Director - Digital Academy & L&D

INTRODUCTION 

Dentsu is the network designed for what’s next, helping clients predict and plan for disruptive future opportunities and create new paths to growth in the sustainable economy. Taking a people-centred approach to business transformation, we use insights to connect brand, content, commerce, and experience, underpinned by modern creativity. 

ROLE PURPOSE & OVERVIEW 

We are looking for a Digital Academy and L&D Director to join our dentsu digital team. The dentsu digital Academy’s remit is a diverse one: they support the hiring of Entry Level talent, as well as delivering a Learning and Development programme that supports all levels of our team, from connecting them with learning opportunities, to enabling cross-discipline exposure, providing management or Power Skills training, and more. Our Academy team supports the development of 900+ individuals across specialist digital fields including Paid Search, SEO, Paid Social, Programmatic, Retail Media and Commerce, Mobile and Digital Experience; therefore this role is key to ensuring we can support the needs of our diverse team in 2026.  

This role is critical in facilitating our Digital Academy roadmap in 2026 and works in conjunction with specialist digital teams, L&D workstream leads and the Head of Digital Academy to deliver on projects, to support our dentsu digital ambition of attracting, nurturing, and retaining the best talent in the industry. 

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES (including but not limited to): 

• Partner with Head of Academy and Specialism leads to implement a strategic L&D plan that spans all business levels, enabling business and individual growth, retention, and progression of a best-in-class digital team.  

• Maintain an excellent onboarding experience for all, from entry level cohorts to experienced hires, ensuring our wider team is aligned and engaged in the experience we’re offering our new joiners.  

• Evolve, deliver, and maintain a best-in-class and sustainable entry level Academy programme that is scalable in line with our hiring ambitions, ensuring that talent that joins dentsu digital is procured, onboarded, and accelerated in the most efficient and effective manner possible. 

• Build & maintain strong relationships with key stakeholders for onboarding and entry level hiring, such as Recruitment and Operations, to ensure a smooth hiring process, that Assessment Centres for entry level hires are successful and that we’re connected to wider dentsu initiatives. 

• Be a key driver in evolving and delivering best-in-class training and development opportunities at all levels, in conjunction with specialist team leads, to enhance our professional development strategy and enable skills growth throughout our team’s careers. 

• Support our dentsu digital ambition to expand knowledge beyond individual specialist teams, by diversifying the exposure of digital teams to other capabilities and propositions around the business. 

• Partner with central Operation teams to develop a strategy that enhances the training opportunities and skillsets of our offshore team, aligning the training experience and knowledge to our onshore capability.  

• Champion a culture of learning through clear communication to the dentsu digital team, sharing and making accessible a spectrum of resources via various touchpoints, for example: newsletters, community meetings, content hubs or email updates.   

QUALIFICATIONS & SKILLS

• Minimum 5 years’ experience with either of the following: 

• Overseeing and progressing onboarding experiences, facilitating, creating, and delivering training, and building and delivering L&D initiatives, with an understanding of L&D methodologies and techniques, OR; 

• In a digital marketing role, demonstrating a strong awareness of the digital industry and extensive working knowledge of various digital specialist fields 

• Advanced knowledge of the MS Office suite, particularly Outlook, PowerPoint, and Excel 

• Exceptional organisational and project management skills 

• Resourceful, with an aptitude for learning new skills and initiative to participate in advanced projects 

• Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal, with a high degree of numeracy and literacy 

• Ability to work as an individual and be self-driven, displaying a high level of initiative and personal responsibility for the work you complete 

• Track record of effectively managing priorities and demands, whilst maintaining attention to detail and a high quality of work 

• Strong interpersonal skills, with the ability to network, build relationships and effectively interact with key stakeholders 

• A keen team player, who can showcase past experiences of working collaboratively with others 

• Ability to demonstrate why you are interested in pursuing a career in the learning and development field, and a curiosity and enthusiasm for the industry 

• A strong sense of professionalism, commercialism, and a deep respect for others 

WHAT ELSE DO YOU NEED TO KNOW 

This is a fixed term contract maternity cover role. The team is based in our UK offices but currently operates under flexible working arrangements.  

ABOUT DENTSU 

Taking a people-centred approach to business transformation, we use insights to connect brand, content, commerce, and experience, underpinned by modern creativity. As part of Dentsu Group Inc. we are headquartered in Tokyo, Japan and our 65,000 employee-base of dedicated professionals work across four regions (Japan, Americas, EMEA and APAC). Dentsu combines Japanese innovation with a diverse, global perspective to drive client growth and to shape society.

Diversity, equity, and inclusion sits at the heart of our Social Impact strategy – our fully integrated sustainability strategy which includes our ambition to build a fair and more equal society, where everyone is equipped to thrive. 

INCLUSION AND DIVERSITY

At Dentsu, we embrace diversity and inclusion, valuing the unique perspectives and contributions of every individual. We believe that diversity fuels creativity and innovation, benefiting our employees, partners, and communities.

We welcome applications from all individuals, regardless of race, ethnicity, nationality, religion, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, disability, marital status, or any other protected characteristic. Beyond recruitment, we strive to create an environment where everyone feels respected, supported, and empowered to bring their authentic selves to work.

We recognise the importance of work-life balance and are open to discussing flexible working arrangements for all roles. If you need reasonable adjustments due to a disability or medical condition during our recruitment process, please contact us at [email protected], quoting the reference number of the role that you are applying for. Your needs will be handled with respect and confidentiality to ensure an inclusive and accessible experience

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