Head of Client Solutions

About the Job

The purpose of the Bolster's Head of Client Solutions is to be a conductor, bringing together different parts of Bolster to deliver a symphony of work for our clients. This is not a traditional client service role. It is a senior leadership position responsible for the commercial health, strategic direction and delivery excellence of Bolster's most important client relationships, while leading the Client Solutions team that services them. The role brings together account leadership, integrated project delivery and business development, ensuring clients receive culturally relevant, on-brief, on-time and on-budget work across media, creative, content, social and experiential.

As part of the senior leadership team, three components make up this role:

1. Owning and growing a patch of Bolster's most strategic (Tier 1) client relationships

2. Leading, mentoring and developing the Client Solutions team

3. Designing, implementing and continuously improving an elite, scalable client experience across Bolster Group

It is a pivotal role: ensuring the quality of work delivered for clients is top of class and ambitious, the delivery workflow between our people and clients is seamless, and Bolster's reputation in-market keeps growing.

OK, I’m sold – but what even is Bolster?

We are integrated communications specialists with an eye on culture.

Headquartered from Melbourne Australia, we’re a team of 50+ passionate individuals spread across four specialist teams.

Our foundational clients include festivals and events such as Splendour In The Grass, Bluesfest, St Jerome’s Laneway Festival, and more recently RISING Festival, ALWAYS LIVE and Sydney Festival.

Bolster Group has devised integrated campaigns for some of the world’s biggest brands including Bacardi-Martini Australia, KFC, Google, EA Games, Samsung, Warner Music, and more. We’re the agency you bring in when you want to play meaningfully in music and broader culture.

At Bolster, we do loads of stuff, but 3 things really well:

1. Consulting: We guide brands and experience makers through a challenging landscape with pointed insights and cultural understanding. Our consulting services extend across culture marketing, creative and content, media, social and community building.

2. Branded entertainment: We devise fan-led creative solutions and storytelling that helps brands cut through.

3. Media: We amplify brands within impactful media, ensuring our clients are in front of the right people at the right time.

Our offering extends even further when you consider our sister agencies:

• Aeroplane (experiential and commercial rights) and;

• Going North (First Nations cultural engagement).

Ultimately, Bolster Group is famous for connecting brands to their fans.

What You’ll Be Doing

Client Portfolio Leadership & Growth — 40%

• Act as the senior strategic partner and trusted day-to-day lead for Bolster's Tier 1 client relationships, building genuine partnerships with senior client marketers (CMO, Head of Marketing, Directors)

• Own the commercial health of the client portfolio: revenue forecasting, scoping, fee negotiation, profitability and resource planning

• Drive organic growth through deep understanding of client business challenges, identifying new opportunities and expanding scopes of work

• Maintain and grow client patch revenue against agreed annual targets, including an allowance for patch churn and replacement with new business

• Lead development of integrated client strategies and annual plans spanning culture marketing, creative and content, media, social, PR and experiential

• Write, interrogate and approve client briefs, ensuring they are sharp, single-minded and set the team up to deliver outstanding work

• Set regular check-in cadences with clients; build deep, resilient relationships beyond the day-to-day

• Partner closely with the Head of Media, Head of Creative Solutions and sister agency leads (Aeroplane, Common State, Going North) to deliver seamless, integrated solutions

• Lead or contribute to new business pitches end-to-end, including chemistry meetings, RFP responses, scoping, pricing and pitch delivery

• Represent Bolster at industry events, client functions and agency forums, building profile and rapport

• Effectively lead integrated projects or campaigns by aligning all stakeholders (inc. internal team, clients, agency villages and extended freelancer network) on roles and responsibilities, objectives, KPIs, key milestones, budget, deliverables and ways of working

Team Leadership & Development — 30%

• Foster a collaborative, growth-oriented culture that connects Client Solutions with departments across Bolster Group

• Lead, mentor and develop the Client Solutions team (Client Leads, Account Directors/Managers, Delivery Managers)

• Maintain weekly 1:1s with direct reports; set clear objectives and monitor progress via a progression plan

• Set the standard for client servicing excellence – communication, proactivity, anticipation, problem-solving and commercial discipline

• Support the team in achieving KPIs around client service, delivery and growth

• Conduct training and development in line with Bolster's systems, tools and processes

• Contribute to recruitment, onboarding and progression planning for the Client Solutions team

• Conduct project retros with the team to ensure Bolster and client standards are consistently met

• Foster a collaborative, growth-oriented culture that connects Client Solutions with departments across Bolster Group

• Contribute proactively to Leadership Team communications and initiatives; work closely with Group GMs and the SLT to refine ways of working

• Effectively delegate and oversee the delivery of work, ensuring the highest standard

• Work closely with the Group GMs and the SLT to refine our ways of working

Client Experience, Delivery & Operations — 30%

• Design, oversee and continuously improve workflow processes between Client Solutions and delivery departments

• Oversee resourcing and team utilisation against project revenue and delivery demand

• Ensure onboarding of new clients is smooth, considered and sets the relationship up for success

• Ensure scoping, briefs and project timelines are realistic, sharp and give teams and clients confidence

• Oversee campaign delivery against client KPIs, ensuring work is delivered on brief, on time and on budget, and that learnings inform future activity

• Oversee campaign and project delivery against client KPIs — on brief, on time and on budget

• Identify tools, systems or processes (including emerging AI-enabled workflows) that aren't adding value, and take action to simplify or replace them

• Manage contracting and invoicing of externals and freelance partners, in line with agreed approval processes

• Develop and maintain project budgets and timelines – closely monitor project finances including team resource / utilisation, scope creep prevention, and the protection of PT margin

• Identify tools, systems or processes that aren’t adding value or making life more difficult on our teams and clients – and take action to remedy

• Maintain a strong client service experience at every touchpoint – professional, but also fun!

Required Skills & Experience

• 10+ years' client service/account management experience within a media, creative or integrated agency, including 3+ years at Client Director / Account Director level or above

• Demonstrated track record of leading senior client relationships (CMO/Marketing Director level) and acting as a trusted strategic advisor

• Proven ability to grow accounts — organically expanding scopes, identifying new opportunities and converting them into revenue

• Strong commercial acumen: revenue forecasting, scoping, fee negotiation, P&L ownership and resource management

• Cross-discipline literacy across media, creative, strategy, social, PR and experiential, with confidence leading integrated conversations

• Experience designing and improving client service workflows at scale

• Comfort using data, reporting and increasingly AI-enabled tools to inform client strategy, forecasting and internal efficiency

• Proven people management and team leadership experience, including mentoring and developing client service teams

• Excellent written and verbal communication, with outstanding presentation, storytelling and stakeholder management skills

• Strong network and relationships within relevant industries (music, culture, entertainment, brand)

• Sharp strategic thinking, with the ability to write and interrogate briefs and provide senior creative counsel

• Deep understanding of the Australian marketing and media landscape, audiences and cultural context

• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, independent agency environment and manage multiple priorities

Desirable

• Experience working with brands in music, entertainment, festival, lifestyle or youth culture categories

• Track record leading new business pitches end-to-end and converting them into wins

• Experience working across an agency group or with sister-agency disciplines (experiential, talent, First Nations engagement)