The Glow Up of Account Management
Let’s be real. Account management has always been one of the hardest jobs in advertising to explain. I built my career in it, and even trying to tell my grandmother what I did for a living was nearly impossible.
“So… you don’t make the ads, but you’re in charge of them?” she’d ask.
“Exactly! Well… sort of. Actually… not really. Um, it’s complicated.”
For years, we weren’t quite creative, not exactly strategy, and definitely not the client. We were the glue, yes, but rarely seen as the spark.
That’s changing. Rapidly. As agency models transform, creativity, clients and business realities are all calling for a more integrated, bold, and catalytic approach. The discipline is being completely reimagined.
The glow up is upon us and I couldn’t be more excited about it.
These are the shifts that, in my view, are setting the tone for the future.
Creative agencies need account leaders who think like founders
Today’s best account leads act like they own the business. Not in a hypothetical way, but in a wake up in the morning thinking about revenue and relevance kind of way. They’re anticipating client needs before the ask is ever made. They’re building the right team before the pitch is won. They’re already thinking about how to grow the relationship, evolve the brand and outpace the competition.
They don’t wait for permission to push an idea forward or to challenge the status quo. They’re proactive stewards of the work and the business, holding themselves accountable for outcomes, not just deliverables.
They bet on the work like it’s their own name on the line. Because in the eyes of the client, it is. When account leaders bring that level of ownership, conviction, and urgency, they earn trust faster, unlock better ideas, and create the conditions for teams to do the best work of their careers.
Ambiguity has become the brief
Modern brand challenges rarely arrive with clean scopes or bulletproof KPIs. And you know what? They shouldn’t. Clients hire agencies to help them uncover what they need, and a great account person understands that’s a vital part of their value.
Marketers are navigating fragmented platforms, unpredictable consumers, and an increasingly politicised culture. Account leaders must not only thrive in that chaos but bring clarity to it. That isn’t a soft skill. It’s a strategic imperative.
Clients and creatives don’t need handlers. They need allies and partners who can make sense of the nonsense, identify opportunities, turn pressure into momentum, and inspire teams to invent, not just execute.
Today’s account leads are setting the vision. Asking tougher questions. Pointing out where the brief falls short, where the client’s ambition could go further, or when the agency’s work needs to get better. They are what I have always called the CEO of the account.
The primary KPI has shifted from harmony to effectiveness
For too long, the unspoken KPI of account management was harmony. It was their duty to keep everyone happy, smooth out conflict, and ensure the process felt orderly. But the work, the clients, and the world have evolved. Today, harmony for its own sake isn’t enough.
The real measure of an account leader’s value is effectiveness. Did they help uncover the real problem? Did they push the brief to be braver? Did they create the conditions for the team to do the best work possible?
Sometimes, that means introducing tension rather than avoiding it. It means challenging assumptions, asking uncomfortable questions, and holding the bar high. The goal isn’t to eliminate friction but to make sure it’s in service of stronger ideas and better outcomes.
The future of account management is creative, not operational
The best creatives have never seen their partners in account as gatekeepers. They see them as trusted co-conspirators. They know that when good account leaders are part of the process from the start, they help shape ideas that are both ambitious and strategically bulletproof. They are after all, the ones who sit at the crossroads of audience insight and client ambition.
But that trust and the position of 'ultimate partner in crime' isn’t automatic, it’s earned through the way you show up, the curiosity you bring, and the depth of your understanding of the work itself.
If you’re an account person, this is your call to level up. Be an avid student of culture, not just a passive observer. Immerse yourself in great creative work and understand what makes it resonate. Study the craft with the same rigor you bring to strategy. And be relentless, ferocious even, about seeking out creative inspiration everywhere you can find it. Because when you show up with that depth of knowledge and curiosity, you earn your place as an indispensable creative partner, not just a facilitator.
I’ve seen first hand how showing up with that level of commitment transforms relationships and the work itself. I was always the account person who got invited into the edit bay, who was handed early cuts before they were officially “ready” for review. Because the team felt safe and deeply understood. They knew I respected the craft, supported their bravery, and could help shape the work to sell without compromising its soul.
The moment I realised I’d become the kind of account leader I always wanted to be came when I was an account director. I’d just returned from vacation. I hadn’t even unpacked my laptop when my creative team appeared at my desk. Our CCO sitting nearby said, 'whoa, clearly you were missed'. One of the creatives said, “We came up with so many ideas that we’re sooooo excited about while you were gone and are dying to get your thoughts.”
That’s when it clicked. This role is at its best when it’s creative, not just operational. When you consume culture voraciously, when you study the craft with respect and curiosity, when you care enough to be in it with your team from the very start and when you have such an immense appreciation for their talent, that’s when you earn the trust to be more than a facilitator. You become the person everyone wants in the room.
So what now?
The truth is, account management has never been just one thing and today, it’s finally being recognised for what it really can be: a dynamic, creative, strategic engine at the heart of every great agency.
The role has evolved. The expectations have risen. And that’s something to be excited about. Because when account management is practiced at its highest level, with curiosity, conviction, and a deep respect for the craft, it becomes one of the most powerful forces in the room.
This is the moment to lean in, to redefine what partnership looks like, and to prove that great account leaders don’t just keep the train on the tracks. They decide where it’s going.
And for agencies still clinging to outdated notions of account management as glorified coordination, here’s the truth: you’re overlooking your secret weapon and leaving potential on the table. Full stop.
