Group Account Director / Business Unit Manager

Salt Digital Recruitment; Johannesburg; On-site; ZAR 1,200,000 - 1,800,000; Full time

Job summary

Salt Digital Recruitment is seeking an experienced Group Account Director to act as the senior lead within a market, region, or client cluster. You will build long-term strategic partnerships with clients and oversee sourcing, management, and delivery across categories within the contractual scope.

In this role, you will manage the full client relationship lifecycle—from implementation through ongoing delivery—while ensuring commercial performance, operational excellence, and continuous

Qualifications

• Experience leading multi-market client accounts.
• Proven ability to forecast, budget, and report financially.
• Strong leadership and stakeholder management.

Responsibilities

• Act as the senior point of contact for key clients, building trusted, long-term partnerships.
• Own and drive overall account strategy, ensuring alignment with client and business objectives.
• Lead and prepare Quarterly Business Reviews (QBRs) and senior client engagements.
• Ensure a consistently high standard of service delivery across all touchpoints.
• Provide strategic direction across accounts and account teams.
• Ensure accurate and timely forecasting, budgeting, and financial reporting.
• Produce accurate quotations, proposals, and commercial documentation.
• Manage and deliver against SLAs and KPIs.
• Initiate product development and source new concepts in collaboration with operations teams.
• Proactively drive innovation aligned to brand, market, and consumer trends.
• Ensure quality control of samples, artwork, and client-ready proposals.
• Oversee order processing and invoicing to ensure accuracy and timeliness.
• Maintain and continuously update a database of local suppliers.
• Manage supplier relationships and negotiate best pricing and terms.
• Ensure suppliers meet quality, cost, and delivery expectations.
• Lead and oversee multiple account teams, providing clear direction and governance.
• Create a high-performance culture by setting expectations and recognizing delivery.
• Coach, mentor, and develop team members at all levels for long-term growth.
• Own resource planning across accounts to ensure teams are structured and balanced.
• Drive performance management processes, including goal setting and development planning.
• Identify talent and develop succession plans for leadership depth.
• Promote best-practice ways of working, driving efficiency and quality.

Skills

Strategic leadership

Client relationship management

Communication & negotiation

People management

Tools

CRM software

Project management tools

Job description

Group Account Director / Business Unit Manager

Role Overview

We are seeking an experienced Group Account Director to act as the senior lead within a market, region, or client cluster. This role is responsible for building long-term strategic partnerships with clients and overseeing all activities related to sourcing, management, and delivery across agreed categories within the contractual scope. The Group Account Director will manage the full client relationship lifecycle-from implementation through to ongoing delivery-while ensuring commercial performance, operational excellence, and continuous innovation.

Key Responsibilities

Client & Account Leadership

• Act as the senior point of contact for key clients, building trusted, long-term partnerships
• Own and drive overall account strategy, ensuring alignment with client and business objectives
• Lead and prepare Quarterly Business Reviews (QBRs) and senior client engagements
• Ensure a consistently high standard of service delivery across all touchpoints

Strategic & Commercial Management

• Provide strategic direction across accounts and account teams
• Ensure accurate and timely forecasting, budgeting, and financial reporting
• Produce accurate quotations, proposals, and commercial documentation
• Manage and deliver against SLAs and KPIs

Product, Innovation & Operations

• Initiate product development and source new concepts in collaboration with operations teams
• Proactively drive innovation aligned to brand, market, and consumer trends
• Ensure quality control of samples, artwork, and client-ready proposals
• Oversee order processing and invoicing to ensure accuracy and timeliness

Supplier Management

• Maintain and continuously update a database of local suppliers
• Manage supplier relationships and negotiate best pricing and terms
• Ensure suppliers meet quality, cost, and delivery expectations

Team Leadership & Management

• Lead and oversee multiple account teams, providing clear direction, strong governance, and consistent leadership across accounts
• Create a high-performance culture by setting expectations, holding teams accountable, and recognising strong delivery
• Coach, mentor, and develop team members at all levels, with a focus on capability building and long-term career growth
• Own resource planning across accounts to ensure teams are correctly structured, balanced, and aligned to client needs
• Drive performance management processes, including goal setting, development planning, and constructive performance conversations
• Identify talent and actively develop succession plans to build leadership depth and continuity
• Promote best-practice ways of working, driving efficiency, quality, and consistency across teams and accounts

Skills & Experience

Soft Skills

• Strategic thinking and commercial acumen
• Strong leadership and people management capability
• Excellent communication, influencing, and negotiation skills

Hard Skills

• Financial and budget management
• Regional or multi-market account leadership experience
• Proficiency in CRM and project management tools