Senior Strategist

Strategy and planning are a vital part of our offering at UnitedUs, they form the foundation of every project we work on, as we strive to build lasting, trusted relationships with our clients. We’re looking for a freelance/contract Senior Strategist to join us in fostering strategy and planning excellence so that together, we can reach the potential of our global clients, whilst enjoying the journey.

No two days will ever look the same but here’s an idea of what your responsibilities will look like:

Strategy and planning

• Work with the Strategy Director and strategy team to define the approach our clients need to reach their potential.
• Lead and attend ongoing internal and client meetings with our strategy and planning, wider and project management team.
• Design and execute research methodologies that best suit the approach, including desk research, stakeholder interviews, surveys, focus groups and workshops designed to measure brand perception, equity, culture and capabilities.
• Working alongside the strategy and planning team, analyse the quantitative and/or qualitative data accrued through these methods to derive meaningful insights that will inform the client’s strategy and planning.
• Craft comprehensive and well-reasoned strategies that speak to the challenges and opportunities facing a given client, uniting the client’s people, purpose and potential.
• Alongside the strategy, craft pragmatic plans and recommendation sets that will achieve their desired business outcomes, taking into account client resources.
• Be able to present and communicate all of the above in the form of clearly written documents that have a strong, compelling narrative.
• Work with clients across a range of follow-up projects delivered post-rebrand to execute and evolve the brand strategy, including compelling and effective brand campaign strategies and activations.
• Develop positive, trusted relationships with our clients that enable us to understand the intricate nuances of their business and its organisational culture.
• Take a proactive role in developing existing client relationships, and identifying growth opportunities for them along the way.
• Using your knowledge and expertise, help respond to ad-hoc requests from clients who have identified a need for support outside of brand strategy development (e.g. campaigns, playbooks, guides).
• Develop positive relationships with our wider team that enable you and them to collaborate in an effective, respectful and friendly manner.
• Inform, develop and deliver our strategy and planning function; both for ourselves and our clients, so that we consistently improve.
• Contribute to the creative, cultural and operational development of the strategy and planning, as well as the wider team.
• Support the Strategy Director in developing internal materials, content, frameworks and training to build the agency’s top-level understanding of strategy and planning.
• Share best practices, knowledge and best-in-class examples external to the agency that inspire you, or that you think we can learn from.

Someone who can:

• Balance and cultivate their logic (research, data and insights) and creative thinking (concepts, ideas). A desire to use this thinking on any brief that comes their way.
• View the business and creative world with an open mind, soaking up new ideas, seeking out new opportunities, and connecting them with our client’s strategies.
• Ask the right questions about everything, fulfilling their insatiable curiosity to learn everything there is to know about a given business, person, culture, trend etc.
• Take the complex (whether it be a data set or terminology-heavy whitepaper), and turn it into something with a simple and compelling narrative.
• Turn their attention to the detail, making sure that high standards of work are upheld for every client we’re working with.
• Take full ownership and responsibility of their work across multiple projects, effectively managing their workload using clear organisational skills.
• Practise emotional intelligence to build and nurture relationships with our global clients and the wider team, including active listening, perspective-taking and pragmatic feedback.
• Bring their interests and passions into their work and the wider team, taking pride in who they are and the value they bring.
• Above all, leverage curiosity, empathy and reason to help organisations connect the dots in new ways.

At least 5 years of experience demonstrating the following;

• Working as a brand, marketing and/or communications strategist, or an equivalent role (e.g. consultant), with a deep understanding of how business objectives and brand strategy are intrinsically linked.
• Designing, facilitating and analysing research (primarily stakeholder interviews, surveys and workshops).
• Delivering insightful and well-thought-through B2B and B2C brand, marketing and/or communication strategies and activation plans for clients.
• Managing client relationships at all levels, from juniors through to senior management.
• Collaborating with other individuals or team members to get to the right solution.
• A high standard of English language, written and spoken.
• A high standard of IT skills and Mac proficiency.
• The existing right to work in the United Kingdom as we are currently unable to sponsor work visas at this stage.

It’s important to note that we have included the essential criteria here, but if you think you can do an amazing job, yet don’t have everything on this list, we’d still love to hear from you.

Please submit a cover letter, examples of your past work experience and availability to careers@unitedus.co.uk. We’d love to see some project examples and understand why you think you’d be a great fit for our team. Please let us know your preferred name and pronouns too.

As this is a freelance/contract role, we will get in touch to let you know if you are a preferred supplier and discuss potential bookings over the next few months.

We are an equal opportunities employer

At UnitedUs, we celebrate diversity, inclusivity and equal opportunity. We are committed to building a team that represents a variety of backgrounds, perspectives and skills. We welcome applicants from all backgrounds, irrespective of age, disability, gender, gender reassignment, marital or civil partnership status, pregnancy or maternity, race including colour, ethnic or national origins and nationality, religion or belief or sexual orientation.

We are here to support you

As part of this process, we want you to demonstrate your full potential. So if you need an alternative way of applying, for example, to find out more about roles and responsibilities, interview adaptations, or anything else, then we will support you, just let us know.