Client Partner

Merkle, a dentsu company, powers the experience economy. For more than 35 years, Merkle has put people at the heart of digital business transformation, combining strategy, data, technology, creativity and delivery to create experiences that drive growth, engagement and loyalty. With more than 16,000 people across 30+ countries, Merkle brings together the scale of dentsu with deep expertise in customer experience, commerce, data science, CRM, loyalty, marketing technology and digital transformation. For more information, visit www.merkle.com.

The Role

This role is for a Client Partner who can turn trusted strategic client relationships into measurable and sustainable growth. Working closely with the Chief Client Officer, the Client Partner will own growth across a focused portfolio of strategic clients, identify and shape demand early, develop qualified pipeline and mobilise the best of Merkle and dentsu around client outcomes.

This is not an account management role, a delivery leadership role, or a role for someone whose primary focus is internal operations. We are looking for someone who is relentlessly client focused, commercially driven and energised by growth; someone who creates opportunities rather than only responding to them, looks outward to markets and client needs, builds influential relationships, and makes growth a natural outcome of trust.

The purpose of the role is to accelerate sustainable growth by building senior relationships, identifying new opportunities, shaping solutions and creating significant commercial value for both clients and the business.
 

The Client Partner will work with the CCO and partners in Solutions and Delivery to shape growth strategies, support major client relationships and develop emerging talent within the client leadership team. 

Your success will be measured by your contribution to portfolio growth through relationship depth, opportunity identification, deal closure, and your ability to identify and develop high-potential team members.

What You'll Be Responsible For

Client Relations

• Build and maintain trusted relationships with senior client stakeholders, understanding their ambitions and pain points, becoming their go-to partner for innovation and value creation.

• Maintain expert knowledge of client industries, market trends, and competitive landscapes to proactively identify growth opportunities.

• Bring fresh thinking, innovation and relevant market perspectives to client conversations.

Growth Leadership

• Work with CCO and SMEs to develop and execute growth strategies across your portfolio

• Build and manage qualified growth pipeline; take ownership of deal progression 

• Challenge assumptions and bring rigorous thinking to opportunity assessment

Strategic Leadership

• Identify whitespace opportunities and help shape demand 

• Think beyond immediate client requirements and anticipate emerging needs

• Bring market, industry and customer experience insight into client conversations, connecting emerging needs to Merkle and dentsu capabilities.

• Support the development of compelling growth stories and business cases

Commercial Excellence

• Manage your portfolio with clear accountability and judgement for revenue, growth outcomes and margin

• Balance growth opportunity development with consistent delivery and client success

• Work collaboratively with the CCO, finance and operations on commercial planning and forecasting

• Demonstrate strong ownership mindset—treat client investment as if it were your own

Team Leadership & Collaboration

• Build, mentor and develop a high-performing team, creating opportunities for emerging talent and contributing to a collaborative growth culture.

• Bring together the right people to solve client challenges; know when to leverageexpertise from other areas of the business

• Operate with humility and lead with confidence where you add value, support where others lead

Experience & Background

Essential

• 12+ years’ experience in client or relationship-led growth leadership within consulting, technology, digital transformation, CX, marketing technology or agency environments.

• Proven track record of building trusted, long-term client relationships that have resulted in substantial account growth and revenue expansion.

• Credibility with director, executive and VP-level stakeholders, with the judgement to navigate complex stakeholder environments.

• Strong understanding of technology-enabled business transformation and the modern marketing, data and customer experience landscape.

• Demonstrable commercial acumen, ownership and experience leading multi-disciplinary teams and solutions.

• Track record of bringing new solution approaches to market or innovating within major client relationships.

Essential Skills & Capabilities

• Commercial acumen: understands business models, profitability, value creation, forecasting and disciplined pipeline management.

• Relationship building: builds rapport quickly, earns trust through insight and integrity, and brings value without a predetermined agenda.

• Strategic thinking: connects market trends, customer challenges and Merkle capability to create compelling growth stories and business cases.

• Collaboration and self-awareness: leads where they add value, supports where others lead, welcomes feedback and brings people with them.

• Resilience and accountability: operates proactively within strategic direction, takes ownership of outcomes and adapts quickly to change.

Personal Attributes

We are looking for someone who is naturally curious, opportunity-oriented and commercially sharp; someone who thrives in ambiguity, creates momentum, builds trust, challenges constructively and brings others with them. They should be credible with senior stakeholders, resilient in the face of setbacks and motivated by growth without losing sight of relationships, empathy and team development.

Why This Role Matters

If you get genuine satisfaction from helping clients grow, solving complex challenges, creating value and winning together — and if you are energised by the prospect of developing talent as part of a collaborative growth team — this is the role for you.

What we offer 

This is a permanent role. The team is based from our London office on a hybrid working basis.

As well as a competitive salary, the candidate will enjoy a benefits package that they can tailor to their needs which includes: 

At dentsu, we care deeply about our people. Our flexible benefits package supports your health, wellbeing, and financial future with company-funded private medical insurance, virtual GP access, and an employee assistance programme. Enjoy 25 days of annual leave plus extra days for your birthday, wellbeing, and volunteering. From discounted gym memberships and retail perks to electric car leasing and travel insurance, dentsu empowers you to thrive both at work and in life. 

Inclusion and Diversity 

At Dentsu, we embrace diversity and inclusion, valuing the unique perspectives and contributions of every individual. We believe that diversity fuels creativity and innovation, benefiting our employees, partners, and communities. 

We welcome applications from all individuals, regardless of race, ethnicity, nationality, religion, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, disability, marital status, or any other protected characteristic. Beyond recruitment, we strive to create an environment where everyone feels respected, supported, and empowered to bring their authentic selves to work. 

We recognize the importance of work-life balance and are open to discussing flexible working arrangements for all roles. If you need reasonable adjustments due to a disability or medical condition during our recruitment process, please contact us at [email protected], quoting the reference number of the role that you are applying for. Your needs will be handled with respect and confidentiality to ensure an inclusive and accessible experience. 

This job description is a summary of the essential functions of the job, not an exhaustive or comprehensive list of all job responsibilities, tasks, and duties. The responsibilities, tasks, and duties of the jobholder might differ from those outlined in the job description. Other duties, as assigned by the supervisor, might be part of the job.