Vice President, Client Relationship Lead

Directions, a Business Insights Company, is seeking a dynamic professional to join our team and drive growth within our financial vertical. The ideal candidate will have a strong business development background, with a focus on cultivating and nurturing client relationships. This role requires a proven ability to consultatively sell a broad range of solutions, including insights and additional value-added services. A solid understanding of the financial industry, particularly in the investment, insurance, and banking sectors, is essential. The successful candidate will demonstrate a proactive attitude, excellent sales expertise, demonstrated skill as an insights professional, and a commitment to providing top-quality solutions that meet our clients' varied needs. If you are passionate about driving client engagement and expanding our presence in the financial sector, we encourage you to apply.

RESPONSIBILITES

• Identify and pursue new business opportunities by researching and understanding market trends, client needs, and competitive landscapes to expand client base and drive profitable, revenue growth.
• Develop and implement account strategies tailored to individual clients to foster long-term partnerships and promote continuous engagement with the company's solutions and services.
• Provide regular updates and insights to senior management on account status, client feedback, and potential opportunities for upselling and cross-selling, ensuring alignment with overall business goals.
• Cultivate relationships with and be a trusted advisor to senior level client contacts, ensuring retention and profitable growth of the client relationship
• Lead assessment of client needs and design of insights solutions, including proposal development and pitching of solutions and services
• Actively support the execution team to deliver high-quality work.
• Lead response and resolution of client identified issues and/or business needs throughout the engagement

QUALIFICATIONS

• 10 years of professional experience, with several years of experience in the financial (investment, insurance and banking) and insights industries.
• In-depth understanding of Strategic Insights through utilization of Primary, Secondary and Forecasting data, incorporating both deep qualitative and quantitative insights.
• Proven skill in designing primary research to achieve business and research objectives, including alignment of specific research techniques and methodologies
• Collaborative, strong verbal and written communication, interpersonal skills, and presentation skills
• Strong client relationship management skills with proactive business development mindset.
• Strong negotiation and closing skills to secure new work and expand existing revenue streams
• Demonstrated ability to translate insights into actionable business strategies and recommendations, with a strong commercial mindset. Skilled at delivering insights in a way that aligns with client business objectives and facilitates strategic decision-making - not just presenting the "what," but advising on the "so what" and "now what."
• Success in this role requires building and maintaining strong client relationships, which may involve in-person meetings and travel. While travel needs will vary based on client mix and location, candidates should expect and be willing to travel as needed to support client engagement and growth.
• Strong network/portfolio of prospective clients

This position can be located anywhere in the U.S., and compensation is commensurate with experience.

ABOUT US

Directions Inc is a collective of brands empowering businesses to gain competitive advantage through integrated intelligence. Our expert advisors partner with clients to design custom research plans that gather and connect human-centered quantitative, qualitative, and intelligence-based insights, giving them the power to drive their business forward. We offer expertise across a range of industry verticals, including food, food service, agriculture, health and wellness, technology, financial services, and consumer-packaged goods. Directions Inc is a privately held firm in Cincinnati, Ohio with regional offices around the country, conducting work globally.

Directions is an Equal Opportunity Employer (EEO), including disability/vets