Associate Director of Strategy

**This position will be expected to work out of our NYC office in a hybrid capacity**

About The Sasha Group:

Come and work with an ambitious and growing brand strategy team. Where in any one week you might be advising a vodka startup on its positioning, working with a cannabis brand on their market entry, researching the behaviors of GenZ for a music tech brand and then discussing the brand evolution of a 100 year old household CPG skincare company. These are the things that will fill your week at the Sasha Group, where our branding and strategy division extends across startups who are in the early stages of defining their foundations, to scaleups looking to make a marketing splash, to incubated new brands looking for a name and identity and launch strategy and of course developing strategies and briefs for campaign work in the digital and social space. A small team, NY and remote combined, an awesome culture of flexibility, autonomy and learning, with an entrepreneurial spirit. Bring your side hustles! We are looking for someone who is not shy of research , with a healthy dose of curiosity and intellectual rigor, and a knack for finding the signal in the noise. We welcome those who are keen to grow and learn, while flexing creative skills and problem solving, in the pursuit of building great brands that people love! And of course to help us continue to grow this small but mighty team. 

KEY AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITY

Use research and insight, experience, industry and client knowledge to develop and lead human-centric, differentiated  work for our clients, from brand “heart” (brand foundations)  to “head”, (core brand strategy) to “hands” (brand activation) in partnership with key disciplines at Sasha.

• Demonstrate strong analytical and strategic skills to help solve clients’ business problems.
• Using research, data and insight build clear, compelling and effective narratives for our clients’ brands
• Bring to life our clients’ consumers in culture through the insightful use of qual & quant research together with cultural mining.
• Build and maintain client and external agency relationships.
• Craft compelling briefs, brief creative teams and steer or facilitate collaborative brainstorms, workshops and idea sessions that lead to strong strategic work
• Evaluate creative concepts and communication opportunities and provide feedback and/or recommendations to the team
• Grow & develop of his/her direct reports / the wider team by providing clear, direct, actionable and motivating feedback
• Stay abreast of the competitive landscape explore new tools and methods for strategy research to constantly improve our offering

Business Development / New business

• Help to drive strategy on key new business pitches, ensure understanding, carry out focused research and insights gathering and direct the strategic development of pitch presentations
• Oversee the development of compelling case studies led by Strategy associate and account team members
• Proactively develop new insights, audience and cultural understanding that will build our clients’ businesses (and ours in turn)
• Maintain client relationships and spot opportunities to bring to the Sasha team

Growing the Sasha brand & culture

• Participate in cross-functional learning & development opportunities to share and mentor in the brand strategy discipline
• Write quarterly thought leadership or case study based content for Sasha social channels
• Bring forth proactive ideas on ways to improve team culture, the quality of the work, and ongoing learning

EXPERIENCE/KNOWLEDGE REQUIRED

• 5-7 years strategically building brands either as a consultant or agency strategist, or building strategy from within the walls of a brand. 
• Able to overlay brand strategy with an understanding of digital behaviors,  and channels for communications and connections,  and creating the conditions (and compelling briefs) for teams to develop effective brand activations and ideas. 
• Comfortable with core research tools, and ability to review qualitative, quantitative research, and behavioral data to draw and interpret insights.
• Experience in mentoring and coaching team members while ensuring quality of strategic output.
• Strong cross-functional teamwork and collaborative skills.
• Self-motivated and shows initiative in spotting opportunities, identifying a clear path forward and acting upon it swiftly.

Unsure if you meet the qualifications? We are always looking for talent which will continue to cultivate an inclusive and representative team that will enhance our perspectives, skill sets, background, and behaviors.  We encourage those who are passionate about what we do to apply!

• • Exact compensation may vary based on skills, experience, and location.  
  • Base Salary $115,000- $135,000
  • Employer-sponsored 401k with match
  • Medical, Dental, and vision coverage
  • Caregiver (Parental) Leave
  • Unlimited PTO
  • Health and Wellness benefits