Job details

SVP, Strategy Director

MRM is seeking talented SVP, Strategy Director to join our team in New York City, NY. This is a role with dual responsibilities: 1) lead multi-disciplinary Strategy on an iconic brand 2) grow MRM’s integrated Social practice. This individual will report to the MRM NY Chief Strategy Officer and sit on both NY Strategy leadership as well as the NY Senior Leadership Team (SLT).

THE RESPONSIBILITIES

This is T-shaped leadership at its best. This person needs to possess multi-disciplinary Strategy capabilities – with expertise and experience across brand strategy, digital strategy, experience strategy, social strategy, content strategy, CRM & loyalty strategy. In addition, they must also have depth in the Social space – not only able to lead Social strategy but grow an integrated Social practice working with disciplines from Social Commerce to social-centered Creative and beyond.

CLIENT WORK LEADER

This is a true iconic brand - it’s famous, it’s fun, and it’s beloved by families around the globe. We need a Strategy leader who:

Is visionary – to help clients not only fulfill their goals but to transform their businesses in breakthrough ways
Drives the intellectual agenda, from understanding the landscape and identifying the problem to developing solutions and recommending strategic courses of action
Achieves mutual inspiration with Creative teams, looking to Creative for Strategic input and informing and inspiring Creative with insights, research and ideas. Must be a master of the brand strategy craft, including best-in-class idea, brief and story development
Is a trusted go-to for senior clients, understanding their strategic goals, drivers and barriers, and solutions
Is an audience expert, digging deep to understand them and the relationships they have with brands, ideas, and stakeholders. Must be expert in understanding segments and personas, conducting research (from qual to quant, from social listening to user testing, etc.), working with Data and Media teams to support our audience understanding, and relentless in developing revelatory insights
Has strong experience in consumer journeys and understands that go-to-market and comms planning go well beyond the where (though we need you to understand paid/earned/shared/owned channels and platforms, too!), when and how to the why (e.g., motivations, drivers and barriers, behaviors)
Can activate the strategic and creative ideas in an end-to-end experience, from the beginning of a person’s relationship to their fandom, across all of the moments and touchpoints in the ecosystem that matter
Partner across disciplines with Creative, Media, Technology, Data, Business Leadership, others as well as other agencies in the McCann Worldgroup and IPG networks, including representing MRM in IAT environments
Present to the highest level of an organization and effectively persuade others, making the complex simple and the simple compelling
Lead strategy on new business pitches
Provide leadership and support to Strategy team members to ensure they deliver successfully
Be an outstanding communicator – clear, charismatic and compelling

PRACTICE LEADER

MRM’S Social practice is growing, and we need a leader who can drive that growth and in the right directions. We need a leader with depth of Social expertise who:

Has deep expertise in the Social space – you’ve developed social strategies, you’ve maybe won awards inspiring social-centered creative, you’re passionate about the different platforms and channels (existing and emerging), and you get the different roles that social can play (from culture driver to commerce driver)
You understand Social not just from a Strategy perspective but as a source of information and a tool for understanding (e.g., you can use social listening tools like Netbase, you can direct a team on what social insights matter)
You get Social implementation, and can work with MRM offices around the globe to determine the right social operational models for each situation, including but not limited to Influencer Strategy and Management, Community Management, Social Reporting (working with Data teams)
You can work with clients and MRM Technology teams to help determine a bespoke social stack
Has launched or grown a practice or discipline previously – you know how to productize offerings, are able to talk with clients at the highest levels to understand needs and opportunities, are skilled at navigating organizations to identify funding, resourcing and skills needs
Are entrepreneurial and understand how to run a practice like a business, setting and monitoring and adjusting revenue and other goals
Has outstanding partnership and collaboration skills – within MRM across disciplines as well as with clients ranging from Social to Digital to Marketing and Brand, from social managers to CMOs and CEO

THOUGHT & CAPABILITY LEADER

Develop and introduce new Strategic methods to nurture relationships
Understand the future of Social
Introduce imaginative ways to do research, data collection, analysis, insights & idea development
Develop and evolve the strategy process in a significant way
Expand the overall profile of Strategy and Social at the agency and network
Represent MRM in the industry (e.g., deliver talks on Social, develop thought leadership, judge industry awards)

TEAM LEADER

Role model and mentor and provide guidance to continue upskilling our team
Support the MRM NY Chief Strategy Officer in leading, nurturing and managing the NY Strategy team
Lead the development of methods that inspire and engage staff, and provide an environment that encourages great ideas to flourish
Provide input into scoping and staffing to ensure understanding of the need and matching to Strategy resource capability and availability
Manage the career development of team members, including coaching and mentoring and identifying team competency goals and gaps and plan
Attract the best talent
Represent the team to the rest of the agency and network
Nurture a culture oriented towards positivity, problem-solving, and resourcefulness
Foster a sense of community on the Strategy team
Establish the integrated Social team as a multi-disciplinary center of gravity at the agency

THE REQUIREMENTS

12+ years directly-related total experience – with at least 10 years of Strategy and at least 5 years of Social (e.g., you were a Brand strategist for 5 years, a Social strategist for 5 years, and have been in Experience Strategy for the last 2)
7+ years supervisory and management experience
Experience running (preferred: launching) a discipline or practice at an agency
Experience in kids/family brands
Expertise in Brand Strategy, Digital Strategy, Experience Strategy, CRM Strategy, Content Strategy, Social Strategy
Deep experience with consumer insights, personas, segmentation and journeys, understanding of how to grow relationships with people
Experience building go-to-market plans across omnichannel ecosystem
Ability to inspire Creative teams
Comfort and confidence with technology required to enable brand relationships, including up-to-date knowledge of mar-tech
Bachelor’s degree in a relevant area
Strong collaboration skills and flexibility with different ways to work is required
Exceptional communication skills — on the page and in presentation
Curiosity, passion, collaborative spirit, optimism to find the answer, and work ethic to deliver

About MRM

MRM is a modern relationship marketing agency that delivers transformative creative solutions at the intersection of business, culture, and technology. MRM operates in a borderless, integrated way, to allow for greater collaboration and velocity—all to the service of helping businesses grow meaningful relationships with people. MRM is part of McCann Worldgroup and the Interpublic Group of companies (NYSE: IPG), and spans 35 offices across North America, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia Pacific. For more information, please visit www.mrm.com.

We love our diverse workplace! MRM is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, gender, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability, marital status, veteran status or any other occupationally irrelevant criteria.

The salary range for this position is $125,000 to $300,000. Where an employee or prospective employee is paid within this range will depend on, among other factors, actual ranges for current/former employees in the subject position; the associated discipline; market considerations; budgetary considerations; tenure and standing with the company (applicable to current employees); as well as the employee’s/applicant’s background, pertinent experience, and qualifications.