ROLE: Account Director
REPORTS INTO: Group Account Director > Head of Accounts
LOCATION: Hybrid in Los Angeles, CA or NYC, NY
What is an Account Director at Salt?An Account Director at Salt is a senior leader, cross-functional unifier, and strategic steward of client partnerships. You lead large, high-stakes programs with a clear head and sharp perspective, anchoring the work in client goals while creating the conditions for cross-disciplinary teams to thrive.
You bring clarity to complexity, helping shape work from intake to impact. As the client's internal voice and an external champion of agency excellence, you elevate both relationships and outcomes. You don't just manage; you lead with purpose, bringing a strong POV, business acumen, and a collaborative spirit to every room you enter.
You are a critical decision-maker, escalation point, and guide, ensuring that the agency shows up with cohesion, confidence, and accountability at every stage of the process.
In this role, you move beyond leading individual programs to owning the health and trajectory of the broader client partnership-guiding strategy, shaping opportunities for growth, and ensuring the agency consistently delivers work that advances both client objectives and agency standards.
Job Responsibilities:- Own and grow senior client relationships-earning trust, understanding business priorities, and advising with confidence and candor
- Lead large-scale, complex programs as a cross-functional partner with Production, Strategy, Creative, and Operations
- Drive strategic alignment from the earliest stages of engagement, including client intake and project framing; ensure briefs are anchored in goals, KPIs, budget, and vision.
- Shape and steward scope, staffing, and roles & responsibilities across departments; ensure every project begins with clarity and shared understanding
- Guide teams through every phase of delivery, from creative development and approvals through production and execution, always staying attuned to client needs
- Manage escalation moments with diplomacy and clarity-representing the voice of the client while advocating for smart, achievable solutions
- Lead strategic conversations around scope shifts, tradeoffs, and priority resets with both internal and client stakeholders
- Coach and develop Account Managers and Senior Account Managers, ensuring strong fundamentals while expanding strategic thinking and leadership presence
- Drive wrap deliverables, debriefs, and case studies-helping the team capture insights, close with excellence, and tee up future work
- Partner closely with Production leadership to ensure programs balance creative ambition, operational feasibility, and financial clarity.
- Foster a positive team dynamic by actively sharing information, feedback, and support
- Engage in special projects and additional tasks as assigned, providing opportunities to support departmental objectives and professional development
- Perform other duties as assigned
Requirements:- 8-10+ years of experience in experiential, creative, or integrated agency environments, with senior client leadership experience
- Proven ability to lead large programs and cross-functional teams with confidence, accountability, and emotional intelligence
- Strong financial and operational fluency-able to co-influence scopes, forecast, and ensure delivery aligns to budget
- Experienced in navigating complexity and ambiguity with a steady hand and clear, structured thinking
- Exceptional communicator with presence and polish, able to tailor conversations to C-suite clients or internal SMEs
- Trusted team leader and mentor-building morale, modeling shared leadership, and elevating the quality of the work and the culture of the team
- Highly collaborative with a strong grasp of how to unify departments and shape momentum in fast-moving environments
