Strategy Director

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Department: Advertising

Location: London

Contact type: Permanent

Full Time/Part time: Full Time

Reporting into: Strategy Partner

About Ogilvy:

Our vision is to inspire brands and people to impact the world. To create big ideas that make a significant contribution to the planet, society, and the bottom line. We believe in today's world this is the best way for our clients to achieve sustainable growth. We achieve this by breaking down the barriers that restrict talent and ideas.

Which is why our teams work fluidly across 5 capabilities: Advertising, Consulting, Experience, PR & Influencer, and Health. This allows us to not only operate but innovate at the intersection of capabilities and talent. We believe impact and magic lies at this intersection. Ogilvy scales this by seamlessly connecting and accessing the deep cultural expertise of 132 offices in 83 countries.

The result is multifaceted ideas for our clients that drive impact and are born from the intersection of platform x culture x technology.

We call this Borderless Creativity.

Ogilvy was ranked the number one UK agency at D&AD and was the only UK agency to win a Glass Lions at Cannes. Ogilvy was also nominated network of the year in Cannes Lions, Campaign, Effie Awards EMEA, London International Awards, The One Show and WARC Rankings.

In 2022, Ogilvy was the most creatively awarded agency globally - including the most awarded agency at the Clio Awards, DMA Awards, Influencer Marketing Awards, London International Awards and The One Show.

Ogilvy UK's PR practice won large agency of the year at the PR Week awards. And our Consulting practice was in the Forbes 2022 list of best management consultancy firms.

The Role:

As a Strategy Director at Ogilvy, you will play a pivotal role in leading the development of strategic plans tailored to meet each client's distinct objectives and needs. You'll stay at the forefront of the latest trends, insights, and best practices in the realm of strategy development while advocating for diversity of thought and championing inclusive approaches. Collaborating closely with clients, you'll gain a deep understanding of their businesses, target audiences, and brand values, translating this knowledge into compelling campaigns that resonate with their customers and drive tangible outcomes.

Beyond strategizing influential and innovative campaigns for high-profile clients, rooted in culture, and deserving of attention, you'll contribute your insights to shape the agency's creative output. Your recommendations and inventive solutions will pave the way for clients to amplify trends and topics effectively.

As a mentor and leader, you'll guide and support junior team members in their professional growth, fostering an environment of collaboration and agility. Your ability to lead, inspire, and collaborate with others will be integral to thriving in this ever-evolving industry.

Key Responsibilities/The Do's:

• Lead the development of bespoke strategic plans that align with clients' unique goals, incorporating the latest trends and best practices.
• Collaborate closely with clients to grasp their business, target audience, and brand ethos, and formulate campaigns that resonate and yield results.
• Conduct in-depth research and analysis to pinpoint emerging trends, influencers, and topics that can enhance compelling content and campaigns.
• Partner with internal teams-creative, account, and media-to ensure campaign integration aligns with overall brand strategy.
• Emerge as a thought leader both within the agency and the industry at large, sharing insights, trends, and best practices with teams and clients.
• Contribute to new business pitches and proposals, infusing creative and strategic ideas to differentiate Ogilvy.
• Offer mentorship and guidance to junior team members, cultivating their skills and fostering career growth.
• Stay updated on the latest trends, technologies, and tools in influence and social marketing, applying this knowledge to enhance campaign performance.
• Develop influential and innovative social strategies for high-profile clients, deeply rooted in culture and deserving of attention.
• Provide strategic counsel and inspiration across a range of consumer brands.
• Collaborate with planners, creatives, and creators to collaboratively address challenges and deliver exceptional work.
• Recognise opportunities for clients to harness and amplify trends and topics.
• Enhance the agency's creative output through insightful recommendations and inventive problem-solving.

Requirements/Experience We Value:

• Very strong strategic thinker who enjoys grappling with brand foundations and is able to capture the essence of brands in simple, persuasive language.
• This is a fast-moving account where you will be working across multiple projects, teams and markets, so the ability to multitask and think both clearly and quickly is key.
• You will be confident in building relationships with senior clients and becoming their trusted partner. You need to bring clarity and direction to client conversations as well as having the skills to address tricky sticking points.
• You should be confident leading discussions of business issues and providing expert insight and understanding into how brands grow.
• You need to be data literate and able to understand client's business results and issues, as well as having experience of writing effectiveness case studies.
• You will enjoy writing strategic briefs and presentations and be a skilled verbal and visual communicator.
• You will enjoy the creative process and be skilled at helping shape/champion creative ideas, making sure they are on brand strategy.
• You need to be able to work independently and lead projects, but also be a strong, respectful collaborator who can manage up/across/down and who enjoys working alongside colleagues from disciplines including behavioural science, digital strategy etc.
• You should be great at managing your time effectively and demonstrate attention to detail.
• You don't need to be a digital expert, but many briefs will be digital-first, so you will need to bring linked up cross-channel thinking and you will collaborate closely with our digital strategist.
• Experience of working on global or pan-market brands would be a strong advantage; at the least, we expect you to have strong curiosity about other markets and the desire to immerse yourself strategically in other cultures. Ability to speak another European language would be advantageous although not essential.
• Interest/experience in FMGC (especially food and beverage) would also be advantageous.

How we help you Thrive:

• 25 days annual leave + 1 Volunteer Day
• Bupa Healthcare
• Enhanced Maternity, Adoption and Shared Parental Leave
• We have a Flexible Working Model with core working hours: 10am - 4pm
• A 1.5:1 Matching Pension Structure
• Wellbeing and Health: Up to £25.00 per month towards physical or online exercise class membership, Unmind membership, LifeWorks tool and annual eye tests and development budgets and Wellbeing incentives and activities throughout the year
• Season Ticket Loan and Cycle to Work Scheme
• Life Assurance

At Ogilvy, our people are at the heart of what we do: a creative agency that sparks game-changing ideas across culture and business through collaboration, integrity, and a celebration of self-expression.

We believe in building powerful teams with purpose. This means hiring and nurturing talent across all races, ethnicities, religions, abilities, sexual orientation, and gender identities - and we relentlessly curate transformative initiatives that make our commitment to fairness, and equity a reality.

Our ultimate mission is to leave a positive impact on the world, creating a better future for all, while supporting and uplifting the global communities we serve. This is central to our mantra of Borderless Creativity.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or status as a protected veteran.