Senior Communications Strategist

Senior Comms Strategist

Senior Comms Strategists leads strategic media planning, client strategy, development, and evolution. Translates client briefs into comprehensive, creative and innovative communication strategies, providing output to maximize both creative media tactics as well as the client’s budget. Defines, monitors, and evaluates key metrics for campaign success. Supports and inspires the work and the media team. Reports to the head of Comms Strategy and Chief Strategy Officer.

Essential Functions

- Leads communications planning and strategic media planning processes for clients. Proactively seeks opportunities for clients beyond the brief.

- Develops clear and inspiring communications strategies that generate measurable results, with a focus on new and emerging media opportunities to help drive the clients’ and agency’s business. Ascertains client’s needs and key media challenges and recommends effective communication strategies.

- Leads team on the implementation of channel plans which ladder back to agreed-upon communication strategies.

- Monitors and ensures that channel plans are steeped in consumer insights with solid rationale.

- Produces work that delivers on client’s goals and gains industry recognition for its creativity and results.

- Provides thought leadership in consumer behavior, creative media engagements, emerging media, accountability and measurement.

- Develops and maintains effective client relationships. Establishes a true partnership in client’s business by gaining and maintaining a deep understanding of business needs and issues faced. Maintains a vocal, visible role in all major internal and client meetings.

- Maintains thorough, up-to-date knowledge of client’s business (market share, business priorities, key competitor strategies, etc.), monitoring progress and accuracy of all communication plans.

- Understands and explains modeling tools and tactics (i.e.: regression modeling, econometric modeling) to teams and clients.

- Conducts qualitative and quantitative research to help illuminate relevant insights. Seeks out potential additional data needs and other possible resource improvements, in an effort to regularly elevate the communications planning process and resulting channel plan outputs.

- Links qualitative and quantitative consumer data and research with consumer profiles and media strategy approaches.

- Correlates and analyzes multiple data points from agency sources including syndicated research, proprietary agency research, as well as client data, shares, brand health tracking etc. and draws conclusions from data.

- Actively participates in new business pitches, as determined by CEO.

- Constantly seeks and creates creative opportunities in both media choice and usage to increase visibility/impact; seeks ways to merchandise media team’s work to client.

- Monitors the efficiency and effectiveness of media systems/processes, providing recommendations for streamlining processes as requested.

Requirements

- At least 3-5 years experience in a communications or strategic planning role, with a demonstrated track record of translating a strategy into effective media solutions based on insights that amplify a campaign to deliver on client goals.

- A demonstrated track record of gaining trust and respect by consistently demonstrating sound creative, strategic, and analytical thinking skills.

- Ability to build and maintain strong interpersonal / professional relationship with employees, vendors, clients, etc.

- Demonstrated strong command of Media Research resources, capabilities and limitations.

- Demonstrated self-confidence (and track record) in championing innovative, bold and game-changing ideas.

- Analytical thinker with the ability to apply critical thinking and analysis in writing.

- Strong math and analytical skills, Working comprehension of strategy development and required media math. Ability to synthesize data quickly and anticipate and solve problems before they arise.

- Demonstrated understanding of consumer insights and how to put insights into action.

- Exceptional written, verbal communication skills with the ability to communicate with all levels of employees, vendors and clients.

- Strong attention to detail.

- Some travel and after hours and work required.