The Different Roles within Marketing Agency Departments
Marketing and advertising agencies are a hub for talent. Since not all agencies are the same in terms of size and specialty, navigating the many departments and roles inside of an agency can get complicated.
Here is a simple breakdown of some typical agency departments (and the roles within) for those interested in working with/for a marketing or advertising agency.
Marketing Agency Departments
Account Management
Account managers are the client advocate within the agency. In addition to serving as the liaison between the client and the agency, account managers also offer the client strategic guidance. In order to do their job well, account managers need to be natural problem solvers, analytically minded, and proficient communicators. The account services team often translates the client creative/marketing brief to the agency team.
Some titles that fall under the arm of Account Management within an agency include:
Account Planning Supervisor
Relationship Manager
Group Account Director
Account Director
Account Group Director
Account Services Director
VP/SVP/EVP of Client Service
Chief Client Officer
Account Coordinator
Client Coordinator
Account Planner
Account Services
Account Supervisor
Group Account Supervisor
Management Supervisor
Account Executive
Account Group Supervisor
Business Development
Most agencies want to grow, and they rely on the business development team to bring in new revenue from new and existing client accounts. People in this role are strong communicators, relationship-oriented, strategic, and knowledgeable of the agency’s capabilities and values. They have to bring sales and marketing together in order to turn leads into closed deals.
Some job titles that fall under the Business Development umbrella in an agency include:
Business Development Director
VP of Marketing
Vice President (VP) of Strategic Growth
Senior Vice President (SVP) of Agency Growth
Chief Marketing Officer (CMO)
Chief Growth Officer
Marketing Coordinator/Specialist
Business Development Associate
New Business Coordinator
Business Development Coordinator
New Business Manager
Director of Communications
Director of Business Development
Creative
The creative team is responsible for bringing projects to life. Everything from designing the user experience of a website to crafting the visual concept or style of a product/advertisement/social post requires creative expertise. Creatives must be artistically talented and also must be able to communicate in a way that convinces stakeholders that their creative ideas can drive business objectives. Since they bring the client’s ideas to life, they must be able to interpret the client’s vision and craft many iterations of an idea throughout the creative process. The best creatives are decisive, socially and culturally aware, and have a deep understanding of marketing.
Creative department job titles within an agency include:
Associate Creative Director
Copy Supervisor
Senior Copywriter
Senior Graphic Designer
Art Business Manager
Senior Traffic Manager
Studio Manager
Creative Manager
Creative Group Head
Creative Service Vice President
Director of Creative Services
Director of Graphic Services
Executive Art Director
Executive Creative Director
Experience Director
Senior Art Director
Art Director
Creative Director
VP, Group Creative Director
Chief Creative Officer
Junior Copywriter
Junior Designer
Assistant Copywriter
Assistant Graphic Designer
Associate Interactive Developer
Associate Designer
Creative Coordinator
Studio Specialist
Content Producer
Illustrator
Image Retoucher
Associate Producer
Interactive Designer
Experience Designer
Information Architect
Social Producer
Production Artist
Junior Art Director
Social Media Copywriter
UX / UI Designer
Copywriter
Media
The media team handles the visibility and execution of a client’s campaign including radio time, TV advertisements, billboards, magazine features, influencers, and digital takeovers. Members on the media team are strategic planners, creative thinkers, communicators, and have a deep understanding and knowledge of the community, industry, and digital trends. The media and creative team usually work closely with one another and share similar qualities.
Media department job titles within an agency include:
Media Manager
Digital Marketing Manager
Associate Digital Marketing Manager
Senior Digital Brand Marketing Manager
Associate Media Buying Director
Associate Media Director
Corporate Media Director
Engagement Planning Director
Media Director
Media Research Director
Group Broadcast Director
Group Media Director
VP of Digital Marketing
Senior Vice President of Marketing
Digital Marketing Executive
Executive Media Director
Executive VP, Media and Corporate Administration
Media Coordinator
Marketing Coordinator
Media Traffic Coordinator
Media Research Associate
Assistant Media Planner
Digital Marketing Specialist
Media Assistant
Media Buyer
Media Planner
National Broadcast Buyer
Group Media Supervisor
National Broadcast Supervisor
Media Account Supervisor
Broadcast Media Supervisor
Media Research Supervisor
Media Supervisor
Content Manager
Associate Media Research Manager
Operations
The Operations team deals with both internal and external business operations. This department coordinates the execution of client projects as well as running internal business affairs (for example, accounting and human resources). Operations must have a deep understanding of the client’s ask as well as the agency’s internal processes/capacity since this operations team manages the timeline, budget, and resources allocated to the project.
Job titles that are found in the agency Operations department include:
Director of HR
Digital Media Managing Director
VP/SVP/EVP of Delivery
VP/SVP/EVP of HR
VP/SVP/EVP of Finance
Senior Vice President, Operations
Director of Project Management
Agency Operations Manager
Chief Financial Officer (CFO)
Chief Culture Officer
Operations Associate
Accounting and HR Specialist
Assistant Project Manager
Project Manager
Print Project Manager
Program Director
Broadcast Project Manager
Marketing Operations Manager
Creative Operations Manager
Senior Project Manager
Director of Finance
Technology & Analytics
Technology is integrated throughout all departments of a marketing agency. Most of the time, a digital, creative, or user experience campaign involves complex technologies. Developers, engineers, and software techies must turn vision into reality through technology. They handle anything from website development, mobile application design, and the creation of interactive experiences.
Analytical roles, on the other hand, are for data-driven people who can provide insights from the vast amount of data available to companies. Whether in social media, traditional media, mobile, web, print, or digital marketing, analysts in an agency make recommendations by mining through the data and analyzing marketing performance. Analysts must be experts in database marketing, integrated channel marketing, and using data analytics tools like Google Analytics, Adobe, Salesforce, IBM, and others.
Some Analytical and Technological roles include:
Marketing Research Manager
Network and Operations Manager
Email Marketing Manager
Application Development Manager
Manager of Information Technology
Business Systems Manager
Associate Director of Analytics
Senior Database Administrator
Technology Manager
Creative Technology Director
Director of Information Technology (IT)
Director of Technology
Head of CRM Marketing
Information Technology Director
Technology Director
Director of Analytics
VP Intelligence
SVP Intelligence
Chief Technology Officer
Creative and Production Systems Manager
Email Marketing Specialist
Email Campaign Specialist
Database Developer
Analyst
Digital Marketing Analyst
Data/Insights Analyst
Marketing Research Specialist
Digital Operations Specialist
Business Systems Specialist
Information Technology Specialist
Interactive Webmaster
Database Marketing and Sales Analyst
Marketing Automation Specialist
Application Specialist
Web Architect
Software Developer
Software Support Administrator
Senior Email Marketing Strategist
Senior Analyst
Senior Interactive Analyst
Senior Web Analyst
Lead Analyst
Marketing Research Lead
Strategy
Strategic roles in an agency are driven by creativity, research, and industry knowledge. Similar to operations, they are highly motivated, organized, and analytical people. Strategists are innovative thinkers who are trying to understand the connection between the consumer and the brand and fuel the creative team with insights that lead to creative executions.
Strategic roles include:
Director of Strategy
Brand Planning Director
VP/SVP/EVP of Strategy
Chief Strategy Officer
Brand Planning Coordinator
Brand Planner
Brand Strategist
Digital Strategist
Cultural Anthropologist
Depending on the type (specialized or full-service), focus, and size of the agency, roles and titles may vary. In fact, many agencies craft odd job titles for the sake of being different. That said, this list is not all inclusive and overlap often exists for each role.
Whether you are a job seeker trying to understand which role is a good fit for you, or a client looking to decode the agency hierarchy, this agency role list makes it easier to distinguish between the departments and roles within an agency.
Job seekers: If you are looking into agency work, know that there are several different paths you can take in marketing - check out the Marketing Career Path.
Client-side marketers: If you find that the communication between you and your current marketing agency has gone stale, be sure to download our Agency Scorecard templates. Or, if you are in need of an agency, download The Complete Guide to Finding a Marketing Agency to help you find a better agency match.
For marketers trying to understand the agency-client relationship better…read:
While the number of jobs in the marketing field will continue to increase over time, today’s marketing landscape does not guarantee that a recent marketing graduate will obtain an entry-level job in marketing. To say that there is a “conventional career path” to become a marketing executive would be a stretch, but there is a rough outline of what one could expect when climbing the career ladder.