Account Manager + Content Specialist

a5 | Branding Digital Agency | Hybrid – Chicago Loop (2 days/week in office) | Full-time

About a5

a5 is a Chicago branding and digital agency dedicated to building healthy, sustainable communities. We help clients find their voice and tell their story through branding, marketing, and communications — always with a clear call to action. Our team is tight-knit and proud of it: we value hard work, trust, collaboration, and cohesiveness above all.

We're growing our team of storytelling and placemaking specialists, and we're looking for an Account Manager who understands agency life from the inside out — from big-picture vision to day-to-day execution.

About the Role

You'll bring a business-partner mindset and a natural ability to build alliances with clients around the triple bottom line: economic growth, environmental sustainability, and social equity. You know how to keep projects on time and on budget while still pushing for great creative work.

What You'll Do

• Own client accounts: develop strategy, build the plan, and keep projects on time and on budget
• Write and deliver comprehensive creative briefs; lead internal and external meetings
• Guide internal teams through creative development and execution
• Participate actively in the creative process
• Build and deliver compelling client presentations
• Collaborate with and motivate cross-functional teams
• Manage schedules, budgets, and estimates
• Deliver measurable, impactful results for clients

What You Bring

• 3 years of agency experience, including account management
• Excellent writing and proofreading skills
• Social media experience
• Bachelor's degree
• A genuine passion for economic growth, environmental sustainability, and social equity
• Comfort with a direct, straightforward management style
• Experience across branding, marketing campaigns, and digital/web/social/video/print execution
• A client-advocate mindset — you think like a business partner, not just a vendor
• Strategic thinking paired with tactical follow-through
• Strong storytelling skills for creative briefs and client presentations
• An entrepreneurial spirit: resourceful, disciplined, and always looking for the next opportunity
• Strong communication and team leadership skills
• A collaborative mindset suited to a team-based agency environment
• Sharp attention to detail, organization, and time management
• The ability to assertively (and respectfully) keep both internal and external teams moving
• Comfort juggling multiple clients and projects at once
• Experience with Google Workspace, including Google Slides
• Willingness to invest extra time outside the standard 8:30–5 workday when needed to get up to speed on accounts

Nice to Have

• Experience in destination marketing or economic development
• Brand identity development experience
• Media planning and buying experience
• Supervisory experience