Senior Strategist (Remote)

The Athletic; United States; On-site; USD 80,000 - 85,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental and vision benefits

Company‑matching 401(k)

Paid vacation

Paid parental leave

Tuition reimbursement

Professional development programs

Job summary

The Athletic is seeking a contract Senior Strategist to lead RFP responses and proactive proposals. You will partner with Sales, Planning, Program Management, Account Management, Editorial and Creative to develop cross‑platform advertising programs.

A passion for big ideas, media, and strong proposal skills are required for maternity leave coverage. This role emphasizes collaboration, insight development, and producing polished client proposals that drive revenue across digital, social, and

Qualifications

• 5+ years of cross‑platform Advertising experience (ad sales marketing, creative strategy, integrated marketing).
• Deep understanding of social, branded content, digital, mobile and audio landscapes.
• Experience working on RFPs in a media environment.
• Strong ability to turn information into insights.
• Capacity to distill research into industry/client-relevant implications.
• Desire to work in collaborative sales and marketing processes within advertising sales.

Responsibilities

• Develop broad understanding of The Athletic’s properties and media products.
• Package ad products in advance of seasons/events including pricing, messaging, promotion.
• Serve as primary contact for RFPs; develop and present customized digital/social/audio sponsorship proposals.
• Lead brainstorms, manage information from multiple teams, maintain timelines and deadlines.
• Ideate and project manage offerings across departments to create integrated client programs.
• Produce pitch collateral (idea descriptions, screenshots, mock‑ups, research, templates).
• Use research/data to articulate strategies and ideas to clients.
• Attend sales calls to pitch advertising ideas when needed.

Skills

Research & Insights

Creative Briefing

Media Strategy

Proposal Development

Job description

About Us

Powered by one of the largest global newsrooms in sports media, The Athletic brings sports fans the most comprehensive stories about the teams, sports and athletes they love. The Athletic’s newsroom of 500+ full‑time staff delivers in-depth coverage of hundreds of professional and college teams across more than 47 North American markets and all 20 football clubs in the English Premier League, as well as many Championship clubs.

About Us

Powered by one of the largest global newsrooms in sports media, The Athletic brings sports fans the most comprehensive stories about the teams, sports and athletes they love. The Athletic’s newsroom of 500+ full‑time staff delivers in‑depth coverage of hundreds of professional and college teams across more than 47 North American markets and all 20 football clubs in the English Premier League, as well as many Championship clubs.

About The Role

The Athletic is seeking a contract Senior Strategist to lead RFP responses and proactive proposals. This role is ideal for someone who has experience identifying insights, inspiring ideas, and authoring proposals that help drive revenue for key advertisers.

Strategy is a team sport, and you will be an expert collaborator responsible for developing innovative, cross‑platform marketing programs for advertisers in partnership with Sales, Planning, Program Management, Account Management, Editorial, and Creative teams. You will lead brainstorms, develop briefs, and create proposals that leverage compelling solutions for our advertising partners.

Success requires a passion for big ideas expressed through media, a love of advertising, and a high standard for creating visual presentations. Previous experience in strategy or integrated marketing at a media company is essential.

This is a maternity leave coverage between 10/12/26 - 3/25/27.

Responsibilities

• Develop a broad understanding of all of The Athletic’s properties and media products
• Develop packaging of ad products in advance of specific sports seasons and events including pricing, messaging, and promotion
• Serve as the primary point of contact for RFPs and, in response, develop and present compelling proposals that detail customized digital/social/audio sponsorship solutions and work with Sales to close deals
• Lead brainstorm meetings, manage information coming from various teams, maintain timelines and hit deadlines
• Ideate, collaborate and project manage offerings across relevant departments to create integrated programs for clients
• Creatively pull together all elements for pitch collateral (e.g., idea descriptions, screenshots, mock‑ups, research, custom templates, etc.)
• Utilize research and data to articulate and support strategies and creative ideas
• Attend sales calls to pitch advertising ideas when necessary

Key Skills

• Research, Insights, and Creative Brief Development: You have used proprietary tools, third‑party resources and/or desk research to uncover meaningful insights, human truths and whitespace opportunities that lead to a compelling way in for creative and media
• Creative Briefing: You have participated in writing a creative brief, briefing creative teams, and being an inspiring strategic partner to creative teams
• Media Strategy: You have participated in responding to client RFPs and making recommendations for how to use media to bring ideas to life in ways that meet clients' campaign objectives. You are familiar with the media landscape and eager to become an expert at guiding smart media decisions
• Client Deliverable/Proposal Development: You are experienced in owning and creating client‑ready visual proposals that are polished and inspiring

Requirements

• You have 5+ years of cross‑platform Advertising experience (ad sales marketing, creative strategy, integrated marketing)
• You have a deep understanding of the current social, branded content, digital, mobile and audio landscapes
• Experience working on RFPs in a media environment
• Strong ability to turn information into insights
• Capacity to distill research into industry/client‑relevant implications
• Desire to work in collaborative sales and marketing processes, including the interaction and strategy required in an advertising sales environment

The annual base salary range for this role is $80,000.00 - $85,000.00 USD. The total compensation offered for this position may vary based on factors such as education, experience, skills, and location.

For roles in the U.S., dependent on your role, you may be eligible for variable pay, such as an annual bonus and restricted stock. Benefits may include medical, dental and vision benefits, Flexible Spending Accounts (F.S.A.s), a company‑matching 401(k) plan, paid vacation, paid sick days, paid parental leave, tuition reimbursement and professional development programs.

For roles outside of the U.S., information on benefits will be provided during the interview process.

The Athletic Media Company is an equal opportunity employer and enthusiastically encourages people from all backgrounds and experiences to apply. The Athletic will consider all applicants without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, physical and/or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, transgender status, age, sexual orientation, military or veteran status, or any other protected characteristic under applicable law.