About This Role
This managing director role is for a leader in brand strategy, marketing communications, or market research, with a focus on cross-border engagements between mainland China and international markets. The role involves leading business development, owning client relationships, and ensuring the strategic judgment and quality of the firm's consulting methodology and deliverables.
Responsibilities
- Lead pitches, proposals, and fee negotiations for key accounts in both market directions, and decide which engagements the firm accepts
- Own relationships with client decision-makers and lead renewals; develop strategic partner and referral channels
- Supervise the Business Development Manager's prospecting and initial-contact work
- Define and own the firm's consulting methodology
- Make the final professional judgment on the diagnosis and strategic recommendations of every engagement
- Personally chair delivery briefings for key engagements and advise client decision-makers first-hand on cross-border matters
- Review and sign off all consulting reports and accompanying recommendations before release
- Assess each engagement against the firm's regulated-activity boundaries and set client acceptance criteria
- Handle client disputes and professional liability matters
- Work with the Product Manager to develop and continuously improve delivery specifications and report templates
- Allocate and supervise the delivery team (Senior Consultant, Consultants, Product Manager); monitor engagement progress and quality
- Participate in recruitment, training and performance management; transfer methodology to incoming consultants
- Manage operating costs within the Board-approved annual budget
Requirements
- Bachelor's degree or above; Master's degree in a relevant discipline an advantage
- Minimum 5 years' professional experience in brand strategy, marketing communications or market research, with substantive cross-border exposure between mainland China and overseas markets
- Able to advise founders, chairmen and board-level decision-makers of mainland Chinese enterprises, with a working understanding of their decision-making culture, shareholding structures, internal approval processes and risk appetite
- Able to engage regional management of overseas and Hong Kong enterprises in their own commercial language, with working knowledge of the Hong Kong and international brand and regulatory environment
- Demonstrated ability to set and enforce a single research and delivery standard across multiple concurrent engagements
- Fluent in Cantonese, Mandarin and English
- Professional business writing in both Chinese and English
- Sound commercial judgment, with the maturity to take final accountability for professional deliverables