Director of Strategy
As Strategy Director, you’ll take ownership in driving the impact of our business, leading the charge for us to become a more influential partner to CMOs and CEOs through the quality of our ideas and our creative work. The Director of Strategic Services will be responsible for the development and leadership of our strategic practice. Director of Strategic Services reports to the Agency partners along with senior creative leadership in a highly collaborative and team-oriented environment with the aim of winning new business as well as managing the strategic marketing development for some of the most recognized brands in the world.
We are looking for someone to lead our strategic offering, building brand platforms for our clients with the collective ambition to make real brand and behavioral changes not just through advertising campaigns. We’re moving towards multidisciplinary teams that can bring the consumer experience to life including:
Marketing and business strategy
Customer experience design and digital innovation
Content development
Product and service positioning
Value proposition development
The Role
You will help create and maintain relationships with existing and potential clients, developing strategic solutions and plans that best fit the agency and clients’ needs. You will be responsible for creating brand identities through research and applying experience to uncover an in-depth knowledge of the organizational process, competitive threats and opportunities of a client’s business. In partnership with the media team, will also manage the campaign measurement process to ensure that clients and agency are aligned on key performance metrics, establishing realistic business goals, and providing accountability through reporting and analytics, and providing optimized strategies moving forward. In this role, the DSS insures that the agency provides:
A strategic anchor for our multidisciplinary team: understanding business context, uncovering insights and category white space, exploring and defining growth opportunities, architecting strategy, leading working sessions, communicating vision, and ultimately helping turn our client’s ideas into market-ready products/ experiences.
Innovator and influencer level communications.
Deliver a consistently superior creative product.
Work that is strategic and above all creative.
The Requirements / What we would like you to have:
MBA preferred, or Masters in Business or Marketing, commensurate experience in building agency client strategic portfolios.
Interest in and aptitude for creative business and marketing solutions
Minimum of ten years experience brand/marketing/communications strategy experience in integrated, brand and digital communications.
Ability to identify strategic needs, lead all aspects of planning with sound business recommendations, and generate alignment with key business partners
A talent for telling great stories—verbally and visually—and able to deliver insights about people and behavior in a way that generates empathy, emotion, and engagement
A demonstrated fluency of the people-centered design process and tools is a plus.
Demonstrate strong interpersonal, verbal and written communication skills
Excellent presentation skills that encompass clear, compelling communications
Track record of experience managing and mentoring with high integrity and the ability to inspire others
Experience navigating large and complex organizations, including gaining access to key executives and stakeholders and successfully managing relationship building dynamics and processes
Ability to manage multiple business initiatives in an entrepreneurial environment
Expert knowledge of all functional agency departments, capabilities and service areas
Deep understanding of a wide range of industries, markets and brands, and what it takes to stand out and service them
Self motivated and willing to expand knowledge
What you do:
Partner with the Creative Director in providing inspiration for the Creative Department
Take a lead role in generating ideas and content for corporate positioning around ‘Behavioral change’ within new business and marketing materials as well as in presentations.
In 2018/19 play a lead role in creating an evolved new strategic / planning process and help educate the agency (to develop consumer experience as an integral part of the agency).
Leading the charge to create and champion our own original strategic ideas
Managing and mentoring other strategists and rising strategy talent
Serving as both an anchor and springboard for the other strategic capabilities: Marketing, Media & Strategy & Data Analysis
Acting as Guardian angel for Relationship Leads, a trusted partner to Clients, and an ally for New Business
Act as strategic lead and oversee all accounts – understand the business situation and challenges, set the strategic vision, and proactively surface opportunities.
Uncover actionable and powerful insights that drive innovative ideas and inspire creative.
Act as a brand architect to craft inspiring briefs and lay out actionable roadmaps to lead agency and clients to creative business solutions. Develop fresh insights to understand the brand, category, culture and audience.
Play an active role as subject matter expert on integrated communications planning, helping to plan the consumer journey through brand interactions within the digital/social ecosystem and beyond.
Apply research skills and methodologies to create relevant, breakthrough customer insights and identify omni-channel opportunities.
Manage the Strategy group and plan, assign, direct, and prioritize strategy work. Ensure team is meeting chargeability targets.
Responsibilities and Duties
The Director of Strategic Services has four areas of responsibility (specific duties of each are explained below)
Planning, Analyzing, Evaluating
Develop workable budgets, work plans and realistic timetables.
Collaborates with the Account Supervisor or Manager, Client Services, and the Media Department on preparation of marketing recommendations, strategies and actions for the client.
Reviews, analyzes and evaluates the following, relative to the client’s needs and objectives: media output, creative output, research reports and client data.
Defining project scope (as it relates to strategy and data efforts), estimate and writing proposals, works with project manager in the creation of project specifications and time plans.
Identify and develop target list of clients and partners
Responsible for departmental vision, structure, and management while providing leadership, accountability, and mentorship to brand strategy.
Develop in collaboration with the leadership team, innovative and / or differentiating products and services to enhance strategic and data offerings. (Including Consumer Experience, data and analytics POV, paths and workshops),
Team Leading, Coordinating, Managing
Be the agency’s lead strategic evangelist, embodying the agency’s core values and differentiating perspectives
Identify the right opportunities across industry sectors and media that align with the agency’s ongoing strategy
Develop integrated marketing strategies and tactical plans to meet and exceed the client’s marketing and business goals and objectives
Generate and drive insight for internal and client audiences around media, brands, consumers, and experiences
Represent the agency at conferences, events and symposiums
Provide market research, analyses and insights into latest industry trends
Position the agency with key industry influencers and though leaders
Lead and manage new business strategic presentations as assigned
Monitoring and enforcing risk and constraints (schedule / scope / resources)
Champion internal systems for higher productivity working
Strategic Project Management
Manage agency strategy efforts and projects, involved with projects from start to finish, ensuring successful project completion against deadlines.
Product manage long term properties (Strategic offerings and data products, i.e.) including: positioning development, marketing plans, manufacturing or development needs, timeline and roadmap planning, stats analysis and reporting
Develop integrated marketing strategies and tactical plans to meet and exceed the client’s marketing and business goals and objectives using Consumer Experience as the key level
Generate and drive insight for internal and client audiences around media, brands, consumers, and experiences
Design, execute and manage research
Manage measurement, analytics, data gathering, and reporting for clients’ and agency
Provide strategic branding thought leadership and expertise to expand business relationships
Oversee development of marketing plans and creative briefs
Training and developing staff (direct reports), and influencing cross-functional internal partners to create and execute effective research, analysis, and strategy
Developing and implementing new processes to increase efficiencies and effectiveness of research, measurement, and strategy work for teams
Work with all departments to develop integrated solutions and expand the services BG provides to clients
Actively participates in client presentations
Help lead research initiatives and manage outside consultants
Seeking new opportunities to add value to existing clients
Identifying and nurturing new business opportunities