Brand Strategist

Stagwell Global•Minneapolis, MN

7h•Hybrid

About The Position

Colle McVoy is a full-service, certified B Corp agency building enduring relationships between forward-thinking brands and people. For more than 90 years, we've reinvented ourselves to meet the changing needs of brands and the people they serve. We believe the strongest ideas begin with a deep understanding of people, creating ideas that build brands, influence decisions and move culture. Recognized as a Fast Company Most Innovative Company, Adweek Midsize Agency of the Year, Ad Age A-List honoree, SABRE Disruptive Agency of the Year and a Best Place to Work for 15 consecutive years, Colle McVoy brings together the right people, perspectives and expertise to solve modern business challenges. Our connected capabilities span brand and influencer strategy, design, experiential, social, content, media and earned creative/PR. As part of DonerColle Partners, a strategic alliance with Doner, Colle McVoy extends its connected capabilities through expanded strategy, creative, media, production and AI-powered innovation to help brands win between the coasts. In this role, our Strategists have a passion for tapping the full power of a brand to solve problems and inspire inventive creative solutions, including creative campaigns and activations; design efforts, including visual identity, retail and digital experiences; paid, owned and earned-media concepts and more. As a curious thinker, doer, creator, and explorer, a Strategist will thrive in helping cross-functional teams navigate through the gray toward fresh concepts that move both people and business results.

Requirements

Compiles relevant research without explicit guidance, and designs mixed-method research plans across qualitative, quantitative, behavioral, and platform data.
Writes clear briefs, prompts, and documents that others can act on immediately, and explains complex ideas simply to mixed audiences.
Spots meaningful patterns across culture, data, and behavior, and develops insights that directly drive creative or experience decisions.
Produces clear strategic artifacts (briefs, maps, frameworks) and compelling strategic narratives that inspire creatives.
Contributes meaningful content to presentations and workshops, and leads sections of major presentations independently.
Manages workflow smoothly across hybrid and remote teams; gives constructive feedback and collaborates across disciplines.
Delivers reliably and communicates status proactively; anticipates needs and removes friction for teams.
Makes others’ work easier through clarity and support; identifies emerging opportunities during everyday work.
Understands project roles, timelines, and dependencies; flags scope risks early.
Uses AI tools for research, brainstorming, and synthesis responsibly; writes effective prompts and validates outputs critically.
A positive, proactive, make-it-happen attitude.
Passion for brilliant work, great strategy, and a constant drive to make things better.
Curiosity about what makes a brand meaningful, what is driving and influencing culture, and why people do what they do.
Growing experience across both B2C and B2B brand platforms and go-to-market strategies.
Strong understanding of cultural and technological trends and their impact on brand strategy.
Highly organized and detail-oriented.
Bachelor’s degree or equivalent industry experience.
2+ years of strategic planning or a strategically driven role required.
Proficient in Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook.
Demonstrated experience using AI tools (e.g., LLMs, research and synthesis platforms) responsibly in day-to-day strategic work.
Ability to travel as needed.

Responsibilities

Contribute to great work across multiple client businesses, developing fluency in connecting research and data to strategic POVs and insights.
Support the creation of clear, inspiring creative briefs by articulating concise findings from data, framing implications for clients, and shaping compelling strategic narratives that inspire integrated teams.
Compile relevant research without explicit guidance; identify and implement research agendas with clear objectives and desired outcomes.
Design mixed-method research plans (qualitative, quantitative, behavioral, platform data) for client and new business needs.
Spot meaningful patterns across culture, data, and behavior, and develop insights that directly drive creative or experience decisions.
Collaborate with cross-functional teams to inform brand and go-to-market strategies across social, digital, content and brand experience.
Produce clear strategic artifacts (briefs, maps, frameworks) and use AI and traditional craft tools to explore multiple directions quickly.
Present clearly and confidently to clients with guidance, and lead sections of major presentations independently.
Stay informed about cultural trends, consumer behavior, emerging technologies, social media, creator culture, and influencers to identify innovative opportunities.
Support agency growth goals in digital innovation, sustainability, and diversity, equity and inclusion by representing these viewpoints in strategy development.
Contribute to team morale, mentor Associate Strategists informally, and improve teammates’ work through clear feedback and facilitation.
Integrate AI into workflow to increase speed and option generation; write effective prompts and validate outputs critically.