**Commercial Manager**
About GroupM: GroupM is the world's leading media investment company responsible for more than $63B in annual media investment through agencies Mindshare, Essence, MediaCom, Wavemaker, and m/SIX, as well as the outcomes-driven programmatic audience company, Xaxis. GroupM's portfolio includes Data & Technology, Investment, and Services, all united in vision to shape the next era of media where advertising works better for people. By leveraging all the benefits of scale, the company innovates, differentiates, and generates sustained value for our clients wherever they do business.
Key Objectives
1. Lead commercial management and control of clients across the region, supporting Client Service Leaders and building profitable client relationships.
2. Involvement and resolution of commercial situations or issues related to our clients.
3. Work in adherence to directions and guidelines set by GroupM, supervising and monitoring agency business health, including commercial risks and opportunities, and compliance with processes and policies.
4. Collaborate with Client Service Teams to build and manage client team structures and costs.
5. Support financial forecasting and reporting of Client Revenues and Net Sales, anticipating and explaining variations.
6. Jointly work with Client and GroupM management teams to achieve annual growth, profitability, and efficiency KPIs.
Main Responsibilities
1. Commercial Strategy: Develop regional remuneration strategy and proposals, focusing on Agency core offering and specialist unit opportunities for higher margin extraction.
2. Serve as liaison between global and local teams to ensure business models are aligned, scope of work, resources, pricing, and conditions.
3. Coordinate with operations and solutions' teams regarding alignment and compliance with GroupM policy relating to data disclosure and data security, ensuring completeness of documentation.
4. Evaluate IWOs and ensure they follow the correct approval process.
Ongoing Solution Management
1. Manage and track solutions and service performance, achieving KPIs.
2. Optimize resource usage and invoicing.
3. Provide periodic review of FTE and segregation of responsibilities, comparing forecasts against actual utilization.
4. Support teams in reviewing or renegotiating SOW or other contract terms and conditions.
New Business
1. Enforce compliance with GroupM policy regarding RFIs and RFPs.
2. Play a key commercial role in remuneration proposal development for significant regional client pitches, following through to completion and reviewing client contracts with local/ regional/global management, GroupM/WPP (as applicable) and legal.
3. Work with Regional Commercial Director to oversee contract negotiation, drafting, and finalization of all commercial terms, briefing markets.
4. Control scope of work and service levels for various remuneration models.
Reporting and Analysis
1. Produce and analyze FTE utilization reports showing actual versus forecasted utilization, collaborating with local leaders to identify efficiency opportunities and implement improvements when needed.
2. Produce and review client profitability for significant clients in the region, including review of extraction rates by client and comparison to direct staff costs and overheads in each market.
3. Perform ad-hoc client analysis and reporting as required.
4. Review/preparation of quarterly reviews of rebates and other media income summaries from markets to ensure that sources of income obtained comply with contracts and internal policies.
Audit
1. Provide support and input into Client, Group, and external statutory audits, including documentation related to specific clients and timely responses to inquiries.
2. Contribute to ensuring agency mitigation/remediation actions are completed within agreed timescales.
3. Manage client contract compliance audits with third-party auditors.
Financial Planning and Analysis
1. Provide inputs and support in all forecasts (Quarterly and Annual Budget), including meetings/reviews/follow-ups with local/regional GroupM management: Monthly closing meetings, Forecast meetings, and Operations Committees.
2. Support GroupM Regional Finance with detailed and complete agency/division billings and net sales variance summary (both at end of month and forecast).
3. Ensure client team involvement and alignment on budgets, client profitability, OMI tracking.
4. Be involved in Cost Control Management, proposing and prioritizing cost savings mechanisms in alignment with GroupM strategy.
Net Working Capital and Treasury Management
1. Ensure GroupM Working Capital and Treasury Team are informed of any client contractual EPD, payment terms obligations etc. for their approval in advance of vendor negotiations for the purposes of cash.