What are the responsibilities and job description for the Head of Strategy position at Freeman+Leonard?
The Head of Strategy will build and lead a talented a group that provides strategic leadership for all work delivered by the agency. 15 years of strategy / account planning experience at an agency is required.
Hybrid position in Dallas, TX
You’ll be working together with Creative, Account, PMO, Production and Tech as partners to deliver strategy rooted in powerful storytelling, formulated frameworks that place logic above all else, while taking on the uber-modern twist of incorporating measurement, data, insights and optimizations as part of your epic plan. You’ll be working alongside the brains of the operation, from omnichannel strategists, campaign strategists, data activators and insights extractors to performance-based media experts.
Responsibilities
- Your role is integral to leading, planning and delivering best-in-class strategic thought leadership across our client portfolio and new business prospects, with work spanning from creative campaigns, retail, experiential, digital, social, influencers and partnerships to next-level innovative solutions.
- Serve as the strategic lead for the Dallas office, overseeing and owning strategy and data across all projects and agency teams
- Be the strategic champion and thought leader representing the agency to senior client leadership
- Supervise teams comprised of omnichannel and campaign strategists and data-driven experts
- Formulate, develop and enhance strategic processes and frameworks that can be applied from briefing and planning to measurement and optimization stages
- Steer all briefs, plans and proposals with integrity and consistency, with hands-on involvement in creating presentation decks
- Provide POVs and insights at client and/or agency business levels
- Analyze data and monitor trends to uncover key insights and shape them into strategic recommendations
- Work alongside reporting and measurement teams to translate data into actionable optimizations
- Inspire with knowledge and lead with passion, guiding strategic discussions based on subject-matter expertise for agency teams and clients
- Build proposals and go-to-market plans based on logical and impactful storytelling
- Guide team members with best-in-class strategy knowledge and strengthen each member’s capabilities
- Collaborate with business, creative and activation teams to ensure strategic alignment throughout
- Collaborate with agency network offices on projects and interagency workshops
- Reports to: Chief Operating Officer
Requirements:
- 15 years in strategy / account planning at an agency
- Experience in consumer electronics, communications or technology industry is a plus
- Must have senior client-facing experience, with the skills to present to C-level clients
- Understanding of data – measurements and KPIs, analytics, insights-driven optimization
- Diverse experience in agency functions ranging from brand, digital, experiential, retail, social and influencer strategy development and knowledge of how to leverage them to achieve marketing and program goals
- Can clearly and persuasively communicate strategic recommendations to internal and external audiences who have variable levels of understanding
- Deep understanding of and experience in consumer research (qual and quant) and a grasp of a wide range of approaches; facility with interpreting research, knowing the difference between an observation and an insight and how to best apply each to marketing strategies
- Ability to collaborate with the creative team in developing concepts and campaigns
- Comfortable working in a multichannel environment – able to be the team’s trusted strategy voice through an understanding of retail, experiential, digital and social platforms, able to leverage insights and translate them into creative briefs and client presentations
- Proactive and savvy in identifying potential challenges for the business and not being afraid to take the lead in raising and addressing them
- Able to drive conversations and thought leadership with senior leadership agency-wide and with clients
- Deep understanding of how media platforms (digital, retail, experiential) work together to support one strategic concept
- A hands-on and proactive self-starter mindset
