Director, Client Engagement

Publicis Groupe; Morristown (NJ); On-site; USD 97,000 - 156,000; Full time

Job summary

Publicis Groupe in Morristown, NJ seeks a Director, Client Strategy and Execution to own client relationships, shape account strategy, ensure delivery quality, and manage resources.

You will lead cross-functional teams, drive quarterly planning, and translate client priorities into business decisions while developing rising leaders. This role combines strategic advisory with financial stewardship and demands strong communication and leadership to deliver client outcomes.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent in business, marketing, healthcare, communications, life sciences, or related field.
• 8+ years of relevant professional experience in client services, consulting, market access, healthcare, pharmaceutical communications, strategy, operations, or related discipline.
• Demonstrated ability to own client relationships, lead account strategy, manage cross-functional teams, and connect delivery decisions to client and business outcomes.
• Experience with resource planning, budget/margin awareness, account-level financial stewardship, risk management, and escalation resolution.
• Experience developing Managers, Senior Managers, Associate Directors, or emerging account leaders through coaching, delegation, feedback, and promotion-readiness support.

Responsibilities

• Own assigned accounts as the primary accountable client and internal account leader.
• Provide strategic client advisory across Market Access, payer strategy, account planning, business planning, and client priorities.
• Translate client priorities into business and delivery decisions while developing Associate Directors, Senior Managers, and Managers below them.
• Lead cross-functional escalation paths and own account-level decision-making within assigned scope.
• Accountable for account planning, quarterly business planning, OKRs and growth strategy, opportunity identification and conversion.
• Oversee multi-workstream delivery with quality, timing discipline and clear decision paths.
• Lead resource planning, scope-to-staffing alignment, margin oversight, budget management, and financial forecasting.

Skills

Client relationship ownership

Strategic thinking

Account leadership

Cross-functional collaboration

Financial stewardship

Escalation management

People development

Decision making

Education

Bachelor’s degree in business, marketing, healthcare, communications, life sciences, or related field

Tools

Microsoft PowerPoint

Excel

Outlook

Word

Job description

Company description

Tasked with tackling a labyrinth of payers and organized customers, with limited resources, payer marketers can sometimes feel trapped between a rock and—well…you know.

Which is why our clients need an agency that knows how to rock in a hard space. Since day one, Payer Sciences has approached managed markets from a different angle. We firmly believe the truth lies in the data. We relentlessly analyze what formulary decision-makers and prescribers actually do, revealing patterns and practices that impact stakeholders across the treatment journey, and drive bottom-line results.

This disciplined approach requires an investment in sharp minds and multiple perspectives. To that end, Payer Sciences has assembled a flat and flexible organization, with analytics, consulting and communications living together under one roof—as one fully aligned team—so that we’re always ready to rock. No matter how hard the space.

Payer Sciences is part of Publicis Health North America, and a subsidiary of the Publicis Group (OTCQX: PUBGY).

Overview

The Director, Client Strategy and Execution is the standard account owner for assigned client relationships. This role is accountable for client relationship ownership, account strategy, delivery quality, financial stewardship, resource planning, escalation management, and team development. The Director connects day-to-day delivery to client outcomes and is expected to operate as the primary client and internal point of accountability for assigned accounts.

Responsibilities

• Owns assigned accounts as the primary accountable client and internal account leader.
• Accountable for account strategy, client relationship ownership, delivery quality, resource planning, financial stewardship, escalation management, and team development.
• Expected to translate client priorities into business and delivery decisions while developing Associate Directors, Senior Managers, and Managers below them.
• Serves as the baseline account owner against which Associate Director and Senior Director scope should be differentiated.

Primary Responsibilities

Client Relationship and Account Ownership

• Own assigned client relationships and serve as the primary account leader for day-to-day strategy, execution, and relationship management.
• Provide strategic client advisory and counsel across Market Access, payer strategy, account planning, business planning, and client priorities.
• Determine appropriate cross-functional escalation paths and own account-level decision-making within assigned scope.

Strategic Planning and Growth

• Accountable for account planning, quarterly business planning, organic growth strategy, opportunity identification, and opportunity conversion for assigned accounts.
• Lead proposal development, opportunity positioning, new business development support, and tactical planning where assigned.
• Ensure client recommendations reflect payer dynamics, competitive environment, access considerations, and business objectives.

Resource, Financial, and Delivery Accountability

• Own resource planning, scope-to-staffing alignment, account complexity assessment, margin oversight, budget management, and financial forecasting for assigned accounts.
• Oversee multi-workstream delivery and ensure work is delivered with quality, consistency, timing discipline, and clear decision paths.
• Lead operational efficiency identification, profitability analysis, and staffing tradeoff discussions within assigned accounts.

Quality, Escalation, and Governance

• Accountable for major deliverable quality consistency and agency/brand standards adherence across assigned accounts.
• Own account-critical escalation resolution in partnership with Senior Directors, AVPs, VPs, or SVPs where appropriate.
• Reinforce decision rights, escalation discipline, and process expectations within assigned account teams.

People and Leadership Development

• Develop Managers, Senior Managers, and Associate Directors through coaching, delegation, performance feedback, and promotion readiness support.
• Build bench strength by giving emerging leaders meaningful ownership while maintaining accountability for account outcomes.

Critical Capabilities

• Account ownership
• Strategic client advisory
• Commercial and financial judgment
• Resource planning
• Multi-workstream oversight
• Escalation management
• Talent development
• Decision rights and accountability

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in business, marketing, healthcare, communications, life sciences, or a related field preferred; equivalent combinations of education and experience will be considered.
• 8+ years of relevant professional experience in client services, consulting, market access, healthcare, pharmaceutical communications, strategy, operations, account leadership, or a related discipline.
• Demonstrated ability to own client relationships, lead account strategy, manage cross-functional teams, and connect delivery decisions to client and business outcomes.
• Experience with resource planning, budget/margin awareness, account-level financial stewardship, risk management, and escalation resolution.
• Experience developing Managers, Senior Managers, Associate Directors, or emerging account leaders through coaching, delegation, feedback, and promotion-readiness support.
• Strong strategic thinking, communication, collaboration, commercial judgment, client service, and leadership skills.
• Proficiency with standard business applications, including Microsoft PowerPoint, Excel, Word, and Outlook.

Success Measures

• Assigned accounts have clear leadership, strategy, financial discipline, and delivery ownership.
• Clients view the Director as a trusted lead for account priorities and business needs.
• Workstreams are connected to strategy and delivered with quality.
• Escalations are managed with clear recommendations and appropriate senior involvement.
• Emerging leaders gain capability without creating unmanaged risk.

Additional information

Our Publicis Groupe motto “Viva La Différence” means we’re better together, and we believe that our differences make us stronger. It means we honor and celebrate all identities, across all facets of intersectionality, and it underpins all that we do as an organization. We are focused on fostering belonging and creating equitable & inclusive experiences for all talent.

Publicis Groupe provides robust and inclusive benefit programs and policies to support the evolving and diverse needs of our talent and enable every person to grow and thrive. Our benefits package includes medical coverage, dental, vision, disability, 401K, as well as parental and family care leave, family forming assistance, tuition reimbursement, and flexible time off.

If you require accommodation or assistance with the application or onboarding process specifically, please contact [e-mail].

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.

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Compensation Range: USD $97,375.00 - USD $155,961.00/Annually. This is the pay range the Company believes it will pay for this position at the time of this posting. Consistent with applicable law, compensation will be determined based on the skills, qualifications, and experience of the applicant along with the requirements of the position, and the Company reserves the right to modify this pay range at any time. Temporary roles may be eligible to participate in our freelancer/temporary employee medical plan through a third-party benefits administration system once certain criteria have been met. For regular roles, the Company will offer medical coverage, dental, vision, disability, 401k, and paid time off. The Company anticipates the application deadline for this job posting will be 11/30/2026.