Job Title: Account Manager – PR and Crisis Management
Reporting to: Senior Account Manager/Account Director
Salary: Competitive

Job purpose:

PLMR is a successful, fast growing agency with a dynamic vibrant team who work across a number of high profile clients to deliver PR and communications solutions. We offer an exciting and rewarding work environment, forward thinking work practices and fast-track opportunities for career progression.
As an Account Manager you will be a central member of the PLMR team providing high quality servicing to all our clients. You will have at least two years’ experience in providing consultancy advice and support in the fields of positive PR, crisis communications and strategic communications and will have worked for a diverse range of clients or interests in an agency environment. You must have experience of and interest in working in the health & social care sector. In this role you will progress your consultancy skills; overseeing the day to day management of client accounts and maintaining a positive client relationship, spotting policy trends and identifying issues which might impact on client activity, actively developing new business ideas and initiatives alongside the senior management team. You will manage both junior and senior colleagues to ensure PLMR meet and beat client expectations at every level.

Key career progression points:

• You are an experienced consultant with a health and/or social care sectoral expertise. You demonstrate creative and strategic abilities, as well as the very highest standards of client delivery, you are used to dealing with senior or board level clients.
• You have developed excellent client relationships, you have the ability to write persuasively and convey client messages accurately for different media and audiences. You have demonstrated that you can drive an account and are a capable and competent consultant
• You have demonstrated that you are a skilled line manager – you have the ability to effectively manage colleagues to ensure client needs are met. You have a positive, professional relationship with colleagues and they look to you for advice and guidance.
• You understand the company business, its competitors, and internal relationships, and play a key role in the growth of the business. You have demonstrated that you can run your accounts profitably.
• You will have fulfilled all of the requirements of the Senior Account Executive Job description.

Main responsibilities:
Client delivery

• Provide leadership on accounts and act as a trusted point of contact for the client
• Steering the account team to maintain excellent client relationships – ensuring that the client feels well serviced, able to call for advice at any time, and maximizing the opportunities for account development
• Responding appropriately to crisis management issues
• Manage live tasks and ensure delivery on deadline and to PLMR standards, anticipating client demands to ensure that PLMR is always ‘adding value’ to our clients
• Contributing to the good momentum of accounts and consistent client delivery
• Working with the Account Director, ensure that client accounts are run efficiently and to budget
• Developing an excellent relationship with the client’s team
• Knowing what is happening on your accounts – what needs to be delivered, who needs to be contacted, what is coming up – anticipating issues
• Ensuring that all client output is accurate, relevant, and maximizes PLMR’s offering to the client
• Delegating tasks to junior colleagues where appropriate and motivating them to deliver on these
• Researching, writing and distributing press releases to targeted media
• Fostering relations with national and sectoral media, politicians, civil servants, local authorities, regulatory bodies, and any relevant interest groups
• Ensuring that PLMR accurately monitors the media, including newspapers, magazines, journals, broadcasts, newswires, social media and blogs, for timely opportunities for clients
• Using social media and digital channels to manage clients’ key messaging and enhance the reputation of PLMR and its clients
• Planning and managing client communications on digital channels and through video, with the ability to be able to explain and sell our digital services to clients
• Event management, including press conferences and promotional events
• Attending and promoting client events to the media
• Developing and maintaining an expertise in client sectors and related policy fields
• Responding to requests for information from clients which may be at short notice
• Researching, forecasting and evaluating the effects of public policy on an organization, using public sources, political intelligence and personal contacts
• Writing newsletters, briefings, campaign material and press releases
• Attending select committee hearings, party conferences and other events on behalf of PLMR
• Writing and placing articles on behalf of PLMR in key media for the company’s profile and positioning
• Providing regular copy for the PLMR website – blogging, case studies, features, comment
• Proof read all written material

PLMR growth

• Actively identifying new business opportunities and following up on them on a timely basis, thereby assisting in the growth of the PLMR business and the achievement of its business plan
• Creating and delivering winning proposals for new business pitches
• Attending events, seminars, and conferences, and setting up regular meetings with contacts to promote a positive, professional image of PLMR as a market leader and obvious point of call for our services
• Networking with potential new business leads
• Winning new business for PLMR
• Developing existing client accounts to increase retainers
• Providing updates on new business leads regularly to other senior colleagues
• Relationship building and networking with colleagues, clients and the media
• Promoting PLMR externally

Internal

• Taking as many tasks from the team Account Director/s as possible and supporting them in successfully achieving their targets
• Completing accurate daily timesheets on Harvest
• Providing information for invoicing and cost recharging to the finance department in a timely manner as requested
• Developing a positive professional relationship with PLMR colleagues, and contributing to a thriving day to day working environment
• Effectively managing and delegating tasks to junior colleagues and assisting them as necessary
• Ensuring PLMR staff resources are fully utilised
• Mentoring junior colleagues in order to develop their consultancy skills
• Winning the confidence of colleagues as a reliable, experienced manager
• Contributing to PLMR planning and strategy
• Communicating effectively internally to manage work levels and deliverables deadlines
• Fostering a positive day to day working environment
• Setting a professional example to junior colleagues
• Preparing and delivering internal training
• Assisting in PLMR recruitment and retention – providing feedback on colleagues, appraising line reports, identifying and interviewing potential candidates for new positions

Personal Development

• Developing a sectoral expertise
• Ongoing development of managerial skills
• Building a personal profile in key trade media as a communications expert
• Maintaining a strong interest in current affairs
• Maintaining communications and public affairs skills
• Meeting personal development objectives set by line manager
• Developing personal expertise in the creative planning of digital communications campaigns

Skills / attributes required

• Health and social care experience essential
• Educated to degree standard or with equivalent work experience
• Experience of managing corporate communications and public relations projects, from a relevant background such as in-house corporate team or specialist/consultancy/regulatory body
• Expertise in strategic digital communications, with an ability to plan digital campaigns
• A strong knowledge of current events, political systems and the national and sectoral media
• Proven policy analysis abilities: able to research and gather information from a range of sources, identify the key issues relevant to the clients, generate original ideas and solutions into concise, crisp but analytically rich results
• Proven written and verbal communication skills with the ability to conceptualise, analyse and write persuasive arguments
• Proven editing and proofreading ability: to draft and edit documentation to produce accurate and error free final copy after minimum iterations
• Proven ability to manage relationships with a range of stakeholders
• Ability to supervise, motivate and manage junior colleagues
• Proven ability to understand, manage and respond in a timely and proactive manner to emerging crisis communications issues for clients
• Experience of working with sector specialists and media lawyers and managing client relationships
• Proven ability to effectively manage multiple deadlines under pressure: to be able to deliver timely
• Proven experience in identifying and developing new business opportunities
• Highly motivated, well organized and able to work under your own initiative
• A can-do attitude and a passion for achieving results
• Active in the social media networking sphere

Activities may be subject to amendment over time as the role develops and/or priorities and requirements evolve. 

How to Apply:

To apply, please download and complete the PLMR job application form and return it to Magda Lobodziec, PLMR’s HR Manager, at recruitment@plmr.co.uk.