Senior Community manager

Senior Community Manager

Company: VML

Hybrid working: Working from home / Sea Containers office, London, SE1

At VML, we are a beacon of innovation and growth in an ever-evolving world. Our heritage is built upon a century of combined expertise, where creativity meets technology, and diverse perspectives ignite inspiration. With the merger of VMLY&R and Wunderman Thompson, we have forged a new path as a growth partner that is part creative agency, part consultancy, and part technology powerhouse.

Our global family now encompasses over 30,000 employees across 150+ offices in 64 markets, each contributing to a culture that values connection, belonging, and the power of differences. Our expertise spans the entire customer journey building connected brands that drive growth for our clients. We do this by leveraging our 3 core practices; Brand experience, Customer experience and Commerce. Within these practices we offer expertise across communications, commerce, consultancy, CRM, data, production, and technology. We deliver end-to-end solutions that result in revolutionary work.

The Role: Senior Social Media Manager, Community

We are seeking an experienced Senior Community Manager to lead the community strategy and engagement for a leading luxury automotive brand. You'll be the expert on how the brand shows up in conversation — defining community engagement frameworks, leading on reactive moments, and turning social interactions into genuine brand affinity.

You'll go beyond day-to-day replies to shape how the brand builds and nurtures its social community. You'll develop engagement strategies, guide tone of voice in different contexts, surface audience insights that shape content and strategy, and lead the response during high-pressure or crisis moments. You'll also begin to share your knowledge and guide more junior community managers.

If you're passionate about the power of social communities, can think strategically about engagement while still crafting the perfect reply, and have experience managing brand voices for major clients; we want to hear from you!

The VML Social team is growing and this opportunity is primed for someone that's looking to deliver best in class community management, whilst learning and upskilling themselves with a team of specialists.

Key Responsibilities:

• Community Strategy: Develop and lead community engagement strategies that build authentic relationships between the brand and its social audience. Define frameworks for engagement: when, where, and how the brand should show up in conversation.

• Community Leadership: Lead day-to-day community engagement and oversee quality across social platforms. Set the standard for brand voice in social interactions and guide others to deliver against it.

• Social Listening & Insights: Lead social listening efforts to track sentiment, identify emerging themes, and surface community insights. Translate these into actionable recommendations for content, strategy, and the wider client team.

• Crisis & Issues Management: Lead the community response during high-pressure moments, issues, or crisis situations. Exercise expert judgement on tone, timing, and escalation. Develop and maintain response protocols.

• Proactive Engagement: Identify and capitalise on opportunities for the brand to join cultural conversations, engage with relevant communities, and create moments that build brand affinity. Develop broader POVs on community engagement best practices.

• Client Engagement: Present community insights, engagement strategies, and performance to clients in a clear and compelling manner. Counsel clients on the nuances of community management and challenge assumptions where needed.

• Collaboration: Work closely with content creators, social strategists, and the broader social team to ensure community insights feed into strategy and content, and that engagement activity is fully integrated with the social plan.

The ideal candidate will:

• Have a proven track record of leading community management for major brands, with demonstrated expertise in social engagement strategy.

• Be an expert in brand voice, knowing how to flex tone across platforms, contexts, and situations while maintaining authenticity.

• Be culturally sharp and fast on their feet; able to spot opportunities and navigate risks in real time.

• Be a strategic thinker who can connect community insights to broader content and business recommendations.

• Be a highly collaborative team player, capable of building strong relationships with clients, internal teams, and external partners.

• Be comfortable working in a dynamic, fast-paced environment and managing multiple priorities simultaneously.

• Be passionate about 'what's next' in social communities and audience engagement.

• Be able to set and manage expectations, delegate tasks, and share responsibility for outcomes.

• Be a proactive and results-oriented individual with a strong work ethic and a commitment to excellence.

• Knowledge and experience in the luxury space or within automotive.

Qualifications & Experience: