Account Director

Posted 2 Days Ago
Be an Early Applicant
Huntington Beach, CA
In-Office
130K-150K Annually
Expert/Leader
AdTech
The Role
The Account Director leads client relationships and integrated teams, driving growth through strategic guidance, creative execution, and financial stewardship, while mentoring team members and managing account performance.
Summary Generated by Built In
Company Description

GALLEGOS United (GU) is a fast-growing, award-winning, mid-sized creative agency. Founded in 2001, GU is independent and minority-owned, and part of UNITED COLLECTIVE. We help clients grow through culturally attuned, creatively driven marketing that delivers immersive, socially engaging work that shapes culture. Our partners include got milk?, Chick-fil-A, Comcast, Nate’s Honey, AIM Sports Group and South Norte, among others.

Job Description

We’re looking for an outgoing, strategic, creatively driven Account Director who is equal parts “creative suit” and operational leader. You will own a portfolio of client relationships, lead integrated teams, and drive growth by uncovering opportunities in the client’s business. You do not wait for projects to be assigned. You lean in, ask sharp questions, bring solutions, and build momentum toward great work, especially in high-stakes, high-pressure moments.

This role is for someone who is buttoned-up and collaborative, culturally fluent, and confident in the room. Someone who can take a difficult meeting and turn it into clarity, movement, and belief. Someone who cares deeply about craft, relationships, and results.

Client Leadership and Partnership

  • Serve as the primary day-to-day senior lead for clients, owning trust, satisfaction, and performance.

  • Build deep knowledge of the client’s business, competitive landscape, and category dynamics to proactively identify opportunities.

  • Lead regular client meetings, check-ins, and presentations to align on priorities, performance, and next moves.

  • Bring strategic guidance and clear recommendations that move work forward and strengthen the partnership.

Strategy, Briefing, and Creative Excellence

  • Partner with strategy to turn business problems into insightful creative briefs and clear communication briefs.

  • Lead the development of campaign plans that define objectives, target audiences, messaging, and KPIs.

  • Review creative and channel plans (social, digital, integrated) with strong point of view and high standards.

  • Effectively present and sell work, building excitement and confidence with client stakeholders.

Account Growth and New Business

  • Own account growth, identifying upsell and cross-sell opportunities that create value for the client and expand the partnership.

  • Collaborate with business development to support pitches and win new clients.

  • Lead or contribute to proposals, scopes, and presentations that clearly communicate GU’s capabilities and approach.

Team Leadership and Delivery

  • Lead and mentor account team members, setting clear expectations and enabling high performance.

  • Partner with cross-functional leaders (creative, media, analytics, production) to deliver seamless execution.

  • Drive projects forward with strong process, clear communication, and proactive problem solving.

  • Ensure deadlines, budgets, and quality standards are met, escalating risks early and managing change effectively.

Financial Stewardship

  • Manage account financials, including scope, budget tracking, forecasting, and profitability.

  • Oversee invoicing accuracy, budget pacing, and financial reporting for assigned accounts.

  • Own the P&L mindset on your business, balancing ambition with discipline.

What Success Looks Like

  • Clients see you as a trusted leader who makes their business better.

  • Internal teams feel clear, supported, and inspired to do their best work.

  • Work moves faster because you create alignment and remove friction.

  • The account grows because you consistently uncover and convert opportunities.

  • GU delivers culture-shaping creativity that also delivers measurable outcomes.

Qualifications

  • 9–10+ years of experience in account leadership, ideally in creatively driven agencies (digital, integrated, or full-service).

  • Proven ability to lead client relationships, manage expectations, and guide senior stakeholders with confidence.

  • Strong leadership skills with a track record of building collaborative, high-performing teams.

  • Excellent communication and storytelling skills, written and verbal.

  • Digitally savvy and fluent in modern social and digital marketing, with a strong grasp of trends and platforms.

  • Strong project management instincts with sharp attention to detail, timelines, and budgets.

  • Analytical comfort: able to interpret performance and turn data into action.

  • Resilient, solutions-oriented, positive under pressure.

  • Multicultural market experience strongly preferred; bilingual (English/Spanish) a plus.

  • Category experience in CPG and/or retail is a plus.

  • Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent experience).

Additional Information

Salary Range: $130,000 - $150,000

*Actual offer may vary by market location, job-related knowledge, skills and experience.

GALLEGOS United is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, color, religion (including religious dress or grooming practices), national origin, ancestry, sex (including childbirth, breastfeeding, and related medical conditions), gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, transitioning status, age, physical or mental disability, protected medical condition, citizenship status, military and veteran status, uniform service member status, genetic information, marital status, pregnancy, driver’s license status, or any other legally protected status under applicable laws. Information collected in the pre-hire process is used solely to evaluate employment eligibility, verify identity, and maintain applicant employment statistics.

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The Company
Huntington, CA
19 Employees
Year Founded: 2017

What We Do

Today more than ever brands need a competitive edge. A leg up. An ace in the hole.

Welcome to ours.

As a collective of smart, creative, culturally attuned trailblazers who are as talented, innovative and diverse as today’s America, we are unlike any other communications group on the planet.

Recognizing that the rules of consumer engagement have changed, it’s no longer enough for a marketing company to have an X factor. Today’s brands need a partner with an X, Y & Z factor.

That’s where we come in.

We have upended the communications company model as you know it.

From advertising and analytics to digital and content production and beyond, we are unique in the capabilities we offer and in how we collaborate with each other and our clients.

Everything is in service to everything else and everything we create is in service to brand growth.

Leaning on our strong cultural heritage, we alone have the foresight, smarts and sensibilities to help brands stay in-step with today’s “new” consumer. Plus the creative chops to deliver award-winning, problem solving work that makes a difference.

The kind of difference that changes brands.

It’s a brave new marketing world out there – client growth hinges on having a competitive advantage.

Or in our case, a hugely unfair one.

Affiliated Companies
CANVAS United
GALLEGOS United
ROX United
POLY United
LUNA United

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