Social and Influencer Lead

Ocado Retail; Hatfield; Hybrid; GBP 55,000 - 70,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading UK online supermarket is seeking a Social and Influencer Lead to inspire and manage the brand's social media presence. The ideal candidate will own and execute comprehensive influencer programs, working closely with a talented team. This hybrid role is based in Hatfield and offers a competitive salary along with numerous benefits, including health insurance and a generous holiday allowance. Join us to play a key role in shaping our marketing strategy for the future.

Benefits

Private medical insurance

Annual bonus scheme

Up to 7% matched pension contributions

26 days holiday plus 8 flexible bank holidays

Qualifications

• Proven experience in developing social media strategies for consumer brands.
• Strong track record of managing influencer programs.
• Expertise in identifying talent using metrics.

Responsibilities

• Inspire and lead brand social media initiatives.
• Own and execute the creator and talent program.
• Manage external social media agency to ensure high-quality output.

Skills

Social media strategy implementation

Influencer program management

Creative content development

Strong problem-solving skills

Talent identification

Tools

Sprinklr

CreatorIQ

Job description

Contract type: Permanent
Location: Hatfield (Hybrid working – 3 days in the office)
Working hours per week: 40 hours
Level: Lead
Application Closing Date: Friday 6th February 2026

About Us

Our mission is to deliver joy in every shop, through unbeatable choice, unrivalled service, and reassuringly good value. We’re Ocado Retail, a market‑leading joint venture between Ocado Group and M&S, and the world’s largest dedicated online supermarket, ocado.com. Not only is Ocado.com the only place to shop a full range of M&S food online, it’s also the home to the widest online supermarket range in the UK and champion of small, independent brands. We’re also the brains behind Zoom by Ocado, our same‑day grocery delivery service.

About The Team And The Role

We are looking for a Social and Influencer Lead to join the wider Marketing Team. This role comes at an exciting time for Ocado’s future plans in the social and creator space. You will have the opportunity to shape the future vision for our plans in this area as we turbo‑charge our commitment and make social and influencers an even more important part of our marketing strategy in FY27 and beyond. You’ll have the licence to define what good looks like and how we best set ourselves up for success.

This role reports into the Head of Communications and Social and leads Ocado’s social and creator program. In doing so, you will manage a team of three: Creative & Campaigns Manager, Influencers & Brand Ambassadors Manager, Social Content & Influencer Creative. You will also work alongside our in‑house creative team, EAT, and collaborate with PR counterparts and external agencies across the brand marketing team. This role is responsible for setting the strategy and delivering Ocado Retail’s organic social and creator outputs.

What You’ll Do

Strategy & Leadership

• Inspire and champion brand social media, taking our existing strategy and content franchises and combining them with your own vision to oversight the creation of brilliant, engaging content.
• Own and lead the development and execution of the full creator and talent program for FY27 and beyond, partnering with the Head of Comms and Social on how this fits into the overall comms strategy.
• Create, define and implement a comprehensive talent roster strategy, including the right mix of content verticals and talent tiers.
• Develop a Talent Flywheel approach to scale the program, incentivising organic posting through a scaled gifting program and retained contracts for the most successful organic creators.
• Establish Goal Setting and Measurement Standards for both organic social and our creator program that correlate with business outcomes such as barrier breakdown, trial and acquisition.
• Partner with the Head of Comms and Social to ensure an integrated mindset applied to all briefs and content is better utilised across channels (e.g. CRM, Paid Digital, Merchandising, Print). Here you embed yourself in the various teams to understand opportunities for content sharing.

Content & Execution

• Take an engaging and inventive approach to ensure our organic social content is resonating with current and prospective Ocado customers.
• Partner with your team to identify content opportunities and themes from across Ocado and existing partners like M&S and other smaller suppliers.
• Oversee organic social budget, working closely with your team and Ocado’s paid digital team to inform influencers and boosting decisions.
• Collaborate with marketing team on integrated content approach to Ocado Life; identifying ways we can be smarter with the content created and utilised across channels.

Management & Partnerships

• Line‑manage two direct reports (Creative & Campaigns Manager, Influencers & Brand Ambassadors Manager) giving clear direction and upskilling in line with their development plans.
• Manage external social media agency and other partners to ensure they are an extension of the in‑house team and delivering best in class work.
• Oversee relationships with key brand ambassadors and influencers alongside Influencers & Brand Ambassadors Manager, with a view of how content can be better utilised across channels for maximum input and return on investment.
• Responsible for content development and creation of organic BAU social content in line with overarching strategy alongside Creative and Campaigns Manager and in‑house creative team, Eat (social content creator, videographers, producers, copywriters).
• Demonstrate cross‑functional alignment and horizon scanning by working alongside PR, Commercial and broader Customer teams to uncover trends/data and identify relevant consumer opportunities.

Issues Management

• Partner with the Customer Hub and Ocado Logistics to advise on and mitigate any potential reputational risks that emerge on social channels. Lead on social messaging and responses in partnership with corporate comms colleagues.
• Partner with Head of Comms and Social to develop and maintain issues and crisis communications protocols for social channels, ensuring the business is able to respond effectively in line with broader existing issues management plans.

Who You Are

• Proven experience either in‑house or agency.
• Strong track record in implementing social media strategies and influencer programmes for a consumer‑facing brand that have led to clear and demonstrable success in achieving broader business goals e.g. consideration.
• Expertise in helping a household brand develop a unique tone of voice and ownable look and feel across social channels.
• Proven ability in Talent Identification, using metrics like audience overlap and core performance (follower growth, engagement rate) to select individual creators.
• Experience with creator management tools (e.g. Sprinklr, CreatorIQ).
• Creative and dynamic: confident in your ideas, fun to work with, and full of ideas for entertaining content.
• Agile & adaptive, comfortable working in a fast‑paced environment, with excellent problem‑solving, multitasking, and time management skills.
• Constantly challenging what’s possible – the social space is fast moving and always evolving. You should be someone who is constantly thinking about what’s next, helping ORL stay ahead of the curve.

What’s In It For You

By joining Ocado Retail, you’ll have the chance to experience life at the world’s largest online retailer, work with an amazing bunch of people who challenge what’s possible each day, and grow your skills and career in online retail.

Below are a taste of what we offer:

• Health & Wellbeing: Private medical insurance with option to add your family, Digital GP appointments, market‑leading family policies, mental health support, discounted gym memberships, dental insurance, and more.
• Spend & Save: Annual bonus scheme split between personal and business objectives, recognition with reward platform, up to 7% matched pension contributions, 15% Ocado discount, 20% M&S discount, free breakfast every day in the office, electric vehicle leasing scheme, and free shuttle bus from Hatfield station to the office.
• Never miss the moments that matter: Hybrid working, 26 days holiday plus 8 flexible bank holidays, options to buy extra holiday, 2 weeks work from anywhere, and lifestyle break opportunities.

Our Hiring Process

We receive a high volume of applications and genuinely appreciate the time and effort invested by every candidate. Every application is reviewed by a member of our team. If your skills and experience are a strong match, a Talent Partner will contact you to discuss the role and guide you through the next steps of our hiring process.

Your Application and AI

In the spirit of innovation, we welcome you to use AI tools in your application, just as we use them in our own business at Ocado Retail. However, as you leverage this technology, please don’t lose sight of the most important element: your unique self. Your experiences, passions, and personality are what truly set you apart. Ensure that your application still authentically conveys who you are and why you’re a great fit for us.

Everyone’s welcome

We’re an equal opportunities employer, which means that we make sure all potential colleagues are treated fairly and equally. If you need this job description in an alternative format (e.g., larger print, different document type, etc.), please reach out to us at [e-mail] and we’ll be happy to assist you. If you require reasonable adjustments during the recruitment process, please let us know on the application form.