Managing Director, Account Management (Health) at VML, Kansas City, MO

Managing Director, Account Management (Health) at VML in Kansas City, MO. Full-time. $125,000 to $235,000 a year. Apply with swipeandhired.

VML is a global creative company that combines brand experience, customer experience, and commerce to create connected brands that drive growth. Guided by a Human First philosophy, VML is known for its innovative work for brands and consistently ranks among the world’s leading creative companies, including the WARC Creative 100. VML’s global network spans 55+ markets with principal offices in Buenos Aires, Kansas City, London, New York, São Paulo, Shanghai and Singapore.

VML is part of WPP, the trusted growth partner for the world's leading brands. Powered by exceptional talent and our agentic marketing platform WPP Open, WPP unites cutting-edge media intelligence and data solutions, creativity, production, enterprise solutions and expert strategic counsel.

For more information, please visit www.vml.com and follow along on LinkedIn #WeAreVML.

What We’re Looking For:

Are you an executive client leader and digital transformation strategist at the intersection of consumer health and modern commerce? We are looking for an entrepreneurial, delivery-minded Managing Director, Account Management to lead a landmark, multi-year direct-to-consumer (DTC) healthcare commerce platform engagement.

In this role, you will serve as the executive business and delivery partner to senior client leadership, orchestrating complex enterprise commerce architectures, digital experience design, and end-to-end platform realization. You are not required to be a clinical or high-science strategist; rather, you possess a strong consumer-facing digital/commerce background paired with credible healthcare experience. You thrive at the convergence of technology, CX, engineering, and client partnership—building trust, ensuring rigorous delivery quality, and driving sustainable business impact.

What You'll Do:

• Executive Client Partnership: Act as the trusted, senior-level advisor to client executive stakeholders, deeply understanding their direct-to-consumer business objectives and aligning digital, commerce, and platform capabilities to meet aggressive growth goals.

• Commerce Platform Leadership: Oversee the strategic direction, operational health, and end-to-end delivery of a flagship, enterprise-scale direct-to-consumer health platform.

• Cross-Functional Orchestration: Partner seamlessly across multi-disciplinary teams—including enterprise technology, systems architecture, software engineering, customer experience (CX), data, and creative—to align roadmap priorities and ensure flawless delivery execution.

• Business Growth & Commercial Management: Own commercial accountability, profitability, and operational performance for a major multi-year engagement, proactively identifying opportunities to expand capability offerings and drive organic account growth.

• Delivery Excellence & Quality Assurance: Establish rigorous operational standards, governance frameworks, and executive stakeholder communications to mitigate risk and guarantee platform performance and reliability.

• Strategic Practice & Capability Evolution: Collaborate with agency leadership and peer Managing Directors to elevate VML Health’s consumer platform and digital commerce capabilities, infusing best practices from leading enterprise and digital consultancies.

• Talent Leadership & Culture: Model proactive, transparent client leadership and mentor account management talent, creating an environment that champions creative bravery, radical empathy, and accountability.

Who You Are:

• A Proven Digital & Commerce Leader: You have deep experience shepherding complex digital commerce platforms from inception through launch and ongoing optimization within consumer-facing environments.

• A Credible Health-Sector Communicator: You understand the nuances, regulatory guardrails, and customer journeys unique to healthcare, life sciences, or consumer health, enabling you to speak authoritatively and build immediate trust with senior health leaders.

• A Systems & Solutions Thinker: You comfortably bridge the gap between business strategy, brand experience, and complex technical ecosystems (architecture, engineering, headless/composable commerce platforms, martech, and CRM).

• An Agile Executive Operator: You excel in streamlined, high-impact team environments, demonstrating the agility to operate at 30,000 feet on client strategy and dive deep into delivery details when needed.

• A Collaborative Consensus Builder: You possess superior executive presence, negotiation, and presentation skills, with a track record of aligning diverse client stakeholders and internal delivery partners around shared outcomes.

What You'll Need:

• 10-12+ years of progressive client engagement, account leadership, or digital consulting experience, ideally gained within premier digital transformation consultancies or enterprise digital/interactive agencies.

• Demonstrated experience building, launching, and managing complex commerce and direct-to-consumer (DTC) digital platforms.

• Sector fluency in Health / Life Sciences: Prior experience leading business within pharmaceutical, biotech, consumer healthcare, vaccine, or wellness categories.

• Deep fluency across platform delivery lifecycles, including working knowledge of modern enterprise tech stacks, systems architecture, data integration, and user-centric design methodologies.

• Proven commercial and operational mastery, with a track record of managing and scaling eight-figure accounts and multi-year master service agreements.

• Strong team-building and mentorship capabilities with the ability to lead high-performing, cross-disciplinary pods.

What We Offer:

• Passionate, driven people: We champion a culture of people who do extraordinary work.

• Consciously cultivated culture: We aim to embody the behaviors to build an inclusive community that is in it together, bringing both positivity and active listening into the workplace as we simultaneously strive to empower creative bravery.

• Competitive benefits: What we offer full-time hires ranges from the full spectrum of group health coverage options (medical, dental, vision) to a generous 401k match (100% dollar-for-dollar match, up to 5% of salary contribution), and a variety of paid time off offerings that reflect our investment in all aspects of your overall life balance and wellness.

• Growth-minded opportunities: We aim to nurture a culture of real-time feedback, a growth-oriented mindset, and plenty of training opportunities through VML and WPP so you can continue to grow personally and professionally.

#vmlhealthcareers

The base salary range for this position at the time of this posting is indicated below. Individual compensation varies based on job-related factors, including location, business needs, level of responsibility, experience, and qualifications. We offer a competitive benefits package, click WPP Benefits for more details.

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$125,000 — $235,000 USD

We believe the best work happens when we're together, fostering creativity, collaboration, and connection. That's why we’ve adopted a hybrid approach, with teams in the office an average of four days a week. If you require accommodations or flexibility, please discuss this with the hiring team during the interview process.

WPP (VML) is an equal opportunity employer and considers applicants for all positions without discrimination or regard to characteristics. We are committed to fostering a culture of respect in which everyone feels they belong and has the same opportunities to progress in their careers.

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