Account Director - Medical Communications - East Coast

Accelerating Life-Changing Solutions to Global Healthcare Challenges is the vision that unites us through a shared sense of purpose, whatever the role.

It speaks to the significant challenges that exist within global healthcare, and how we, as one team, can help to deliver better solutions and outcomes for our partners and for patients everywhere, sooner. Your job description outlines the important role and responsibilities that you own in achieving this vision.

Importantly too is how we go about living our vision.  This is defined by the Prime mission:

Through a pioneering fusion of the finest expertise in science, strategy, evidence, technology and creativity we deliver the world-class outcomes that our global partners trust to achieve their goals.

It speaks to collaboration and to everyone’s responsibility to bring together the diverse expertise that exist across our team to deliver world-class outcomes.

On this foundation, we have defined four core values, these represent the shared principles that guide our behaviours every day, whatever your role:

Be Brave, Be Human, Be Passionate, Be Exceptional. 

At Prime these values are integral to who we are.  They are there to guide you in your role and support you on your personal journey to success.  They shape our culture and support us in achieving our vision together, as one global team.  

Purpose of role

The Client Services Director (CSD) / Head of Department is responsible for delivering a consistently high-quality service to clients through the effective leadership, direction, and motivation of account teams, while driving sustainable account growth and securing new business for the company. The role provides senior strategic consultancy to clients, owns the overall client relationship, and ensures that service quality, commercial performance, and long-term account development align with both client objectives and company strategy.

The CSD has ultimate accountability for account performance, including financial management, strategic planning, and business development. This includes leading long-term account strategy, identifying and developing opportunities within existing and new clients, and contributing to wider company initiatives that improve business performance. Internally, the role focuses on building strong, high-performing teams through effective resource planning, mentoring and line management, cross-department collaboration, and clear strategic direction, ensuring accounts are delivered efficiently, profitably, and to the highest professional standard.

Responsibilities

Principal Responsibilities

• Ultimate responsibility for overall account performance, financial performance and growth.
• Account direction – strategic consultancy and marketing insight.
• Client interface – overall relationship, strategic overview, service quality, issues management.
• Overall account team leadership and motivation.
• Resource planning in co-ordination with other departments.
• Leads specific new-new business activities / supports AM in account(s) business development.
• Contribution to company initiatives to improve business performance.
• To manage and develop line reports (mentor as required).

Account/Financial Management

• Directs account team on strategic account needs and operational requirements.
• Reviews and finalises business plans with SAM/AM.
• Works with editorial team leader to ensure that work flow within account is optimised at all times.
• Represents client internally.
• Reviews and finalises project budgets with SAM/AM as required.
• Reviews account health with SAM/AM prior to finance overview meetings.
• Finalises internal budget tracker (with AE) and approves external budget tracker for client.
• Reviews account(s) / projects against objectives and brand requirements.

Client Management

• Undertakes client health checks – resolves issues and drives account(s) forward.
• Provides client with strategic guidance.
• Represents Prime Medica to client – negotiation and push-back where required.
• Anticipates client reactions to issues/circumstances and addresses these proactively

Strategic Planning

• Leads long-term account development process.
• Provides strategic consultancy to client teams.
• Resource planning (account services) for account.
• Plans 12 months ahead to ensure account longevity.

Internal Management

• Create direction for communication practice amongst the account team.
• Contributes to internal initiatives / taskforces as required.
• Regular meetings with line reports – manages their professional development, objective setting and review process.

Business Development

• Identifies and develops business opportunities within existing accounts.
• Develops and presents proposals to the client.
• Utilises Prime Medica information systems where necessary to produce market and product reports to support business development with prospective clients.
• Provides commercial input on new business opportunities (e.g. pitches) as necessary, working closely with commercial/pitch team.
• Provides support in the preparation of new-new client proposals and presentations.
• Works closely with business development team on new business opportunities (e.g. pitches) as necessary.
• Identifies new-new business opportunities.
• Leads in the development of parts of new-new business activity.
• Presents proposals to prospective clients.

Requirements

• 7–8 years ‘relevant’, preferably in a full-service medical communications agency
• A life sciences degree, ideally combined with a Master’s or PhD
• Performs daily duties / tasks to a consistently high standard demonstrating: ·
• Ability to run an account from year-to-year, ensuring forecasts are met through account team.
• Motivational and group management ability. · Excellent interpersonal / relationship development skills – able to influence colleagues and clients.
• Ability to line manage multiple staff and identify training needs as required.
• Able to mentor all levels of account management.
• Able to build internal relationships and network effectively with client teams
• Highly adept at business development.
• Strategic insight, judgement and problem-solving skills – able to identify issues and resolve them.
• Good delegation skills.
• Strategic understanding of project / account objectives and contribution to strategic account planning.
• Excellent organisational skills, time management and adherence to deadlines
• High attention to detail.
• Extremely good written and oral communication skills (including presentation skills) – comfortable dealing with clients/senior company staff.
• Excellent knowledge of strategic medical communications – clearly understands pharmaceutical industry drivers and employs them to strategic planning.
• In depth understanding of company’s range of products and services.
• Maintains and expands knowledge in areas of relevance to client – product, company, marketplace, client needs, etc.
• Has specialist communications knowledge of several drug markets.
• Specialist knowledge in at least 3 business areas.

Benefits

• 42 days paid time off
• Hybrid Working
• 5% contribution to 401k
• ADP Totalsource