Festivals & Activations Account Director

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About Us

Verve is a Live Event, Sponsorship and Brand Experience Agency that uses the power of live experience to win the hearts and minds of consumer and business audiences. Established in 1991, Verve is headquartered in Dublin with offices in London and Amsterdam. We have a team of over 120 full‑time award‑winning professionals spanning creative, events, sponsorship, activation, entertainment and digital departments.

Role Overview

We are seeking a highly accomplished and dynamic Account Director to lead within the Activations team working on our Festival portfolio of accounts. This senior role is the fusion point of strategic account growth, robust financial management, and world‑class live production delivery. You will be responsible for creating and delivering the vision for client accounts, ensuring commercial targets are met, and personally overseeing the flawless execution of our largest, most complex projects on‑site.

Key Responsibilities

• Strategic Account Leadership: Act as a senior point of contact for key client stakeholders, drive annual planning and identify opportunities for account expansion, and lead new business pitches from end to end.
• Commercial Growth & Budgeting: Shared responsibility for festival portfolio profitability, oversee all agency budgets, ensure exceptional cost control, manage large‑scale procurement processes, and drive maximum profitability without compromising quality.
• Procurement & Supplier Excellence: Lead strategic procurement of major production elements, maintain an extensive network of festival and supplier contacts, and secure preferred rates and innovative solutions.
• Live Production Oversight: Apply strong production knowledge, sign off on technical briefs, risk assessments, and site plans, ensure compliance with health & safety regulations, and lead on‑site decision making to safeguard the client brand.
• Team Management & Development: Lead, mentor and motivate a team of Account Managers and Junior staff, foster a high‑performing, resilient team culture, and collaborate with Creative, Strategy and Finance teams to ensure a unified client delivery.

Qualifications & Attributes

• Minimum 5+ years in a senior account or production role within an experiential or live events agency, with extensive experience on UK music and culture festivals.
• Proven history of developing and maintaining strong stakeholder relationships at director/C‑suite level.
• Expert‑level ability to manage seven‑figure budgets, execute procurement strategy, negotiate high‑value contracts, and deliver strong profit margins.
• Operational resilience: ability to remain calm, decisive and authoritative under extreme pressure.
• Network of trusted, high‑quality production suppliers and existing festival contacts.
• Exceptional people‑management skills and a collaborative, solution‑oriented approach.

Benefits of Working at Verve

• Working with the best in the business
• Great company culture and fantastic office environment
• Year‑round CSR programmes and Diversity & Inclusion initiatives
• Sustainability mandate (Verve is IS02012 certified)
• Health insurance after 1 year of service
• Phone bill paid (up to £60 per month)
• Fully paid loyalty month off after three years of service within the company
• Access to Employee Assistance Programme with free mental‑health resources
• Hybrid working – minimum 3 days from the office
• New Business Incentive Scheme from day one
• Employee Referral Incentive Policy
• Season ticket loans offered
• Cycle‑to‑work scheme

Diversity & Inclusion

We are committed to an active Inclusion, Diversity and Equal Opportunities Policy. Celebrating our inclusive and diverse culture is integral to Verve. We know that for our business to thrive and realise its ambition, we depend on having diverse talent with a range of backgrounds, skills and capabilities. Together, we continue to build a culture that encourages, supports and empowers our employees.

Sustainability

Verve is proudly B Corp, ISO 20121 and ISO 14001 certified, and is one of the only agencies to hold these certifications. We work hard to retain this certification and are always looking for new ways to be more sustainable in our workplace and in our events.