• Experience briefing and working with creative directors, graphic designers, and writers who contribute to corporate communications, PR, and social media
• Deep professional or personal understanding of a geographic media market or vertical industry
• Understanding of a professional services billing
• On occasion, you are able to travel or attend client or industry events outside normal business hours
• $80K+, DOE
• 401K
• NW-based office
• Flexible work from home
• Generous PTO

To apply: email hello(at)leverenz.com with a cover letter, resume, and relevant work samples. We look forward to hearing from you!