Strategy Director

PASSPORT BRAND DESIGN; Toronto; Hybrid; CAD 110,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading design agency in Toronto is seeking a Strategy Director to lead human-centered projects and drive impactful creative strategies. The ideal candidate will have 5-7+ years of experience in strategic planning and brand building, particularly in complex, regulated portfolios. This role requires excellent communication skills and a proven track record of influencing creative work. The salary ranges from $110,000 to $160,000 CAD, and the agency promotes a hybrid working model to foster collaboration and creativity.

Qualifications

• 5-7+ years’ experience in strategic planning and brand-building.
• Experience in alcohol/spirits or CPG category is a plus.
• Proficient in CX & CRM with a focus on consumer journeys.
• Managerial experience is required.

Responsibilities

• Interpret qualitative and quantitative research to generate insights.
• Oversee brief development in collaboration with internal partners.
• Design omni-channel strategies with focus on D2C digital touchpoints.
• Facilitate client workshops.

Skills

Strategic planning

Brand-building

CX & CRM

Analytical thinking

Client relationships

Communication skills

Job description

About Passport Brand Design

With offices in Newport Beach, New York, Toronto and Montréal, Passport Brand Design (a VML company) is rapidly putting itself on the map as a trusted brand partner. We’re passionate about offering creative leadership to global businesses seeking direction on high-level brand strategy, evergreen and seasonal campaigns, and creative executions across all touch points. Our holistic approach to brand identity begins by creating a strategic positioning and brand purpose, which is then translated into a core creative idea that has the power to align teams and guide a fully integrated marketing process. We are looking for people who love what they do, who want to stay inspired and inspire others, who want to do great work and work with great people.

Who We Are Looking For

As Strategy Director, you will be at the forefront of our human-centered approach, translating empathy and understanding into impactful experiences. The role requires you to dedicate energy to anticipating emerging opportunities for our clients at the intersection of people, culture, technology, and business. We are looking for someone who leads by championing others, is hungry to get to the root of client’s complex business challenges and knows how to mine audience insights and culture for inspiration. Please note this role is to work on a leading offering in the nicotine category.

What You’ll Do

• Interpret research both qualitative and quantitative and translate into solid insights.
• Ensure a solid final product is delivered; challenge the team\'s analytical thinking to ensure clear, compelling, and actionable analysis for clients or pitches.
• Oversee and guide brief development in collaboration with internal partners (Creative, Client Engagement); Secure agency leadership and client approval.
• Create highly detailed, omni-channel touchpoint strategies. Being able to take brand and campaign strategies and optimize the way they are translated across all touchpoints, with particular focus on D2C Digital touchpoints (web, email, SMS, social).
• Proactively recommend insight mining plans to craft strategy for clients/pitches.
• Partner with Executive Creative Director to ensure that all creative work for the account aligns with the strategy and reflects our best possible work—bold, differentiated, and compelling.
• Inspire and challenge the team to take creative risks. Ensure the final creative shown to clients aligns with the creative brief.
• Partner with clients to drive business and strategy. Ensure excellence in logistics, creativity of approach, and client satisfaction.
• Design and facilitate client workshops

What You’ll Need

• 5-7+ years’ experience in overall strategic planning and brand-building, having worked across complex, regulated brand portfolios. (Integrated strategy experience – including with CX strategy would be a huge asset.)
• Previous alcohol/spirits and/or CPG category experience with brand launch expertise a plus.
• Solid grounding in CX & CRM, with demonstrated ability to develop and maintain efficient consumer journeys that create marked improvements across the consumer disposition funnel
• As a critical and analytical thinker, innovator, and visionary, you will play a crucial role in inspiring creativity and guiding the team toward success.
• Managerial experience.
• Able to develop strong client relationships and trust based on deep immersion in the client’s business.
• Highly collaborative and able to work effectively across internal and external stakeholders.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Must be fully proficient in English to a business level (French is helpful but not mandatory)
• A proven track record of influencing impactful creative work.

The base salary for this position at the time of this posting may range between the values at the bottom of this posting. Individual compensation varies based on job-related factors, including location, business needs, level of responsibility, experience, and qualifications.

• $110,000 CAD - $160,000 CAD

We believe the best work happens when we\'re together, fostering creativity, collaboration, and connection. That\'s why we’ve adopted a hybrid approach, with teams in the office an average of four days a week. If you require accommodations or flexibility, please discuss this with the hiring team during the interview process.

WPP (Passport Brand Design) is an equal opportunity employer and considers applicants for all positions without discrimination or regard to characteristics. We are committed to fostering a culture of respect in which everyone feels they belong and has the same opportunities to progress in their careers.

VML is a WPP Agency. For more information, please visit our website, and follow VML on our social channels via Instagram, LinkedIn, and X.

When you click "Submit Application", this will send any information you add below to VML. Before you do this, we think it\'s a good idea to read through our Recruitment Privacy Policy. California residents should read our California Recruitment Privacy Notice. This explains what we do with your personal data when you apply for a role with us, and, how you can update the information you have provided us with or how to remove it.