Senior Director, Strategic Planning

Cox Enterprises; Atlanta (GA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Job summary

Cox Automotive seeks a Senior Director, Strategic Planning to lead high-impact initiatives and partner with senior leaders to prioritize growth opportunities and strengthen decision-making. You will guide engagements from definition through execution and build financial models to inform strategic choices.

You will influence across business units, synthesize findings for executives, and drive strategic initiatives that shape where Cox Automotive competes and how it wins.

Qualifications

• BA/BS Degree required with 12+ years of strategic planning and/or management consulting experience.
• Strong analytical, financial modeling, research, organizational, and project management skills.
• Clear, concise written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to translate complex data into executive-ready documents and presentations.
• Ability to apply critical thinking, sound judgment, and strategic perspective to ambiguous or emerging opportunities.
• Ability to respectfully challenge perspectives, make recommendations, and articulate practical next steps.
• Demonstrated ability to establish credibility, influence leaders, and serve as an internal thought partner on strategic and business issues.
• Strong cross-functional collaboration skills and the ability to work effectively with leaders at all levels.
• Ability to translate broad concepts and market insights into compelling stories, recommendations, and actionable business plans.
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, changing environment with a sense of urgency and adaptability.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.
• Ability to travel as needed, up to 20%.

Responsibilities

• Lead market, customer, competitive, portfolio, and profit pool assessments for Cox Automotive and its business groups.
• Apply strategic planning frameworks to evaluate internal and external factors, identify opportunities and risks, and recommend clear choices.
• Define and communicate strategies for where to play, how to win, and what to do across Cox Automotive and its business units.
• Use hypothesis-driven analysis to identify root causes, key drivers, critical assumptions, and actionable insights, even when data is incomplete.
• Build financial models and scenario analyses to evaluate sensitivities and support strategic, investment, and operational decisions.
• Synthesize complex research and analysis into concise recommendations and implications for executive audiences.
• Lead strategic projects by defining scope, objectives, success measures, workplans, and deliverables.
• Advise senior leaders and cross-functional teams as a strategic thought partner, bringing new insights and an enterprise-wide perspective.
• Build strong relationships across Cox Automotive and influence decisions while balancing enterprise and business unit priorities.
• Guide solution group strategy leaders in developing business unit plans, strategic assessments, and financial analyses.
• Plan and facilitate productive executive planning sessions, ideation workshops, and decision-making meetings.
• Develop portfolio assessments, total addressable market analyses, profit pool analyses, and other decision-support materials.
• Prepare executive communications, meeting materials, presentations, and summaries that advance the strategic planning process.
• Partner across functions to gather expertise, align stakeholders, and support the execution of strategic initiatives.
• Support industry- and customer-facing strategy communications.
• Contribute to budget planning and provide analysis that supports investment decisions and operational efficiency.
• Gather, analyze, and communicate marketplace and industry trends across the organization.

Skills

Analytical thinking

Financial modeling

Executive communication

Strategic planning

Project management

Cross-functional collaboration

Presentation skills

Leadership

Decision making

Education

BA/BS Degree

Tools

Microsoft Office

Job description

Position Overview

The Senior Director, Strategic Planning leads high-impact projects and initiatives that help Cox Automotive determine where to play, how to win, and what to do. This role partners with senior leaders across the organization to prioritize growth opportunities, strengthen strategic decision-making, and help business and solution groups achieve their financial and strategic objectives.

Working closely with the strategy team, operational vice presidents, and general managers, this leader will guide strategic planning engagements from definition through execution. The role requires strong strategy, analytics, financial modeling, project leadership, and communication skills, along with the ability to influence across functions and levels in a rapidly changing industry.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic planning and analysis

• Lead market, customer, competitive, portfolio, and profit pool assessments for Cox Automotive and its business groups.
• Apply strategic planning frameworks to evaluate internal and external factors, identify opportunities and risks, and recommend clear choices.
• Define and communicate strategies for where to play, how to win, and what to do across Cox Automotive and its business units.
• Use hypothesis-driven analysis to identify root causes, key drivers, critical assumptions, and actionable insights, even when data is incomplete.
• Build financial models and scenario analyses to evaluate sensitivities and support strategic, investment, and operational decisions.
• Synthesize complex research and analysis into concise recommendations and implications for executive audiences.

Leadership and influence

• Lead strategic projects by defining scope, objectives, success measures, workplans, and deliverables.
• Advise senior leaders and cross-functional teams as a strategic thought partner, bringing new insights and an enterprise-wide perspective.
• Build strong relationships across Cox Automotive and influence decisions while balancing enterprise and business unit priorities.
• Guide solution group strategy leaders in developing business unit plans, strategic assessments, and financial analyses.
• Plan and facilitate productive executive planning sessions, ideation workshops, and decision-making meetings.

Execution and communication

• Develop portfolio assessments, total addressable market analyses, profit pool analyses, and other decision-support materials.
• Prepare executive communications, meeting materials, presentations, and summaries that advance the strategic planning process.
• Partner across functions to gather expertise, align stakeholders, and support the execution of strategic initiatives.
• Support industry- and customer-facing strategy communications.
• Contribute to budget planning and provide analysis that supports investment decisions and operational efficiency.
• Gather, analyze, and communicate marketplace and industry trends across the organization.

Required Qualifications

• BA/BS Degree required with 12+ years of relevant strategic planning and/or management consulting experience required. Candidate can also have an MS degree and 10+ years of experience or 16+ years of experience in lieu of a degree.
• Strong analytical, financial modeling, research, organizational, and project management skills.
• Clear, concise written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to translate complex data into executive-ready documents and presentations.
• Ability to apply critical thinking, sound judgment, and strategic perspective to ambiguous or emerging opportunities.
• Ability to respectfully challenge perspectives, make recommendations, and articulate practical next steps.
• Demonstrated ability to establish credibility, influence leaders, and serve as an internal thought partner on strategic and business issues.
• Strong cross-functional collaboration skills and the ability to work effectively with leaders at all levels.
• Ability to translate broad concepts and market insights into compelling stories, recommendations, and actionable business plans.
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, changing environment with a sense of urgency and adaptability.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.
• Ability to travel as needed, up to 20%.