Global Account Director

BRAND: Starcom
Job Function: Client Management
Location: London, United Kingdom
Experience Level: Specialist
Workplace Type: Hybrid

Company description

With a history that dates back over 80 years, Starcom is a global communications planning and media leader. We are an agency still grounded in our founding principle that people are at the centre of all we do. Each day, we apply this belief to harness the transformative power of data and technology to inspire and move people and business forward. With more than 7,000 employees in over 100 offices around the world, we are the flagship Publicis Media agency that uses our 'Power of One' business model, with teams that span multiple disciplines across clients such as Aldi, P&G, Primark, Samsung, Stellantis, and Visa.

We place a huge focus on our People, and have driven flagship D&I and L&D programmes within Publicis Media; our goal is to help every individual reach their fullest potential, and we encourage everyone to make "Brave Plays" in how they approach their work and their own career development. As a result, we have an exceptionally energised and committed talent base, all of us proud of our welcoming and supportive culture, as evidenced by our recognition as one of Campaign's Best Places to Work for five years in a row, Media Week's Agency of the Year 2025 and one of the Sunday Times Best Places to Work 2025.

Overview

We are hiring a Market Planning Account Director to help shape how some of the world's most loved snacking brands show up across Europe and Central Eurasia. You'll work across iconic brands including Pringles, Cheez-It, Kellogg's Cereals, Snickers, Twix, M&M's, Bounty, Maltesers and Orbit / Extra / Freedent.

This role sits at the heart of strategy, planning, operations, client partnership and people leadership connecting teams, markets and capabilities to create work that is joined up, effective and built for scale.

Responsibilities

What will you be doing?

• Lead the Market Planning function for one of the Kellanova portfolios across Europe and Central Eurasia, helping regional strategies translate clearly into local market activity.
• Partner closely with portfolio strategy teams to shape communications planning principles for regional campaign briefs.
• Own the development and sharing of campaign briefs with local markets, ensuring they are clear, practical and aligned to regional objectives.
• Support local market implementation by helping teams apply regionally developed strategy in a consistent and effective way.
• Build strong working relationships across OneMars local markets, Publicis Groupe capabilities, external agency partners and key media partners.
• Act as a central partner for the Kellanova client team connected to your portfolio, building a close and trusted relationship with the Regional Media organisation.
• Lead and develop a team of Market Planners, creating clarity, building capability and supporting high-quality delivery across campaigns.

Qualifications

What are we looking for?

• Strong experience in media, communications planning, client service or integrated agency environments, ideally with exposure to regional or multi-market work.
• A clear, structured approach to turning strategy into actionable plans, briefs and guidance for different teams and markets.
• Confidence working with senior stakeholders, clients and agency partners, with the ability to build trust through clear communication and thoughtful partnership.
• A collaborative working style, with the ability to connect people, capabilities and perspectives across a complex agency and client model.
• Strong organisational skills, with the ability to manage several workstreams, priorities and relationships without losing sight of the bigger picture.
• People leadership experience or a clear ability to coach, support and develop others with care, clarity and consistency.
• Curiosity for culture, brands and media, with an interest in how integrated planning can drive growth across diverse markets and audiences.

Additional information

Starcom offers a wide range of benefits to support our employees. Full details are shared when you join, but highlights include core benefits such as Pension, Life Assurance, and Private Medical cover, alongside enhanced policies like Reflection Days and Shared Parental Leave. You'll also have access to a range of additional initiatives, including:

Please check out the Publicis Career Page which showcases our Inclusive Benefits and our EAG's (Employee Action Groups).

Publicis Groupe works primarily from the office or our clients' office four days per week.

At Starcom , we are proud to be an equal opportunities employer. We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds, and do not discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, nationality, religion or belief, disability, age, citizenship, relationship status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other protected characteristic.

We are committed to providing a fair, accessible, and inclusive recruitment process. If you have any access needs - for example, related to disability, neurodivergence, or a health condition - please let us know. We'll work with you to ensure the process works for you. Sharing this information will never impact your application.

Guided by our values, we listen with empathy, uplift each other, take responsibility, and embrace change - building a culture where everyone feels seen, respected, and genuinely included.

#LI-KT1