JOB DESCRIPTION: Account Director
Employer
Packer Forbes is an award winning independent healthcare communications
agency specialising in medical communication programmes for over two
decades. We handle both global and UK accounts; our global work is
strengthened by our affiliation with a global network of medical communication
agencies.
At Packer Forbes we also offer a wide range of strategic communications
support activities across our global and UK accounts, including product launch
programmes, advocacy development, internal communication campaigns,
consumer awareness programmes, digital/social communications (which is
supported by our partnership with emotive, PF’s healthcare digital and social
media partners).
Our team is definitely our greatest and most valued asset and we demonstrate
this by prioritising our employees’ well-being and their personal and
professional development. We are very proud to have held Investors In People
(IIP) status for 12 years (achieved again in 2012). Part of our IIP success has
been due to our bespoke employee development scheme – STEPs; an
employee-led programme that supports individual growth and progression from
graduate entry to senior leadership level.
We are always excited to have the opportunity to welcome new, talented
individuals to join our team, so if you think you fit the profile for a career with
Packer Forbes we look forward to hearing from you.
For more information
www.packerforbes.com
about
the
agency,
Position
Account Director
Reporting to:
Designated member of the Leadership Team
Required experience
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please
visit
our
website
A minimum of six years healthcare communications experience, ideally with
a strong focus on medical communications
Experience of working within an agency environment
Experience of dealing with challenges coming from the change drivers
within the UK NHS environment
Required qualification
Qualified to degree level, ideally in a science discipline
Responsible for:
Leading a team to deliver integrated communications programmes (ideally
comprising market access and traditional medical communications activities) to
our wide range of pharmaceutical and life science clients and ensuring quality
delivery of work
Terms of employment
 Full time (37.5 hours) 9.00 am to 5.30 pm Monday to Friday with a flexible
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one hour for lunch (permanent subject to 3 month probationary period)
 Competitive package, including Health Insurance, peak time gym
membership, mobile phone costs (up to £35pm) covered and a contribution
towards lunch costs.
 Based at 1.09 Harbour Yard, Chelsea Harbour, London SW10 0XD.
Application Process
CVs to Kate Widdicombe, HR Manager, to office address above or
careers@packerforbes.com
Main responsibilities
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Professional skills
required
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Behaviours &
Competencies
Develop strategic integrated communications programmes aligned with
clients’ business challenges and priorities in the ever-evolving NHS
environment
Lead account teams to deliver high quality, creative and responsive
programmes
Oversee accounts to ensure efficiencies in programme management,
staffing and budgeting
Maximise current client business opportunities through organic growth and
support new business activities, including taking lead roles in new business
pitch opportunities
Actively coach and develop junior team members and implement personal
development scheme for line reports
Directly support the Leadership Team with resourcing and capacity
planning as a member of the senior management team
Ensure effective communication across the company as a liaison between
senior management team
Proactively share knowledge on healthcare developments and
communication skills across the company
Any other duties as agreed
Ability to build and maintain strong working relationships with clients
Diplomacy skills with opinion leaders
Good presentation skills
Strong strategic skills
Comprehensive, current knowledge of the UK healthcare environment,
including latest policy and industry developments and experience of
delivering programmes with a market access focus
Financial and business acumen
Good negotiation skills
Advanced problem solving skills
Creative thinking ability
Strong copy writing skills
Good media liaison skills
Highly developed computer literacy
Organisation/planning ability
Ability to delegate and motivate a team
Effective time management skills
Ideally, a network of stakeholders who support the agency’s understanding
of the NHS trading environment for our clients.
Overall
 Strong interpersonal communication skills across a wide spectrum of
stakeholders, both internal and external
 Good strategic and creative thinking skills and advanced problem-solving
ability
 Maintain a strong external focus, ensuring knowledge and understanding of
implications of market place changes on Packer Forbes own target
audiences.
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Financial and business acumen
Strong, compelling and accurate writing ability
Ability to lead, coach and motivate teams
Professionalism, integrity, versatility and proactivity
Leadership
 Adapts or develops methods of work to suit needs and/or changing
situations
 Allocates appropriate staff resources, balancing client and team needs with
financial criteria and negotiates need for extra resourcing appropriately
 Encourages people to act as a team by focusing on the bigger picture and
maintains an effective team, which works well together
 Acts promptly when things go wrong
 Anticipates and identifies needs and communicates them to the client (if
applicable) and provides solutions
 Balances the conflicting demands of task, process and people so as to
manage workload effectively to meet deadlines
 Demonstrates capacity to maintain overview of workload but remains in
touch with operational developments through effective delegation
 Instigates and contributes positively to discussions on how to initiate and
implement appropriate changes in product/process/organisation
 Encourages and coaches others to seek learning opportunities and develop
skills for themselves
 Promotes a sense of job ownership and pride in the outcome of the task
 Sells ideas to others, creating “buy in” and through sustained energy and
enthusiasm overcomes obstacles in implementing these ideas
 Establishes rapport and trust and develops strong working relationships at
different levels within the Company and externally
 Generates ideas, looking for external references where approrpiate and has
the ability to take them forward into something achievable, profitable and
practical. Particularly in response to the changing NHS policy environment
 Demonstrates the ability to take decisions in the interests of the whole
Company rather than personal interest
 Listens and learns from those of greater experience
 Actively seeks and responds to constructive feedback and uses information
for self-development
 Unafraid to ask questions when uncertain
 Where appropriate exercises judgement on issues which arise
People Management
 Accurately assesses individual’s skills, technical knowledge, specific
experience, and abilities, using the Company’s personal development
scheme, and recognises their readiness to take on new responsibilities
and/or acquire new skills and knowledge and delegates accordingly
 Actively encourages all staff to achieve their full potential by seeking
opportunities, both within and outside of the Company, for them to develop
 Acts in an open and honest manner, communicating with and treating
people with respect and consistency
 Conducts effective appraisals, following up on agreed outcomes
 Constantly develops mechanism for recognising causes of
discontent/disaffection and takes action to retain staff and boost morale
 Creates the environment for allowing people to experiment, coaching staff
empathetically through crises and mistakes, using them as opportunities for
learning
 Delegates appropriate work in a way that people feel valued whilst
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maintaining quality control
 Ensures team receives timely feedback on performance in a constructive
manner and deals with under-performance appropriately
 Promotes retention discussing needs and wishes of staff and
communicating views to appropriate people
Performance
 Actively reviews own and others work against agreed work priorities and
objectives
 Consistently gathers and shares information, knowledge and expertise with
others for the benefit of the Company and encourages the same behaviour
in their staff, whilst maintaining confidentiality as appropriate
 Continually questions and makes suggestions on the way work is performed
so as to improve processes
 Continually strives to the best job possible that can be done in
circumstances
 Demonstrates flexibility, energy and enthusiasm
 Keeps the Leadership Team informed of progress and/or problems
 Maintains technical excellence through a variety of means e.g. reading
healthcare press, seeking broader experience through personal networks.
 Manages task while dealing with interruptions and resolving unforeseen
issues
 Monitors costs
 Provides good quality advice
 Responds promptly and accurately to queries, knowing when to refer on to
another person
 Seeks to build upon personal competence and knowledge
 Thinks beyond a task driven approach
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