Director of Accounts & Strategy

Reports To: CEO, Erik Lambert
Department: Accounts & Strategy
Status: Full-time W-2 Employee
Hours/Week: 40 hours per week
Location: Hybrid (Golden, CO HQ + remote flexibility)

To apply, fill out an application here.

About Bonfire Collective

Bonfire Collective is a marketing agency serving changemakers in the outdoors and environment. We are strategists and creatives forged by the elements. We live by our core values: Work Smart. Play Hard. Care Deeply.

Role Purpose

The Director of Accounts & Strategy is responsible for overall client success and is the agency’s senior strategist.

This management and leadership role oversees a department of Account Managers and Strategists, deepens and expands client relationships on key accounts, and works directly on high-value client projects. Internally, they provide leadership, clarity, structure, mentorship, and inspiration. Externally, they ensure that client partnerships are rock solid, approaches are strategically sound, and deliverables are on brand and exceed expectations.

As a member of Bonfire’s Leadership Team, the Director of Accounts & Strategy also collaborates with agency leaders to steer the company, set its priorities, solve challenges of all sizes, create opportunities, and pitch new business.

This role is new to Bonfire and will have the authority to develop and implement the bones of the department. It is designed to be an equal balance of external and internal projects to start, balancing hands-on client work with department management and leadership. As the company grows over time, this position is expected to become more management oriented and less project oriented.

Key Responsibilities

Account & Strategy Leadership – 50%

• Ensure client stoke, value, retention, and growth.
• Develop personal and professional relationships with clients built on value and trust.
• Coach Account Managers and Strategists to integrate strategic thinking into daily client management and communication.
• Serve as Bonfire’s senior strategist, leading strategic discovery, brand positioning, annual planning, and campaign frameworks for Bonfire’s largest and most complex accounts.
• Guide and oversee the development of strategy deliverables, including insights reports, audits, data analysis, briefs, and positioning decks.
• Ensure key deliverables are on brand, on brief, on budget, and exceed client expectations.
• Lead and facilitate client meetings, workshops, and planning sessions that connect business goals to marketing strategy.
• Translate insights into actionable frameworks that inspire creativity and drive measurable outcomes.
• Working with the account team, proactively identify and upsell business expansion opportunities.
• Solve client challenges that escalate beyond the account team.
• Lead client onboarding and offboarding.

Department Leadership & Team Development – 25%

• Create and establish the fundamentals for our new Accounts & Strategy department, including structure, budget, training programs, systems, processes and tools.
• Recruit, hire, onboard, inspire, support, and develop all Account Managers and Strategists (currently five, plus a contract bench) to uphold Bonfire’s standards of clarity, trust, and alignment across clients, teams, and agency.
• Expand the account and strategy contract benches and resource projects as necessary.
• Conduct weekly 1:1s and biweekly team meetings to review workload, strategic approach, profitability, and performance.
• Evolve and document Bonfire’s core account and strategy processes and tools, ensuring they are usable, teachable, and scalable across accounts.
• Collaborate with other department heads to ensure alignment and efficiency.
• Partner with the operations team on forecasting, capacity planning, and department metrics.
• Drive adoption of Bonfire’s Account Management Charter — clarity, trust, alignment, capacity, measurable success, professionalism, scalability, and vision.
• Maintain visibility into partner health and department performance during weekly and quarterly Leadership Team meetings.
• Support performance evaluations and growth pathways for the account and strategy team, including remote and hybrid roles.

Operational Excellence – 10%

• Partner with the operations team to strengthen cross-department workflows and role clarity.
• Refine how Account Managers, Strategists, and the Project Manager collaborate to balance ownership, delivery, and communication.
• Support accurate scoping and project forecasting; proactively identify risks and recommend solutions.
• Maintain consistency and quality control across all client communications and outputs.
• Monitor account profitability, resourcing, and delivery timelines; proactively identify risks and solutions.
• Improve system adoption and collaboration (e.g., project management, communication, CRM, file storage, etc.).

Agency Leadership & New Business – 15%

• Serve as an active member of Bonfire’s Leadership Team, contributing to quarterly goals, scorecard metrics, and agency-level priorities.
• Represent the voice of clients and the account team in leadership decisions.
• Support scoping and pitching new business.
• Attend on-site and off-site Leadership meetings.
• Model Bonfire’s values of Work Smart, Play Hard, and Care Deeply.

Ideal Strengths & Skills

This role is ideal for someone who thrives at the intersection of management, strategy, client service, and company leadership. You lead with curiosity and clarity, delegate and manage effectively, bring calm to complexity, and take ownership with confidence.

We’re especially drawn to people who demonstrate:

• Mentorship Mindset – uplifts others through coaching and clear feedback.
• Strategic Rigor – distills complex inputs into smart, human insights.
• Curiosity – asks sharper questions, connects patterns, and sees around corners.
• Assertion – enthusiastic to solve messy situations, have tough conversations, and appropriately push back.
• Autonomy & Ownership – self-directed, proactive, and accountable.
• Collaborative Teamwork – moves fluidly across disciplines to create alignment.
• Operational Discipline – ensures systems and scopes run smoothly.
• Alignment with Bonfire’s Core Values – Work Smart. Play Hard. Care Deeply.
• Familiarity with EOS preferred.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of experience in brand strategy and integrated marketing.
• 5+ years managing account teams or multi-disciplinary teams, ideally in an agency setting.
• Proven success in coaching teams and developing strategic capability.
• Exceptional communicator and facilitator, comfortable leading executive-level client discussions.
• Strong operational and financial acumen: scoping, margin management, and forecasting.
• Experience working in a founder-led, entrepreneurial environment is a plus.
• Deep expertise in leading brand and campaign strategy — from research and insight to creative activation — is a plus.
• Passion for outdoor, environmental, or mission-driven brands.

Wellness & Culture Contribution

Every Bonfire employee helps steward our culture and wellbeing. This role is expected to:

• Model Bonfire’s values daily
• Advocate for sustainable workloads for clients, colleagues, and self
• Support wellness initiatives as a participant and culture champion
• Contribute to team recognition, collaboration, and creative exploration
  

Compensation & Benefits

• Salary range: $110,000–$150,000 to start, depending on experience
• Benefits:
  • Medical
  • Dental & Vision
  • 401(k) Program and Company Match
  • Unlimited Paid Time Off (targeting 6+ weeks)
  • Parental Leave
  • Flexible Schedule
  • Hybrid/Office Work Space
  • Company-wide Events and Retreats
  • Professional Development Stipend
  • Active Wellness Program

Work Environment & Logistics

• Classification: Full-time exempt employee targeting 40 hours per week
• Core schedule: Must be available for key internal and partner meetings during business hours; otherwise, your schedule is self-managed
• Location: Hybrid role based in Golden, CO with mix of remote and in-office presence
• Travel: Occasional travel for internal and external events and retreats may be required

Equal Opportunity Statement

Bonfire Collective is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. We prohibit discrimination and harassment of any kind based on race, color, sex, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, genetic information, pregnancy, or any other protected characteristic as outlined by federal, state, or local laws.

How to Apply:

If you’re interested in this contract position, please fill out an application here.