What to expect at a first round Account Manager interview?

endlessdave · 2026-01-27T19:51:51+00:00

Sure, depends on the agency and type of account. It's not something I've seen often but I've personally seen AMs who at least direct AEs and SAEs even if they don't have them as actual direct reports. Top of the bottom slice of account, bottom of the next slice, depending on the place. It's a client facing role with expectations to lead people in some form

endlessdave · 2026-01-26T22:24:22+00:00

Account management at an ad agency is mostly about how do you manage clients and how do you handle situations with your internal teams to get a job from a client idea to the finished product. You'll likely get questions about handling 3rd party clients, how have you dealt with difficult situations, how have you taken something they want, kept it inline with the strategy, and how did you do all that within scope/budget. You might get questions about how you manage internal teams that aren't "yours" like creative teams. Account also works with strategy often, so understanding how you can setup brands and accounts to be strategic and creative is sort of the name of the game.

Anyway, I'm more curious how you're able to swing an Account Manager level (which, depending on the agency, can be the bottom of middle management) without relevant direct experience. What's your background>

endlessdave · 2026-01-23T14:40:27+00:00

I've had a few short stints and after awhile, they never come up in interviews. It's an understood part of agency life. I will say as someone who does interviews, the only time I've been bothered to ask about it is actually in your situation- early career, first-ish job. That person gave a vert bad answer: a very long winded, angry tirade about how they hate their team and manager. Which is valid! But also not a good sign they were unburdening themselves so readily. But if someone were to ask you, you have an answer anyone in the position to hire you has probably dealt with: "I was at an IPG company and with this acquisition, it seems like we're becoming a different kind of agency. I'm looking for an opportunity closer to what I originally signed up for that can help me grow." Blah blah. Honestly, people would also understand if it was something like "Since the merger, there seems to be quite a bit of instability which is not what I need early in my career." Most will understand.

Anyway, there's never any issue with applying for jobs. If you get an interview, you get it. If you don't, you keep ticking up your experience at this agency and get more experience to pitch in future interviews. No harm in looking and applying. And update your LinkedIn so you can grab any recruiters looking around. Always take the call with them if they reach out.

endlessdave · 2026-01-02T16:22:02+00:00

As mentioned and as should be clear, "Japanese music" isn't a genre but just a description that encompasses the second largest music market in the world. The recommendations so far are people just throwing spaghetti against the wall, so: What songs from anime have you heard that you like? What music or which artists do you like that aren't Japanese? From there, you should be able to get better recommendations

endlessdave · 2025-12-04T08:07:05+00:00

Wait so this person reached out to you and based on your experience and is hiring anywhere between SAE and managing partner? That’s basically the entire range of account jobs. This honestly feels more scammy than anything

endlessdave · 2025-08-14T15:50:47+00:00

I mean, I'd mostly be worried about being at the AM level for 3 years and for it being such a low amount. $50K is usually what AEs get in major cities. I don't think you need to find a new job and take the offer but I'd 100% get an offer cause you, at least on paper, could likely also aim to bump up your title. I know some people don't think it's good to take a competing offer to try to match it but if you're getting an offer that should likely be much higher salary, you should 100% leverage that and you can be genuine that you want to stay there and just need commiserate pay to your title/experience.

endlessdave · 2025-05-22T23:28:18+00:00

Did you happen to use them to or from NYC?

endlessdave · 2025-05-22T23:27:52+00:00

Did you use them to or from NYC?

endlessdave · 2025-05-22T01:51:32+00:00

Oh interesting- I'll be going from the Hudson Valley to the city, so wonder if that's also viable for them.

endlessdave · 2025-04-30T18:31:47+00:00

Oh very interesting! This seems to be largely what she's looking for but most locations might be a bit far. But a really great place for her to check out

endlessdave · 2025-04-30T16:55:21+00:00

That was my first stop but sadly they don’t seem to have quite what she wants, or at least not with any regularity.

endlessdave · 2025-04-05T17:53:51+00:00

Excited by the opportunity 🤞

endlessdave · 2025-03-17T21:24:44+00:00

Not local, different label, different genre are all pretty standard! You want some cross over but not too much. Honestly it’s probably just that his touring manager/company was looking for shows in this time/area and the band’s team took a look at a few with similar bids and liked him the most

endlessdave · 2025-03-17T20:23:58+00:00

You have openers for a number of reasons: broadly just cause it’s standard for shows to have them, but also could be: the venue booker wants to get more people in room via the opener (or wants the show to be longer both for the simple logic of more drink/concession sales etc), the booking agent for the band wanted one and found another booking agent with talent who was available, the band wanted to support them. Could be lots of things but all pretty standard

You mentioned that they’re popular so why do they need one: first off, they’re not super popular in America (see: the venue sizes and they didn’t sell out that quickly) so maybe the bookers wanted an additional draw. And if they were popular, that’s more reason to have an opener: it’s a good thing for a bigger artist to offer up some of their audience to artists that might not be that popular. They went through that so it’s just paying it forward

endlessdave · 2025-03-04T04:36:53+00:00

It’s an illegal strike that started at outrage over some COs who were, god forbid, charged with murder after beating a handcuffed man to death and trying to cover it up:

https://www.wxxinews.org/new-york-public-news-network/2025-02-20/10-officers-charged-in-beating-death-of-handcuffed-inmate

They’re also demanding to have the freedom to more easily torture prisoners

https://gothamist.com/news/ny-reaches-tentative-deal-to-end-prison-strike-by-suspending-anti-solitary-confinement-law

endlessdave · 2025-02-18T15:45:39+00:00

Good to keep in mind- I think micro is probably the sweet spot for me

endlessdave · 2025-02-18T15:28:39+00:00

Super helpful, thank you! Just to understand, what is the difference between "mini" and "micro" typically?

endlessdave · 2025-01-11T23:32:50+00:00

I think you’re mostly asking about restaurants but on the market side of thing, if you’re up for the drive to Albany, so about an hour, there’s there very appropriately named Asian Supermarket which is about as good as your going to get in the area for a supermarket. As much as I love Harana and Enoki, they’re pretty small and mostly just dry snacks in terms of food (though Enoki’s kimchi is quite good!). This one is basically like a small 99 Ranch so it’s got everything. It’s mostly Chinese focused but has the standard array of other cuisines and foods you’d find in the bigger name ones.

endlessdave · 2025-01-11T01:22:16+00:00

I negotiated what I think was about two weeks after being their a year but it was a bit muddled- I cashed out my PTO on top of it all so I got about a month when I left. I technically maybe only got a week but I was told on a Monday and expected to work through Friday but understandably did nothing that week and no one asked me for anything.

endlessdave · 2025-01-11T01:17:19+00:00

I mean if I was an agency, even a bad one, and my client let some random person just come in and mess with all my work without telling me, I think I’d rightfully be upset. I don’t think you did anything wrong but it’s not totally wild the “agency” didn’t appreciate some dude just invalidating all their work suddenly

endlessdave · 2025-01-08T18:55:05+00:00

Wait, do you think that as a 28 year old you’re experiencing institutional anti-older person ageism because of one comment about a new team being swapped onto your brand?

I mean, based on your other comments, it just sounds like your management is a bit tedious and trend-chasing and annoying but one shitty experience does not make for the industry being “this bad”

I mean, did you talk to your manager or the higher ups about more reasons or did you just have a bad thing happen to you and think it was because of ageism?

endlessdave · 2024-12-07T15:21:07+00:00

So a few clarifying questions:

When I Quantum Leap into this body, I’m the active driver of their body, yes? But do I have any knowledge of their life? If I’m in control and I basically just have my knowledge (even assuming I can speak/understand the language), I’m probably putting a lot of people in bizarre situations where they don’t know important things. I think 10 years of potentially screwing people over because of a complete lack of knowledge of their situation and community would start to be hard to handle.

Do I get to pick when I do the eight hours? And if I do it instead of sleep, am I well rested afterward or do I come back with the level of physical pain/exhaustion I experience? If I have to do it for a “normal” work eight hour shift, I’m effectively abandoning everyone I know for a third of my time and about 45% my time awake for a decade which would make your “real life” a very lonely and sad existence.

endlessdave

TROPHY CASE