An Account Handler’s Guide to Prioritising Clients & Focussing Time

CompanyPlace

Date: XX/XX/20XX

Agenda

1. Why prioritise time?2. Categorising existing accounts– Exercise 1: Categorising accounts

3. How the account team spends & captures time– Exercise 2: Time % targets

4. How much time should each account handler spend on each client?– Exercise 3: How much time?

5. Who should do what on each account?– Exercise 4: Roles & responsibilities

1. Why prioritise time?

Why prioritise your time?

• Our time is our company’s ‘product’ therefore where we spend every hour impacts the bottom line – Ensures we align with the agency’s business goal – Ensures we operate as one efficient, profitable and

cohesive team– Helps us manage our day-to-day tasks

• When our ‘to do’ list is overwhelming • When we get caught up in ‘urgent’ but ‘unimportant’ • When we decide who needs to be involved in meetings

What do time priorities depend on?

• Agency’s business goals– What’s important to the business right now?

• Client– Existing clients: What’s the growth potential and size of wallet? – Prospective clients: Size of potential wallet and likelihood of winning

the business

• Job function– Each team member has a different role to play on each account

• Task– A task maybe urgent but ultimately unimportant?

Important

• It’s NOT an exact science– There will always be exceptions to any rules

• The nature of agency life is dynamic, clients/personnel/priorities change frequently

• Once a strategy is agreed, each individual team member is able to decide at every minute of every day whether the task they are carrying out (or are about to carry out) aligns with the strategy

2. Categorising existing accounts

Exercise 1: Categorising clientsCategorise current clients on prioritisation

matrix

Prioritisation matrix for existing clients

GrowthPotential

High

High

Low

Low

Gold Platinum

Bronze Silver

De-prioritise Ensure servicebut de-prioritise

Good service. Actively look for opportunities

to cross-sell

Top priority for service &

opportunities

Current spend

Existing Clients

3. How the account team spends & captures time

General progression line of a project

Direction & strategy

Account Director and senior management heavily involved; establish relationship, ways of working, strategy etc

Management

Account Manager manages day-to-day relationship supported by Account Exec to implement strategy.Account Director sets direction & ensures team set up for success. Often checks in with client and follows the account progression with frequent team status meetings.

Implementation

Account Manager & Executive manage projects with oversight from Account Director

AD spends most time AM spends most time AE spends most time

The importance of time sheets

• Agency management receives a report every month for % time spent in each area:– Existing business (Billable time)– New business; pitches, RFIs etc (non-billable)– Admin time (non-client related)

• If % billable time is low, management is unable to identify or justify need for additional resource

Exercise 2: Time % targetsWhat is the agency % target time for each role (CSD,

AD, AM & AE) for existing business, new business and admin?

Complete the template on the next slide

% target time by roleRole Existing

business & growth in existing accounts

Identified new business, pitching & prospecting

Admin Total

CSD X% X% X% 100%

AD X% X% X% 100%

AM X% X% X% 100%

AE X% X% X% 100%

% target time by role (Answer sheet template guide only)

Role Existing business & growth in existing accounts

Identified new business, pitching* & prospecting

Admin

CSD 50% 30%* 20%

AD 75% 20%* 5%

AM 90% 5%* 5%

AE 90% 5%* 5%

* Varies during pitches

Template guide only

4. How much time should each account handler spend on each client?

Exercise 3: How much time?Estimate % time each role should spend

on Platinum, Gold, Silver & Bronze clients

% overall time spent by client categoryExisting Clients

GrowthPotential

High

High

Low

Low

Gold Platinum

Bronze Silver

Current spend

CSD x%AD x%AM x%AE x%

CSD x%AD x%AM x%AE x%

CSD x%AD x%AM x%AE x%

CSD x%AD x%AM x%AE x%

% overall time spent by client category (answer sheet template)

Existing Clients

GrowthPotential

High

High

Low

Low

Gold Platinum

Bronze Silver

Current spend

CSD 10%AD 25%AM 25%AE 25%

CSD 40%AD 45%AM 50%AE 35%

CSD 0%AD 0%AM 0%AE 10%

CSD 0%AD 5%AM 15%AE 20%

5. Who should do what on each account?

Deciding who does what

• Every account is slightly different and therefore should be discussed together as a team so everyone is clear on the strategic approach

• Once everyone is in agreement, the team holds regular status meetings to ensure all team members are aware of any issues and any changes required

Exercise 4: Roles & responsibilitiesDecide who does what for each client category

(Platinum, Gold, Silver & Bronze)

Platinum service levelsTop priority for service & opportunities

Platinum Task

CSD

AD

AM

AE

Gold service levelsGood service. Actively look for opportunities to cross-sell

Platinum Task

CSD

AD

AM

AE

Silver service levelsEnsure service but de-prioritise

Platinum Task

CSD

AD

AM

AE

Bronze service levelsDe-prioritise

Platinum Task

CSD

AD

AM

AE

Service level answer guides(Template guide only)

Platinum service levelsTop priority for service & opportunities

Platinum Task

CSD Supports AD in the strategic direction and running of the account e.g. involvement in the development of relationship building strategy and planning meetings. Develops relationship with the most senior client and holds agency review meetings. Trouble-shoots.

AD Directs the team and drives the account forward. Anticipates client needs. Pro-actively provides solutions before client asks. Seeks new business opportunities (within the account and client company) and develops and implements action plan to close these opportunities. Creates, follows and updates a client development plan. ‘Walks the halls’.

AM Manages client on day-to-day basis. Manages client expectations. Ensures all projects managed through the agency, keeps internal team informed of progress. Anticipates resourcing needs for projects. Keeps status report up to day with Account Exec.

AE Supports team in smooth running of account. Ensures client is always receiving relevant information from the agency e.g. Google Alerts

Template guide only

Gold service levelsGood service. Actively look for opportunities to cross-sell

Platinum Task

CSD Helps AD identify prospects and new potential areas of growth for the agency in the client’s business. Develops action plan with AD.

AD AD identifies potential areas of growth for agency within account and client company overall. Creates and implements new business action plan with CSD. Regularly contacts client and anticipates any changes in account/relationship issues. Provides direction for team.

AM Decides with Runs day-to-day account

AE Ensures client receives regular contact from agency eg. Regular status reports, Google Alerts with relevant information. Always on alert for new business opportunities within existing projects.

Template guide only

Silver service levelsEnsure service but de-prioritise

Platinum Task

CSD Little to no involvement in account. Provides counsel as and when required.

AD Provides overall direction but little day-to-day management. Checks in with client on regular basis. Oversees the team. Ensures team is set up for success, everyone understands roles & responsibilities. Receives status reports.

AM Leads account and seeks direction from AD when required. Anticipates and flags any issues to AD. Decides where AE better placed to lead projects/manages client. Develops and circulates status reports with AE.

AE Runs day-to-day account with AM. Ensures status report and budgets closely followed and circulated to the client and internal team. Flags any relationship issues to AM/AD.

Template guide only

Bronze service levelsDe-prioritise

Platinum Task

CSD No time spent on account

AD Little to no time spent on account.

AM Minimal time spent managing client. Supports AE with any issues, provides direction where required.

AE Focus on leveraging resource within the agency to push projects through e.g. can Project Manager run majority of account needs? Ensure all basic administration is followed.

Template guide only

An Account Handler’s Guide to Prioritising Clients & Focussing Time

CompanyPlace

Date: XX/XX/20XX