Account Manager I

PRIMARY PURPOSE

The Account Manager I shall serve The Navigators and fulfill the responsibilities listed below in the spirit of The Navigators calling, values and purpose: To advance the Gospel of Jesus and His kingdom into the nations through spiritual generations of laborers living and discipling among the lost.

The Account Manager I is a key member of the Marketing and Communications (MarCom) team, serving as the point of contact and ambassador to internal clients, including field leaders, leaders of the business ministries, and owners of national initiatives.

This role builds lasting client relationships, coordinates client planning with MarCom leadership, evaluates client project requests and recommends approval and priority, and leads projects through discovery, scoping, and kickoff. It represents account management in MarCom operational and planning forums. The aim is work that begins well-defined and well-resourced, helping clients and MarCom achieve their objectives in a unified and complementary manner.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

Client Services and Planning Coordination (35%)

• Serve as the overarching MarCom point of contact and ambassador for assigned internal clients across all of their projects, connecting them with MarCom expertise and best practices.

• Foster healthy relationships and partnerships with leaders across current and potential clients, maintaining an understanding of their key priorities and goals, assessing and articulating how MarCom can come alongside them to provide strategic and creative solutions to meet their objectives.

• Coordinate recurring planning meetings between clients and MarCom leadership, preparing materials and capturing decisions and next steps.

• Build and maintain each client's account plan from those decisions, aligning agreed priorities with MarCom services and capacity and tracking progress against them.

• Meet regularly with clients to review current and past projects, surface new needs, and bring opportunities to MarCom leadership.

• Represent account management in MarCom operational, strategic planning, and project prioritization forums, bringing client needs and perspective to department-level decisions.

• Gather client feedback at project close and at regular intervals, sharing results and lessons learned with MarCom to improve how projects are planned and delivered.

Project Evaluation and Recommendations (15%)

• Evaluate client requests that require scoping, as assigned through intake triage, assessing each for strategic fit, priority, required capacity, and budget.

• Recommend to MarCom leadership whether to approve, decline, or modify each request, with a proposed priority.

• Communicate decisions, priorities, and expected timelines to clients, including the reasons when a request is declined, deferred, or modified.

• Work in close partnership with Project Management on intake, scoping, tracking, scheduling, and the agreed priority order for client work.

Project Discovery and Scoping (35%)

• Lead project discovery with clients, confirming goals, audiences, success measures, and constraints through questionnaires, interviews, and working sessions.

• Identify the MarCom services each project needs, bringing in subject-matter leads to shape the recommended approach.

• Lead project scoping in collaboration with subject-matter leads and Project Management, producing scopes of work that define objectives, deliverables, milestones, roles, timelines, and budget requirements, including client hour allocations, marketing expenses and appropriate team administrative costs.

• Coordinate effort estimates from each contributing team and confirm the resources a project needs, including team capacity, vendor support, financial investment, and equipment, before scope is committed.

• Secure internal MarCom review and client approval of each scope of work before work begins.

Project Kickoff and Handoff (10%)

• Lead internal team orientation before each kickoff, so that every contributing team works from the same brief, scope, and structure.

• Lead the client kickoff meeting, confirming objectives, scope, roles, timelines, and approval checkpoints with the client.

• At kickoff, hand off day-to-day project communication to Project Management, or to the execution lead where a defined process designates one, remaining the client's overarching point of contact through project completion.

Additional Responsibilities (5%)

• Participate in Navigators' on-site learning and development events, Cultural Development and Diversity trainings, or other non-Navigator developmental events as appropriate.

• Participate in annual processes, such as the organizational Plan and Progress Review (PPR), Engagement Survey, Reaffirmation of the Navigators Code of Conduct, Calling-Core Values-Vision, Statement of Faith, Driver's Authorization, and other releases as required.

• Other job-related duties as assigned.

CORE COMPETENCIES

• Relationship building and trust with senior and ministry leaders

• Consultative listening and skilled questioning

• Translating client needs into clear, actionable scopes of work

• Sound judgment in evaluating requests and forming clear recommendations

• Diplomacy in setting expectations, including communicating declined or deferred requests

• Collaboration and influence across teams without formal authority

• Facilitation and coordination of planning meetings, discovery sessions, and kickoffs

• Planning, estimating, and budgeting

• Organization, follow-through, and clear documentation

• Spiritual sensitivity and understanding of ministry context

MINIMUM AND PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

Spiritual: Belief in and adherence to the Statement of Faith and Mission of The Navigators.

Experience: This role requires strong organization and time management skills. At least three years of proven work experience in marketing, communications, or agency settings, including account management, client services, or project management. Experience leading client discovery, writing scopes of work, and building project budgets preferred. Experience working with ministry staff and supporting the needs of the missions preferred.

Technical Knowledge & Skills: Proficient in Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides; Microsoft Office; project management platforms (ex. ClickUp); and AI tools. Working knowledge of marketing, content, and creative production processes sufficient to scope work across them.

Communication & Leadership: Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, including verbal and written, to create understanding and build strong working relationships required. Ability to represent MarCom to ministry stakeholders and to lead client-facing conversations about scope, timelines, and priorities, including communicating declined or deferred requests.

Education: High School Diploma or GED equivalent required. Bachelor's degree or college coursework/equivalent experience preferred.

Location: In-person

Hours: Full-time (40 hours a week)

Compensation Range: $57,784.00 - $88,247.25 per year

Benefits: High-Deductible Health Plan: Medical, Dental, Vision, HSA, FSA, Life Insurance, Disability, EAP, 401a and 403b retirement options. Up to 15 paid holidays per year, accumulating PTO (vacation, sick, personal). For detailed information, visit navbenefits.org.

The Navigators is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive work environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. The Navigators does not discriminate based on race, color, national origin, sex, age, disability, veteran status, or any other status protected by law or regulation.