Sparks EMEA
Sr Project Director
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About Us
Sparks is a leading global brand experience agency, specializing in the design and execution of award-winning experiences that forge deep connections between brands and audiences. Recognized by Adweek as Experiential Agency of the Year, we bring a unique blend of strategic insight and execution excellence to every brand activation, corporate event, trade show exhibit, and immersive experience. Our commitment to creativity, innovation, and flawless execution drives us to craft impactful experiential marketing solutions that deepen relationships, inspire action, and build trust—all around the world.
Summary
The Senior Project Director is a pivotal leadership role responsible for the strategic oversight and end-to-end delivery of high-profile, large-scale global events and productions. Operating at the intersection of client strategy, creative vision, and operational excellence, this role sets the standard for project delivery across the agency. The Senior Project Director provides authoritative direction to cross-functional teams, owns senior client relationships, and plays an instrumental role in shaping the agency’s production capabilities, processes, and growth trajectory. This role is eligible to work a hybrid schedule, generally requiring work in-office one day a week (typically Wednesdays) at our London location.
Essential Duties & Responsibilities
Strategic Client Leadership
- Serve as the senior client point of contact across flagship and multi-market accounts, building deep, trust-based relationships at director level and above
- Proactively identify and act on opportunities to grow accounts, deepen strategic partnerships, and deliver measurable value beyond the brief
- Lead and contribute to high-stakes pitches, RFP responses, and new business presentations, bringing strategic insight and production credibility to the room
- Shape and challenge client briefs to ensure ambition, feasibility, and creative excellence are in alignment from the outset
- Provide authoritative counsel on project scope, risk, budget, and delivery approach, acting as a strategic advisor rather than a transactional manager
Leadership & Team Development
- Lead, mentor, and develop a team of project managers and producers, fostering a high-performance culture grounded in accountability and continuous improvement
- Champion talent development within the production function, identifying growth opportunities and supporting career progression for team members
- Set and uphold standards of project management excellence, including process discipline, documentation rigour, and cross-functional communication
- Represent the Production department in senior leadership forums, contributing to agency-wide strategy and operational planning
- Drive a collaborative, inclusive team environment and model the professional behaviours expected of a senior leader
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Creative & Production Leadership
- Provide executive-level stewardship over creative integrity across all deliverables, ensuring production decisions honour and enhance the original creative vision
- Lead ideation and strategic brainstorms, bringing a sophisticated understanding of trends in live experience, brand communications, and experiential marketing
- Identify innovative production solutions that elevate the audience experience and differentiate the agency’s output
- Align technical production capabilities with creative ambition, proactively resolving tensions between vision and feasibility at an early stage
Project & Programme Management
- Take executive ownership of multiple complex projects simultaneously, overseeing project managers and producers embedded within each programme
- Establish and govern robust project frameworks including risk registers, critical path management, status reporting, and stakeholder communication plans
- Lead the creation, management, and reconciliation of high-value budgets (typically £3m+), with accountability for financial performance and margin delivery
- Negotiate and manage complex contractual arrangements with third-party suppliers, venues, and specialist contractors, securing best value without compromising quality
- Oversee all show documentation – running orders, show flows, production schedules – to the highest standard of accuracy and detail
- Drive continuous improvement across project delivery methodology, embedding lessons learned and best practice at a programme level
- Monitor and govern all services, vendor performance, and production activities against budget, timeline, and quality benchmarks
- Lead post-event analysis and reporting, delivering clear, commercially relevant insights to clients and internal stakeholders
Education & Experience
- Min 10 yrs experience in event production within an agency environment, with a strong portfolio of complex, large-scale projects across EMEA and international markets
- Min 8 yrs experience in a senior project management or senior producer role (full-time or freelance)
- Proven track record of managing budgets of £3m+ with full accountability for financial performance and reconciliation
- Deep experience across a broad range of project types including live events, EXPO, experiential, brand campaigns, video, and strategic consulting
- Demonstrated experience in leading or significantly contributing to pitch, RFP, and proposal processes for major accounts
- Extensive experience in client brief interpretation, including complex RFI/RFP processes
- Track record of international event delivery, with strong working knowledge of EMEA markets and logistics
- Experience in people management, mentorship, and developing junior to mid-level production talent
- Exceptional problem-solving skills; proven ability to anticipate risk, navigate obstacles, and deliver solutions under pressure
- Outstanding presentation, verbal, and written communication skills, including the ability to present confidently to C-suite audiences
- Proficiency across Microsoft Office suite (Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Outlook) and relevant project management tools
- Full clean driving licence (preferred)
- UK national or with the right to work in the UK
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Travel Requirements
- Travel 25% to 50%
What We Offer
The Freeman Company provides benefits that aim to empower our people and their families to thrive mentally, physically, and financially. These are a handful of the types of programs and benefits our full-time people may be eligible for. There may be some variances in specific benefits across regions.
- Medical, Dental, Vision Insurance
- Life, Accident and Disability
- Retirement with Company Match
- Paid Time Off
Diversity Commitment
At The Freeman Company, our commitment to diversity and inclusion is helping us to create not only a great place to work, but also an environment where our employees, our customers, and our communities around the world can reach their goals and connect with each other. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, veteran status, and other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local laws.
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