We’re looking for a new planner to direct strategy on three brands.

McGarrah Jessee works to build what we call a “whole brand experience.” We work across branding, UX, product development, marketing, advertising and beyond. With that breadth of engagement, we’re looking for a director-level strategist with a track record of shepherding breakthrough creative and a strong appetite for business-building ideas.Success in this position demands unusually great creative development instincts and a deep understanding of branding, product innovation, target segmentation, brand portfolio development, channel strategy, customer engagement and social user experience. Additionally, this role leads a team of highly skilled strategists, so a desire and passion for mentorship and leadership is crucial.We’ve got a proper research department, so methodology acumen isn’t required. But we do need a seasoned player who recognizes when research can help, who can commission and utilize secondary and primary research and who is willing to spend time in the field. QSR and retail experience is a plus. But brand-building, customer insight and portfolio development experience is more important for this role.

Responsibilities:

Identify strategic opportunities and develop planning and research initiatives to address unforeseen challenges

Guide client and agency through a continuously evolving landscape

Work with research and analytics to identify and apply insights across branding, UX, marcom and product development

Provide focus and direction to creative, design, UX and engagement teams

Collaborate with entire creative team on insightful and brand-building creative

Lead a team of more junior strategists through strong mentorship and leadership

Partner with the account director to build the business across the digital, physical and product experience

Requirements:

10 years of experience in strategy and planning in a top-notch creative agency

Experience developing brand positioning, product positioning and product portfolio strategy

Experience developing customer segments and directing qualitative and quantitative research to verify and validate segments

Experience managing and mentoring a team of planners, UX strategists and research analysts

Significant QSR and retail experience (preferred but not required)

Please do not call. All submissions will be reviewed. Thank you.