Associate Account Director

Contrast & Co.; Annapolis (MD); Hybrid; USD 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health benefits

SIMPLE IRA

PTO 19 days

Remote options

Job summary

Contrast & Co. seeks an Associate Account Director to serve as the primary contact for a portfolio of clients, translating business and brand objectives into clear direction for the creative team and project managers.

You will deepen client relationships, present work, and identify opportunities to expand partnerships while guiding strategy, scope, and pricing with leadership. You will also help with onboarding, renewals, and new client pitches, coordinating with the COO and CFO as needed to

Qualifications

• Advanced communication and interpersonal skills.
• Proven ability to deliver strategic branding and marketing solutions across industries.
• Overall account management experience in an agency or creative environment.
• Experience collaborating with creative teams and project managers to bring client work from brief to delivery.
• Strong customer service and client management experience.
• Experience supporting business development, including pitches and proposals.
• Digitally native with understanding of how brands leverage digital tools to engage consumers.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the primary point of contact and trusted advisor for a portfolio of clients across multiple industries.
• Deliver strategic branding and marketing recommendations that connect each client's business goals to the work.
• Translate client goals and feedback into clear, actionable briefs for the creative team and project managers.
• Partner with project managers to keep clients informed of timelines and deliverables, and hold clients accountable for feedback and approvals.
• Report performance of client programs and assess against goals (ROI and KPIs).
• Identify and pursue opportunities to convert project-based clients to retainer clients.
• Support closing new client engagements and lead onboarding to ensure a smooth transition from pitch to partnership.

Skills

Advanced communication

Brand strategy

Account management

Cross-functional collaboration

Client service

Business development

Digital marketing basics

Job description

The Associate Account Director is the primary point of contact for a portfolio of Contrast & Co. clients, advocating for both the client and our established processes. The Associate Account Director maintains healthy client relationships, understands their business and brand objectives, and ensures those objectives translate into clear direction for the creative team and project managers.

Rather than managing project schedules and production directly, the Associate Account Director works hand in hand with our creative team and project managers — bringing the client's voice into every brief, every review, and every status conversation. Project managers own timelines, budgets, and resourcing; the Associate Account Director owns the relationship, the strategy, and the client's confidence that the work is on track and on target. When issues arise, internal or external, this individual helps resolve them, always seeking compromise.

This individual must be proficient in brand management and marketing strategy, with the range to apply that expertise across clients in very different industries. As an advisory firm, we often have the opportunity to play a consultative role for our clients, and the Associate Account Director must be able to guide clients toward their business and brand objectives with a clear point of view.

The position's primary responsibility is managing and deepening client relationships, presenting and championing our work, and identifying opportunities to expand partnerships with existing clients.

The Associate Account Director also plays an active role in growing the firm's book of business. This individual identifies new business opportunities, participates in new client pitches, and helps build new client engagements—shaping the strategy, scope, and approach alongside leadership, the creative team, and project managers. When a prospect is ready to move forward, the Associate Account Director supports closing the engagement and then leads client onboarding, ensuring a smooth handoff from pitch to partnership and setting the relationship up for long-term success. This position reports to the Chief Operating Officer.

Primary responsibilities

• Serve as the primary point of contact and trusted advisor for a portfolio of clients across multiple industries.
• Deliver strategic branding and marketing recommendations that connect each client's business goals to the work.
• Translate client goals and feedback into clear, actionable briefs for the creative team and project managers.
• Partner with project managers to keep clients informed of timelines and deliverables, and hold clients accountable for feedback and approvals.
• Report performance of client programs and assess against goals (ROI and KPIs).
• Able to present ideas with conviction, negotiate, and problem-solve.
• Able to present creative designs and walk a client through creative work alongside the creative team.
• Meet with clients and internal staff to discuss strategy and report on progress.
• Ensure client requirements are met, working closely with colleagues, including creative, project management, media buyers, sales, and administrative staff.
• Communicate the level of effort of client requests and edits to the client, coordinating with project managers so they are executed strategically.
• Identify and pursue opportunities to convert project-based clients to retainer clients.
• Facilitate contract renewals and, if applicable, expand upon them with the client and CFO.
• Identify and qualify new business opportunities through your network, industry events, referrals, and existing client relationships.
• Participate in new client pitches, contributing strategic thinking and presenting alongside leadership and the creative team.
• Help construct new client engagements, including proposal responses, scope, approach, and pricing, in partnership with leadership and project managers.
• Support closing new client engagements and lead new-client onboarding, ensuring a smooth transition from pitch to partnership.
• Support the firm's new business objectives and help track pipeline activity with the COO.

Requirements

• Advanced communication and interpersonal skills.
• Demonstrated ability to deliver strategic branding and marketing solutions to an array of clients across multiple industries.
• Overall account management capabilities and experience, ideally in an agency or creative environment.
• Proven experience collaborating with creative teams and project managers to bring client work from brief to delivery.
• Strong customer service and client management experience.
• Experience supporting business development, including identifying opportunities, contributing to pitches and proposals, and helping close new client engagements.
• Digitally-native, up to speed with how brands leverage digital apps, products, services, and social/digital marketing tools to more effectively reach, engage, and serve consumers at every stage.
• Strong understanding of brand and marketing principles to consult and advise clients.
• Ability to act as the liaison between clients and internal departments, including creative, project management, marketing, and sales.

Our brand values

Every hire, every review, and every promotion at Contrast & Co. is measured against five values. They aren't posters on a wall — they're how we describe good work here, and they're the actual criteria your manager will use when they evaluate your performance.

We continue to push past what we know. For example, when you notice a client's needs have outgrown the original scope, you're the one who proposes converting them from project-based to retainer instead of waiting to be asked.

We lead from every seat. At a company our size, nobody waits for direction. You don't wait for a lead to land in your inbox; you spot opportunities in your network and your accounts, bring them to the COO, and step up to help shape the pitch.

We sweat the craft. We hold an exceptionally high standard for the things people see and the things they never will. Your client briefs, meeting notes, and account plans are clear and thorough enough that the creative team and project managers can act on them without a follow-up call.

We show up as partners. Working with us should be the best part of our clients' experience. In renewal conversations, you bring a point of view on where the partnership should go next, and you know the value we deliver well enough to hold your ground on scope and price.

We remain steady and positive. Positivity is a daily practice here. When a timeline slips or a client gets heated, you partner with the project manager to reset expectations and are the calm, level voice that keeps both the client relationship and the internal team on track.

At Contrast & Co., we're deeply committed to the long-term growth of our people, so we've built a benefits package that supports your well-being, financial security, and professional goals. We cover 100% of employee health benefits, and our SIMPLE IRA plan includes employer matching to help your retirement savings grow faster. We invest in your professional development with opportunities to sharpen your skills and creativity, and we support you in becoming a leader. To help you recharge, you'll get 19 PTO days, paid holidays, flexible remote options, and your birthday off.

Equal opportunity

Contrast & Co. is proud to be an equal-opportunity employer that values diversity. We are building a space where standing out from a sea of similarity is celebrated — a space where employees are encouraged to bring their whole selves to their work as they join and grow with us. Contrast &Co. does not discriminate on any unlawful basis, including race, religion, color, national origin, disability, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or any other basis prohibited by law.