Associate Director - Media & Campaigns

Associate Director – Media & Campaigns | New Advisory Firm, Central London

We're recruiting on behalf of a new advisory firm that provides communications, policy and research advice to businesses facing complex challenges. Its integrated approach gives clients joined-up counsel across reputation, politics and public affairs.

The firm is hiring an Associate Director to join its Media and Campaigns team. This is a senior, media-first role for an experienced media professional who can lead accounts, counsel clients and develop a team. You'll set the media strategy across a portfolio of clients, advise at a senior level on communications opportunities and risks, particularly where politics and policy are in play, and make sure your team delivers outstanding media work.

What you'll be doing

• Overseeing the team's work across accounts, ensuring KPIs are met and spotting and resolving issues early.
• Acting as a trusted senior adviser to clients, offering clear recommendations on their media position, risks and opportunities.
• Running accounts with a high degree of autonomy, owning deadlines and standards without needing Director sign-off.
• Serving as the key quality check on client work and giving thoughtful feedback to the team.
• Staying on top of developments across media, industry and government, and making sure that insight shows up in the work.
• Working with policy and research colleagues to build media campaigns grounded in insight and data.
• Line managing and developing junior colleagues, and identifying skills gaps and organising training to close them.
• Generating new business leads, supporting Directors on pitches and upsell, and producing high-quality proposals and pitch documents.

About you

• You are a media specialist first and foremost. A broader comms background (public affairs, corporate, digital, campaigns) is welcome, but your career should have been built primarily in media relations, and that's where your expertise lies.
• You have a strong interest in politics. You're closely engaged with the political agenda and confident advising clients on how political developments affect their media position.
• You bring a strong, well-maintained network of senior journalist contacts, alongside a commercial network you can draw on for new business.
• You've managed people and teams, and you can plan and prioritise for others as well as yourself.
• You have very high standards in written work and a keen eye for detail.
• You're confident advising senior clients directly and comfortable owning client relationships.
• You want to help shape the culture and direction of a growing firm.