Wackermann taught at Bergen Catholic High School in Oradell, New Jersey, then served in sales and marketing positions at BusinessWeek and Child magazine. He then spent over 20 years at Condé Nast and was known as "something of a turnaround specialist" before being fired while on a morale-building Caribbean cruise for Condé Nast sales in November 2015. He was the youngest Executive Vice President in the company's history, serving as Publishing Director of magazines including Details, Bon Appétit, Glamour and W. During his tenure, he created GlamourReel Moments, a film series focused on women's empowerment with all female directors including Jennifer Aniston, Demi Moore, Jessica Biel and Rachel Weisz. He also expanded sales and revenue streams and was recognized on Crain's New York “40 under 40" list. In 2002 he was named Magazine Publisher of the Year by The Delaney Report. In 2012 Wackermann wrote “Flip the Script: How to Turn the Tables and Win in Business and Life”, published by Simon & Schuster's Free Press imprint. Publishers Weekly called it "a sugar-coated pep talk". Wackermann became Chief Executive Officer of Wilhelmina Models in 2016. He subsequently founded the company's creative agency, Wilhelmina Studio, and signed various artists to the company including Nicki Minaj, Kacy Hill, Leona Lewis, Shawn Mendes, Dustin Lance Black, Machine Gun Kelly, Niall Horan, Maren Morris and Hopper Penn. Wackermann is featured in the book, Wilhelmina: Defining Beauty, which celebrates the iconic individuals who have shaped the agency's legacy. In mid-2019 five employees left the women's division of Wilhelmina for Supreme, an Elite Model Management company. Wilhelmina sued the five women's division employees over non-compete clauses, which was dismissed by the judge. After the "court drama" Wackermann's "number two", VP Taylor Hendrich, and four other employees left the men's division and joined The Society Management, also part of Elite, though this was initially denied by Wackermann. Linked to these departures, in October 2019 Bill Wackermann's employment contract was not renewed for its two-year term. He resigned as CEO in January 2020.
Personal life
Wackermann holds a B.A. in English from Villanova University in 1989 and has three children with his wife, Regina Toth Wackermann. In 2005 Wackermann was training for a triathalon. In 2017, Wackermann and his partner, Mark Tevis, listed their $3 million Sag Harbor home in the Hamptonsfor sale. At the time Tevis was the publisher and Chief Revenue Officer of Daily Front Row. They also listed their New York City Beekman Place apartment for sale in early 2018. The building was designed by Rosario Candela.
