Director, Brand Insights & Strategy

Grubhub•New York, NY

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

Grubhub is seeking a Director of Brand Insights & Strategy to serve as our Strategic Architect and Master Storyteller. We are looking for a Pragmatic Visionary—someone who can transform disparate signals into high-conviction narratives within a fast-paced, high-stakes culture. In this role, you will drive the strategic agenda. This means you have the intellectual grit to dive deep into data and the creative flair to translate findings into a vision that galvanizes the organization. You will architect the future of the brand and build the necessary research infrastructure, while actively infusing consumer, cultural, and category insight into every Growth team initiative—ensuring strategic integrity across everything we build. The Impact You Will Make: 1. Narrative Architecture & High-Stakes Influence: Master the Story: You possess "blank-slide fluency." You will design and deliver narrative-driven journeys from the ground up, synthesizing disparate data into a persuasive visual story that makes the path forward undeniable for leadership and cross-functional stakeholders alike. Provoke the Dialogue: Move beyond reactive reporting. You will identify strategic opportunities and provoke productive discourse with insights that shift business logic and drive high-level decision-making. 2. Strategic Integrity & Insight Infusion: Active Infusion: You are a day-to-day partner to the Growth and Creative teams, proactively injecting consumer and cultural intelligence into the DNA of the work to ensure it is not just efficient, but resonant. The Strategic Conscience: You ensure our high-velocity tactics remain rooted in brand truths and acute consumer relevance. You provide the foundational logic required to execute with precision, ensuring short-term wins do not compromise long-term brand equity or the resonance of our connection with the customer. 3. Research Infrastructure & Operational Excellence: Build the Engine: Design and own the annual learning agenda. You will prioritize research workstreams that solve for high-level business goals, ensuring the organization is proactively filling knowledge gaps before they become bottlenecks. Optimize the Stack: Identify, vet, and manage a world-class roster of research partners. You are responsible for vendor ROI and ensuring our methodology—from ethnography to behavioral science—can drive a competitive advantage in a resource-constrained environment. 4. Institutional "Source of Truth": Executive Readiness: Establish a consistent rhythm of executive touchstones. You will design the KPI dashboards and summaries that keep the C-suite’s pulse on brand health, consumer sentiment, and performance in line with the company’s biggest bets. Board-Level Content: Proactively curate high-conviction intelligence for Board meetings and Town Halls. You don't just provide data; you deliver the strategic interpretation and critical nuance required to anchor our most important organizational narratives.

Requirements

12+ Years of Proven Leadership: A background in brand planning or strategic insights, ideally spanning high-caliber agencies and fast-paced tech/startup environments.
Intellectual Grit: A proven ability to source and synthesize insights from across disparate data streams and complex methodologies to find the "human truth" that others might miss.
A "Builder" Mindset: Excellence in presentation craft; the ability to architect decks that are visually compelling, logically sound, and narratively driven without relying on templates.
Executive Presence: The authority to influence C-suite and VP-level stakeholders, pivoting effortlessly between deep-methodology talk and high-level business strategy.
Brand Architecture & Positioning: Proven experience defining and evangelizing brand frameworks, moving strategy from a static document to a living filter for every customer touchpoint.
Theoretical Depth: Expertise in brand tracking and segmentation, with a passion for applying frameworks like behavioral science and semiotics to the work.

Responsibilities

Design and deliver narrative-driven journeys from the ground up, synthesizing disparate data into a persuasive visual story that makes the path forward undeniable for leadership and cross-functional stakeholders alike.
Identify strategic opportunities and provoke productive discourse with insights that shift business logic and drive high-level decision-making.
Proactively inject consumer and cultural intelligence into the DNA of the work to ensure it is not just efficient, but resonant.
Ensure high-velocity tactics remain rooted in brand truths and acute consumer relevance.
Provide the foundational logic required to execute with precision, ensuring short-term wins do not compromise long-term brand equity or the resonance of our connection with the customer.
Design and own the annual learning agenda.
Prioritize research workstreams that solve for high-level business goals, ensuring the organization is proactively filling knowledge gaps before they become bottlenecks.
Identify, vet, and manage a world-class roster of research partners.
Be responsible for vendor ROI and ensuring our methodology—from ethnography to behavioral science—can drive a competitive advantage in a resource-constrained environment.
Establish a consistent rhythm of executive touchstones.
Design the KPI dashboards and summaries that keep the C-suite’s pulse on brand health, consumer sentiment, and performance in line with the company’s biggest bets.
Proactively curate high-conviction intelligence for Board meetings and Town Halls, delivering the strategic interpretation and critical nuance required to anchor our most important organizational narratives.