Account Director, Medical Communications

Springer Health+ is seeking an enthusiastic Account Director with solid Medical Communications experience to join their expanding team in Chester. This hybrid role involves providing strategic and commercial direction to clients, driving organic business growth, and building influential relationships. The successful candidate will oversee account and editorial teams, manage projects, identify new business opportunities, and ensure financial targets are met. The role focuses on advancing science and making healthcare smarter through effective communication.

Must Have

• Provide strategic and commercial direction to clients and internal teams.
• Deliver organic business growth for designated accounts.
• Build and sustain long-term influential business relationships with clients.
• Oversee account and editorial teams, ensuring timely and high-standard project delivery.
• Manage project risks, problem-solve effectively, and take corrective action.
• Identify new business opportunities and lead pitch preparation.
• Provide accurate monthly and yearly sales and revenue forecasts.
• Lead and develop client services team(s) to reach full potential.
• Ensure effective resource planning.
• High level of Account Director Management Experience within Medical Communications.
• Excellent internal and external communicator, motivator, team player.
• Superb time keeping, financial and project management skills.
• Understanding of sales, revenue and EBITDA.
• Understanding of the drug development and communication process.
• High level of managing staff and ability to influence and grow people skills.
• Willingness and availability to travel abroad.
• 5 GCSEs (or equivalent) – including Maths and English.

Good to Have

• Broad range of therapeutic knowledge.
• Good sense of humour, open and direct communicator.
• Knowledge of Veeva and iEnvision systems.
• Educated to degree level (preferably in science).
• A commercial qualification.
• European language(s).

Perks & Benefits

• Excellent opportunities for career progression.
• Focus on employee satisfaction and retention.
• Disability Confident Committed Employer.
• Inclusive workplace that empowers all colleagues to thrive.

Springer Nature opens the doors to discovery for researchers, educators, clinicians and other professionals. Every day, around the globe, our imprints, books, journals, platforms and technology solutions reach millions of people. For over 175 years our brands and imprints have been a trusted source of knowledge to these communities and today, more than ever, we see it as our responsibility to ensure that fundamental knowledge can be found, verified, understood and used by our communities – enabling them to improve outcomes, make progress, and benefit the generations that follow.

About Springer Health+ (SH+) (part of the Springer Nature Group)

Springer Health+ is a leading global medical communications and education provider. Working in partnership with pharmaceutical companies and key opinion leaders. At Springer Health+, we see beyond the data – we see the people behind every breakthrough. We do more than help experts across the medical community keep up with science; we help them move it forward, making healthcare smarter and more human.

Springer Health+ are looking for an enthusiastic Account Director, with solid experience in Medical Communications to join our busy and expanding team. If you have great attention to detail, love multitasking and are looking for a new challenge then we would like to hear from you.

We offer excellent opportunities for career progression with a focus on employee satisfaction and retention.

Job Role (Main Duties)

Strategic and Commercial Insight/ Organic Growth

1. Provide strategic and commercial direction to clients and the internal team delivering organic business growth for the designated account(s):

• Apply a thorough understanding of the principles and processes underlying the various components of a strategic communications programme and how these fit within a product life-cycle
• Demonstrate an understanding of the commercial strategy for products within and across account(s)/franchise(s) and provide relevant advice and recommendations to internal and external clients on how to achieve communication objectives
• Constantly review clients plans to ensure communication objectives are being met and make recommendations to fill any gaps in communication strategy to assist and challenge clients own thinking and planning
• Review proposals developed by other members of your team
• Secure profitable ongoing business and expand opportunities
• Keep up to date with developments and attitudes in the worldwide healthcare environment at industry, government and health service level and use knowledge in relevant discussions with clients
• Keep up to date with innovations in industry and demonstrate forward thinking to clients
• Make recommendations and suggestions to the Senior Team regarding best practice and potential for new service and product offerings
• Share best practice with client and internal teams

Client Service

2. Build and sustain long-term influential business relationships with client team(s) and wider company contacts:

• Develop and maintain awareness and understanding of the client’s market, product profile, competitors, product positioning, marketing strategy and trends
• Ensure a continuing good relationship with all clients (day to day contacts and wider team/influencers) and that a consistently efficient and effective service is provided
• Establish trust with key clients and become their ‘right hand person’ both tactically and strategically offering sound advice where required
• Develop an extensive client network and become an expert in the needs of those clients
• Attend, lead or oversee team members leading client meetings (where appropriate)
• Attend and contribute to client strategy meetings and lead where appropriate

• Review progress on an ongoing basis both with the client and internal team using feedback/learnings to drive improvement
• Immediately address any issues arising with clients and ensure that they are resolved so that future relationships are not damaged, flag any unresolved issues to the Senior Team outlining business risk and making recommendations for action
• Ensure any changes in the internal client services team are managed and communicated appropriately with the client
• Ensure consistency of approach across client franchise accounts and facilitate communication with internal client team across products as necessary

Project Management

3. Oversee account and editorial teams on allocated accounts ensuring:

• Clients provide detailed and accurate briefs for projects – these are understood by the internal team and re-affirmed with the client where appropriate
• Projects are driven in a timely manner and managed effectively to a high client standard
• Internal and external Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) are adhered to
• Regular project debriefs take place
• Regular brainstorm meetings take place to review current client offering and any gaps in service offering or communication strategy
• Contribute to account through hands on management of the client and where appropriate liaison with opinion leaders
• Provide support where required to team in client meetings/calls
• Act as a wider/senior support to the client and internal team with day-to-day tactical delivery being undertaken by the Senior Account Managers, Account Managers, Account Executives
• Work closely with the wider internal and external teams to set up new systems/processes, as required, to optimally manage the account(s)
• Manage project risks, problem solve effectively and take corrective action e.g. ensure that contingency planning techniques are used

New Business Development

4. Identify new business opportunities

• Use experience and knowledge to develop new opportunities
• In conjunction with the Business Development Manager lead pitch preparation (following company process) and delivery where appropriate

Financial Management

5. Provide accurate monthly and yearly sales and revenue forecasts to Client Services Director to assist in the forward planning of the business unit

• Demonstrate forward thinking and be aware of position in relation to yearly financial targets
• Highlight and manage any shortfalls early
• Meet or exceed Springer Health+ sales, revenue and profitability expectations within the assigned account(s)
• Submit proposed sales and revenue targets each year for assigned accounts to Client Services Director based on detailed client discussions
• Oversee Springer Health+ monthly financial process
• Lead the client services team(s) to deliver against agreed key performance indicators e.g. recoverability, utilisation
• Take overall responsibility for client negotiations, agreeing terms and conditions and contracts
• Oversee the client financial process
• Identify procurement contact for relevant accounts and develop relationship to facilitate streamlined communication/financial discussions
• Manage professionally any disputes regarding costs with the client
• Authorise supplier invoices, ensuring that they are accurately coded
• Complete accurate and timely timesheets and ensure timely completion by line reports

Internal Leadership/Management

6. Lead and develop client services team(s) to reach full potential both personally and for the benefit of the business:

• Input to the vision set by the Business Leaders and communicate this vision to the team during day-to-day working practices
• Lead, motivate and drive account team(s) providing support and advice on client and project issues
• Contribute to succession planning for both account and editorial teams and develop staff as appropriate
• Review the performance of direct report(s) through the Appraisal Process (AP) process including year-end and mid-year reviews and any other ad hoc discussions (as required) involving the Client Services Director where necessary
• Identify skill gaps and develop personal development and training plans for direct reports involving the Client Services Director where necessary
• Co-ordinate relevant training for line reports with Human Resources
• Coach and mentor direct and wider team members where possible to fill skill gaps
• Lead staff recruitment for direct line reports, involving the Client Services Director and assessing suitability of candidates as required
• Ensure effective resource planning:
• With input from the wider team plan resource requirements in advance so that adequate resource is in place to meet client demands
• Identify any resource issues and recommend solutions/work with Client Services Director and Scientific Services Directors to develop plan
• Communicate resource demands on other departments/suppliers well in advance to allow them to plan appropriate resource to meet client demands

Springer Global Support

7. Build relationships with key internal clients in other offices of Springer Healthcare and Springer Science + Business Media to ensure that maximum leverage is gained from business opportunities

• Facilitate and ensure sharing of business opportunities with other teams/departments

Skills, Experience, Qualifications:

Essential

• High level of Account Director Management Experience within Medical Communications
• Excellent internal and external communicator, motivator, team player, happy to get involved in any type of work if needed by the team or client i.e. non-hierarchical
• Superb time keeping, financial and project management skills and good level of business knowledge
• Understanding of sales, revenue and EBITDA
• Understanding of the drug development and communication process
• High level of managing staff and ability to influence and grow people skills in a positive and supportive manner
• Willingness and availability to travel abroad a few times a year
• 5 GCSEs (or equivalent) – including Maths and English

Desired

• Broad range of therapeutic knowledge
• Good sense of humour, open and direct communicator
• Knowledge of Veeva and iEnvision systems
• Educated to degree level (preferably in science)
• A commercial qualification
• European language(s)

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Springer Healthcare is a Disability Confident Committed Employer and we encourage applications from candidates with disabilities. If you consider yourself to have a disability or learning difficulty and wish to submit your application in an alternative format or would like to discuss reasonable adjustments during the application and interview process, please get in touch either by phone on +44 (0)207 014 4020 or by email SpringerNatureUKCareers@springernature.com so we can make any necessary arrangements.

At Springer Healthcare we value and celebrate the diversity of our people. We recognise the many benefits of a diverse workforce and strive for an inclusive workplace that empowers all our colleagues to thrive. Our search for the best talent fully encompasses and embraces these values and principles. https://group.springernature.com/jp/group/taking-responsibility/diversity-equity-inclusion