Taryn Payne is a Senior Business Director at 303 MullenLowe Perth and the WA facilitator of AdSchool’s Advanced Account Management course. In this short Q&A she outlines why the 8-week program is a no-brainer for ambitious account managers.

Why is AdSchool Advanced Account Management worth doing?

The leap to becoming a leader within an agency can be quite difficult if you’re an account manager or junior director. This course gives you the skills that you need to not just manage an account or team effectively, but to take on a true leadership role within your agency.

Is there a skill gap that it addresses for account managers?

Elevating yourself from being a manager to a leader can seem like a really small distinction, but it’s not. Managing people, clients and accounts and being a leader are two totally different skill sets and for some people it can be really difficult to learn on the job. It’s great to take that time to step back, get out of your workplace, and have someone teach you the difference between the two plus the skills that you need to do both effectively. Being seen as a leader is also a really big jump to make and this course will give you the gravitas and the skills to be seen as a leader within your agency.

Who’s this course for? 

This course is perfect for account managers who have been in the role for two to five years and who are really looking to step up. They want to become an account director, challenge themselves and really broaden their skill set so they can take the next career leap.

Q4. This course talks about providing the ultimate toolkit for a good account manager –  a combination of hard and soft skills. What are these skills? 

We look at hard skills that account managers might not have had exposure to yet like pitching, advanced digital, creative and strategic thinking, finance essentials and delivering commercially for the business. We also build on the soft skills that become more and more important the more senior you become, such as leadership, relationship building, looking after and developing teams. This course provides a really fantastic blend of both soft and hard skills that people in leadership roles need to be able to successfully execute in their role.

You’re obviously based in Perth – tell us a bit about the WA advertising market at the moment. Why are skilled account managers in demand?

I have never seen the WA advertising market so busy and so competitive. Because of that, client demands are on the increase and the need for brilliant people to deliver on those demands is getting higher and higher. In short, there has never been a better time for an account manager to upskill to really succeed in a market like this. It’s also beneficial for agencies to have the best possible account managers so that they can capitalise on the demand in the market right now. 

AdSchool’s Advanced Account Management course starts March 31 in Melbourne, Perth and online, & May 12 in Sydney. Find out more/register: