Global Creative Strategy & Operations Lead – AI-Enabled

IHG; Atlanta (GA); Hybrid; USD 110,000 - 115,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Bonus pay

Medical/dental/vision insurance

401K

Job summary

IHG is seeking a senior operations and creative strategy leader for Global Creative Services. You will ensure the studio has the structure, processes, and governance to deliver high-quality creative at pace, while advancing AI-enabled workflows and regional support across Atlanta, Guadalajara, and London.

You will manage budgets, briefs, and cross-functional partnerships, build scalable operating models, and lead teams through operational change to elevate creative excellence across brands.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent professional experience in marketing, creative strategy, or related discipline.
• 8–12 years of progressive experience across creative strategy, studio operations, or marketing operations.
• Experience with global brands and managing senior stakeholders.
• Strong briefing and creative direction skills with ability to translate objectives into strategy.
• Experience managing budgets, vendors, and purchase orders.
• Experience using AI tools and Smartsheet workflows for operations.

Responsibilities

• Lead day-to-day operations for Global Creative Services, including intake management, workflow governance, capacity planning, delivery an AI enablement across Atlanta, Guadalajara, and London.
• Manage the Creative Services budget, including freelance and agency spend, purchase orders, accruals, risks, and Finance partnership.
• Own and evolve the operational infrastructure that supports brief intake, timelines, status communication, team capacity, and delivery visibility.
• Maintain effective team rhythms, including standups, project reviews, capacity checks, and cross-functional touchpoints.
• Manage vendor and agency operational relationships, ensuring statements of work, deliverables, timelines, and purchase orders are tracked with rigor.
• Write and quality-control creative briefs across IHG brands, ensuring briefs are strategically sharp, insight-led, and actionable for creative teams.
• Partner with brand marketing stakeholders to translate business objectives into clear creative strategy and direction.
• Lead creative strategy on priority campaigns, including brief development, creative evaluation, and stakeholder presentations.
• Champion creative excellence by advocating for work that is commercially relevant, distinctive, and brand-building.
• Build the workflows and standards needed to support region-specific briefs for international markets outside the US.
• Lead by example in AI adoption, using emerging tools to improve briefing, strategy enrichment, administration, and status communication.
• Support Marketing Transformation pilots by operationalizing new tools and processes within Creative Services before broader rollout.
• Develop team members and help lead the evolution of Creative Services' operating model, strategy capability, and use of technology.

Skills

Creative strategy

Creative leadership

Studio operations

Marketing operations

Budget management

Vendor management

AI tools

Smartsheet workflows

Stakeholder management

Communication

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent

Tools

Smartsheet

Job description

IHG is seeking a senior operations and creative strategy leader for Global Creative Services. You will ensure the studio has the structure, processes, and governance to deliver high-quality creative at pace, while advancing AI-enabled workflows and regional support across Atlanta, Guadalajara, and London.

You will manage budgets, briefs, and cross-functional partnerships, build scalable operating models, and lead teams through operational change to elevate creative excellence across brands.