Head of Influence and Social, APAC

YOUR HIGH-IMPACT, PURPOSE-BUILT ROLE
Burson seeks a strong and inspiring Influence and Social lead to shape the strategic direction, development, and operational excellence of this craft across APAC.

This leader will be responsible for supporting and shaping the vision for this service area, contributing to the development and delivery of effective client solutions, and fostering a culture of excellence that delivers measurable business impact. This individual will bring a solid understanding of the evolving and complex social media and communications landscape in APAC, an ability to anticipate client needs and develop practical, impactful solutions.

You’ll be responsible for Burson’s influencer and social strategy across APAC, supporting go-to-market initiatives, advising clients, contributing to pitches, and helping oversee delivery across multiple markets. You’ll work within a multi-disciplinary, regional team (social media, creative, strategy, data and intelligence and communications) and help implement operating models, toolsets, and frameworks that enable markets to deliver client work consistently, efficiently, and effectively.

Key Responsibilities
The Head of Influence & Social, APAC will be responsible for leading the development of Burson's social and influence offering across the APAC region, focusing on growth, operational excellence and consistency, and in-market team enablement. This will be achieved through three core pillars – Grow, Enable, Transform.

Commercialise/Grow:

• Support New Business & Organic Growth: Contribute to priority new business initiatives and organic growth opportunities within the influence and social space across APAC markets.
• Strategic Planning: Support the development and execution of a yearly social influence strategy for APAC, working with key stakeholders and building on existing achievements.
• Agency Elevation & Thought Leadership: Contribute to thought leadership efforts that strengthen Burson's position in social and influence within the region.
• Showcase Best-in-Class Work: Help curate and promote strong campaigns and influencer work from across APAC markets.
• Develop Marketing Assets: Support creation of key marketing assets for APAC, including showreels, to help business development.
• Drive "Leading Work": Encourage development of high-quality influencer-led campaigns and programs across markets.
• Cross-practice Applications: Support integration of influence and social across Consumer, B2B/Corporate, and Healthcare sectors.

Enable:

• Cultural Flow Implementation: Support rollout of "Cultural Flow" across APAC, including training, ongoing updates, and reinforcement in markets.
• Ongoing Market Evaluation: Help establish feedback loops to encourage cross-market learning and resolve recurring challenges
• Team Upskilling & Training: Contribute to regular training to upskill teams in cultural trends, influencer strategy, social strategy, and AI tools.
• AI Integration: Support practical integration of AI into Burson's influencer and social offerings, prioritizing scalable approaches.
• WPP Open Adoption: Encourage adoption and use of WPP Open tools for influencer and social work across APAC.
• Platform Relationship Management: Support relationships with key social and influencer platforms (e.g., TikTok, Meta) and ensure relevant updates are shared with markets.
• Best Practice & Infrastructure: Help implement consistent best practice guidelines and strengthen internal processes.
• CreatorIQ Management & Feedback: Support CreatorIQ usage within APAC, capturing market feedback and suggesting improvements.
• Opportunity Leveraging & Collaboration: Support cross-market collaboration within APAC and the wider Burson global network to maximize business and client opportunities.

Transform:

• WPP Stakeholder Management: Act as a key contact within Burson APAC for WPP-related influence and social matters, ensuring relevance and applicability across diverse markets.
• Global Alignment: Maintain alignment with global stakeholders and frameworks, while adapting approaches to suit varying APAC markets.
• AI Enhancement: Identify practical opportunities to enhance social and influencer offerings, focusing on scalable and market-appropriate solutions.
• Tailored Influencer Offers: Collaborate with practice and sector leads to adapt influencer offers that are locally relevant and resonate with APAC clients.
• Market & Horizon Scanning: Monitor emerging trends and opportunities in the influencer and social space, highlighting cultural nuances and platform differences in APAC markets.
• Modernised Measurement: Contribute to influencer and social measurement approaches that are practical and implementable across markets with varying data maturity
• Industry Insight & Whitespace: Maintain awareness of industry developments and competitive landscape, identifying growth opportunities relevant to APAC.
• "Future of Social and Influence" Leadership: Contribute to regional working groups and initiatives, sharing APAC insights and learnings with global teams where relevant.

HOW YOU WILL MAKE AN IMPACT
Influence and Social Leadership & Vision:

• Support growth for the service line through client engagement and delivery excellence.
• Help shape strategic direction for influence and social, aligning with Burson's business objectives in APAC.
• Contribute to frameworks highlighting the value of this service line in pitches and upsell opportunities.
• Foster a culture of collaboration, innovation, and strong client service.
• Stay informed on regional industry trends and emerging technologies.

Influence and Social Offering Development & Execution:

• Support the development and execution of integrated client solutions that deliver measurable impact.
• Ensure solutions are aligned with client objectives and practical for implementation across APAC.
• Collaborate with client teams and agency departments on delivery.

Operations Excellence & Quality Control:

• Support high standards for service delivery and work quality.
• Contribute to efficient processes for delivery and client management.
• Review deliverables where needed and provide guidance to improve output.

Thought Leadership & Agency Visibility:

• Represent Burson in selected thought leadership opportunities relevant to APAC.
• Support showcasing client work through awards and marketing initiatives.
• Collaborate with marketing and business development teams to support growth initiatives.

WHAT YOU BRING TO THE BURSON BUILD

• Strong experience (a minimum of 12 years) in Influence and Social Media within the PR and communications industry.
• Ability to support development and growth of service offerings through collaboration and innovation.
• Experience working with senior stakeholders across multiple APAC markets.
• Solid operational capabilities with understanding of regional dynamics and market maturity.
• Good problem-solving skills and ability to navigate complex situations.
• Strong leadership qualities with the ability to guide and support teams.
• Experience contributing to team performance and client success in multinational environments.
• Comfortable working in a fast-paced organisation aligned with Burson values.

Experience that will contribute to your success

• Experience in a senior social, influence, or marketing role within a global or APAC-focused agency or enterprise environment.
• Strong expertise in influencer marketing strategy and execution, understanding cultural trends and platform dynamics (e.g., TikTok, Meta, YouTube, X).
• Ability to build and maintain relationships with platforms, stakeholders, and clients.
• Experience contributing to training programs and best practice development for regional teams.
• A commercial mindset with the ability to support business opportunities and client growth.
• Strategic thinking and problem-solving skills, with the ability to respond to regional market shifts.

How we will measure success

• Revenue & Growth Acceleration: Drive substantial year-over-year revenue growth for Influence & Social services across APAC, fueled by aggressive new client acquisition and organic expansion.
• Strategic New Business Conversion: Achieve a high conversion rate for strategic Influence & Social new business pitches and maximize cross-practice integration.
• Client Impact & Retention: Ensure exemplary client satisfaction and strong, sustained client retention for all Influence & Social engagements.
• Operational Excellence & Innovation Integration: Drive full adoption and consistent application of global best practices, WPP Open tools and scalable AI solutions across all APAC markets, demonstrating measurable efficiency gains.
• Craft Capability Uplift: Significantly elevate regional team expertise through targeted training programs, leading to quantifiable enhancement in critical skill areas (e.g., AI, platform dynamics, cultural trends).
• Market Leadership & Recognition: Secure multiple prestigious industry awards and consistently publish high-impact thought leadership, solidifying Burson's position as the undisputed leading Influence & Social agency in APAC.
• Future-Proofing & Innovation Pipeline: Continuously identify and strategically integrate emerging platforms, technologies (e.g., GenAI applications), and cultural trends into Burson's service offerings, ensuring sustained market relevance and competitive differentiation.

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