Account Manager (Experiential & Live Events)

The Imagination Group; Detroit (MI); Hybrid; USD 75,000 - 95,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work model

Comprehensive paid time off

Generous parental leave

401k match

Job summary

Imagination seeks an experienced Experiential & Live Events Account Manager to join our client service team in a hybrid role that blends account management, project leadership, and production. You will support high-profile automotive clients and senior stakeholders, guiding projects from brief to delivery.

You will own the day-to-day success of large-scale experiential programs, drive momentum, coordinate internal teams, manage budgets, and maintain clear client communication in fast-paced

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Marketing, Communications, Business, or related field.
• 4+ years of account management or production experience in experiential/live events or related agencies.
• Experience supporting senior leaders or executive-level clients in deadline-driven environments.

Responsibilities

• Own project scope, timelines and deliverables end-to-end.
• Define next steps, assign responsibilities, and keep internal teams on track.
• Translate client goals into actionable plans for creative, production, and logistics teams.
• Maintain professional, proactive client communication with urgency and discretion.
• Coordinate client-facing hospitality details for a polished experience.
• Lead cross-functional coordination across strategy, creative and production teams.
• Assist on-site leadership during events and show days, when needed.
• Track project budgets and report expenses; escalate deviations to leadership.
• Run internal status meetings and ensure alignment across teams.
• Gather client feedback to inform improvements and future work.

Skills

Account Management

Project Leadership

Production

Budget Management

Client Communication

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Marketing/Communications/Business

Job description

Imagination is seeking an experienced Experiential & Live Events Account Manager to join our client service team. This is a hybrid role encompassing account management, project leadership, and production. It supports high-profile automotive clients, including senior leadership and executive stakeholders, and is accountable not only for client relationships but for actively leading projects from brief to delivery.

The Account Manager owns the day-to-day success of large-scale experiential and communications programs. This includes driving momentum, determining next steps, proactively directing internal teams, and anticipating what needs to happen next to ensure work moves forward efficiently and at the highest standard.

This role serves as a trusted, highly responsive day-to-day partner to clients, often operating in fast-moving, high-stakes environments where priorities shift quickly, and attention to detail is critical. Success in this role requires sound judgment, discretion, and a strong understanding of the live-event and production processes, enabling the Account Manager to confidently guide teams, flag risks early, and make informed decisions.

Our work follows the heartbeat of major live events and launches. While this occasionally requires evening or weekend support, we prioritize ‘flexibility both ways’—ensuring our team can balance these peak moments with dedicated downtime.

Key Responsibilities

• Project Leadership and Delivery
  • Serve as the day-to-day project lead, owning scope, timelines, deliverables, and overall forward progress.
  • Proactively drive projects forward by defining next steps, assigning responsibilities, and holding internal teams accountable.
  • Anticipate challenges, dependencies, and production considerations before they become issues, and propose clear solutions.
  • Translate client goals into actionable plans for creative, production, and logistics teams.
  • Maintain a strong understanding of the event production lifecycle, from concept through on-site execution and wrap.
• Client Communication:
  • Serve as the daily point of contact for clients, providing consistent updates and ensuring their needs are addressed promptly.
  • Manage high-touch client relationships with professionalism, discretion, and urgency, responding effectively to time-sensitive requests and evolving priorities.
  • Anticipate client needs and provide thoughtful guidance to help navigate complex decisions and deliverables.
  • Build trust and credibility over time to foster long-term client relationships and account growth.
• Client Services
  • Thoughtfully manage client hospitality, including curated gifts, birthdays, milestone recognition, hosted experiences, and personal touches that strengthen relationships beyond active projects and day-to-day deliverables.
  • Coordinate client-facing details, including meeting F&B, parking, and executive-level accommodations, to ensure a polished, seamless experience at every interaction.
• Cross-Functional Team Leadership
  • Lead internal coordination across strategy, creative, production, and external partners.
  • Run internal status meetings, set agendas, document decisions, and ensure alignment across teams.
  • Act as the connective tissue between teams, ensuring clarity, accountability, and momentum.
  • Escalate risks early and align with senior team members on mitigation strategies.
• Event Execution and On-Site Leadership
  • Support the execution of live events and moments, including on-site leadership when required.
  • Ensure teams are prepared, timelines are met, and details are managed through show days and beyond.
  • Act as a calm, solutions-focused presence in high-pressure live environments.
• Budget and Resource Management:
  • Manage the project budget by tracking costs and ensuring projects stay within financial constraints.
  • Provide regular updates on project expenses and inform senior team members of any potential budget deviations.
  • Partner with the Senior Account Manager or Account Director in resource allocation and scheduling.
• Reporting and Performance:
  • In collaboration with the Strategy Director, deliver clear and concise reporting on campaign performance, KPIs, and outcomes.
  • Gather and synthesize client feedback to inform improvements and strengthen future work.

Skills, Knowledge and Expertise

• A genuine passion for client service and delivering excellence under pressure.
• Bachelor’s degree in Marketing, Communications, Business, Film/Video Production, or a related field.
• 4+ years of account management or production experience within an experiential marketing, events, advertising, or communications agency.
• Demonstrated experience supporting senior leaders or executive-level clients in demanding, deadline-driven environments.
• Proven ability to manage complex projects with multiple stakeholders and moving parts.
• Exceptional communication skills, with confidence in presenting to and interacting with high-level audiences.
• Strong organizational skills, attention to detail, and the ability to remain calm and solutions-focused under pressure.
• Experience managing large-scale budgets across the full project lifecycle.
• Automotive industry experience is a plus.

What we can offer you:

• Work with a state-of-the-art product and deliver it to exciting and innovative brands
• Learning and development opportunities that contribute to professional growth
• A fun, engaging work culture
• Be part of a mission-driven team that values agility, integrity, and excellence
• Opportunity to contribute to large-scale, high-impact projects from day one

Benefits and perks offered:

• Comprehensive paid time off benefits
• Hybrid work model, where our team comes into the office a minimum of 3 days per week
• Generous parental leave
• Up to 4% safe harbor company 401k match

WHAT MAKES US, US

We spark the imaginationChanging the way people think, feel and act

We design experiences that create memories, change behaviours and shape cultures

We specialise in consultancy, brand destinations, live events, content and investor communications

Imagination believes that diversity, equity and inclusion are more than just words, and more than a legal framework or a moral obligation – they are guiding principles that, when acted upon, make us stronger, more innovative and more creative as an organisation.

We commit to not only significantly increasing our efforts to effect change today, but also to ensure that our efforts will be sustained for the long-term.

To support us on this journey we have appointed a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Board to help shape our plans to bring about positive change, to help us learn and keep us all moving forward together.

We believe the responsibility for a diverse, equitable and inclusive workplace ultimately rests with all of us.

We believe that all employees should feel a sense of belonging at Imagination – regardless of their race, religion or belief, gender identity, age, sexual orientation, disability or background.

We believe racism has no place within our workplace or our work culture and we reject all forms of hatred, prejudice, intolerance and discrimination.

We believe that Black Lives Matter and it is our expectation that all employees become actively committed to making unbiased choices and are anti-racist in everything they do. Our Imagination community must share and live these beliefs, as diversity makes us stronger.

Our priority is humanity and our efforts towards a more diverse, more equitable, and more inclusive workplace are never done.