Manager, Social Media Strategy

Green Thumb • Chicago, IL

8h • $115,000 - $130,000

About The Position

As a member of the Marketing team, the Manager, Social Media Strategy will lead the social media function across GTI's portfolio of brands. This role is responsible for setting the vision, strategy, and operational excellence of the social media discipline while building and developing a high-performing team. They will oversee the social media ecosystem across multiple brands, empowering Social Media Managers to own strategy and execution for their respective businesses while ensuring alignment to overarching brand and marketing objectives. Reporting to the Director of Events & Experiences, the Manager, Social Media Strategy will directly lead a team of Social Media Managers, an Influencer & Affiliate Manager, and a Community Manager, serving as both a people leader and the organization's social media center of excellence. This role will drive cross-functional social strategy and alignment with Brand, Creative, Compliance, Events & Experiences, Communications, and Marketing Leadership teams. They will establish channel, audience growth, engagement, storytelling, and content strategies; oversee social performance and reporting; manage budgets and resources; and translate consumer, cultural, and platform insights into actionable recommendations for the broader marketing organization. We're seeking a strategic, creative, and commercially minded leader who can inspire high-performing teams, shape the future of social media across a diverse portfolio of brands, and successfully navigate the complex cannabis and hemp regulatory landscape. The ideal candidate combines leadership excellence with deep platform expertise and a proven ability to build innovative social strategies that drive engagement, brand affinity, and business results.

Requirements

• 7+ years of experience developing and leading successful social media strategies, preferably in lifestyle, consumer packaged goods, entertainment, beverage, or cannabis industries.
• 2+ years of experience managing and developing high-performing teams, with demonstrated ability to coach, mentor, and grow direct reports.
• Demonstrated success building, developing, and retaining high-performing social media, content, or digital marketing teams.
• Proven ability to develop and manage multi-brand social media strategies while empowering team members to own strategy and execution for individual brands, campaigns, and initiatives.
• Deep understanding of social media platforms, algorithms, creator ecosystems, platform restrictions, and advertising tools.
• Strong cross-functional leadership skills and experience driving alignment among Creative, Brand, Compliance, Marketing, and executive stakeholders.
• Proven ability to influence and build relationships across all levels of an organization, including senior leadership.
• Strong analytical skills with experience using social media analytics and reporting tools to identify insights and drive business decisions.
• Exceptional communication, presentation, leadership, and collaboration skills, including experience presenting strategic recommendations to senior leadership.
• Creative thinker with the ability to craft compelling narratives, social strategies, and integrated campaigns.
• Experience managing budgets, resources, agencies, and external partners.
• Experience establishing processes, governance structures, and best practices that improve team effectiveness and scalability.
• Knowledge of applicable legal and regulatory considerations for marketing in regulated industries and the ability to navigate platform restrictions and terms of service.
• Strong understanding of cannabis culture and the ability to translate cultural trends into relevant social opportunities.
• Ability to balance strategic leadership with hands-on execution in a fast-paced, evolving environment.
• Must pass any and all required background checks
• Must be and remain compliant with all legal or company regulations for working in the industry
• Must be a minimum of 21 years of age
• Must be approved by state badging agency to work in cannabis industry

Responsibilities

• Lead, coach, develop, and inspire a high-performing social media team, including Social Media Managers, Influencer & Affiliate Manager, and Community Manager, while fostering a culture of accountability, creativity, collaboration, and continuous learning.
• Develop and execute the long-term vision, strategy, and roadmap for the social media function, ensuring alignment with brand, marketing, and business objectives.
• Develop and own the overarching social media strategy across GTI's portfolio of brands, ensuring each brand has a distinct social presence while supporting broader business objectives.
• Establish clear social priorities, channel strategies, audience growth plans, engagement strategies, and storytelling approaches across all brands within the portfolio.
• Develop the strategic capabilities of Social Media Managers, empowering them to independently lead brand strategies, make data-informed decisions, and grow as future leaders within the organization.
• Establish team goals, performance expectations, development plans, and succession planning for direct reports.
• Serve as the social media subject matter expert and lead cross-functional strategy and alignment with Brand, Creative, Compliance, Events & Experiences, Communications, and Marketing Leadership teams.
• Establish social strategy and priorities for major campaigns, launches, partnerships, and other high-priority business initiatives.
• Partner with Creative to develop compelling social storytelling, creative briefs, content strategies, and differentiated social identities across brands.
• Own the social planning process and ensure content calendars align with broader brand, campaign, and business objectives.
• Establish performance measurement frameworks, oversee reporting and optimization efforts, and ensure insights are translated into strategic recommendations that drive measurable business impact.
• Regularly present social performance, strategic recommendations, opportunities, and key learnings to marketing and senior leadership.
• Own the social media budget, including annual planning, resource allocation, budget management, and optimization across brands, channels, and initiatives.
• Build and manage relationships with agencies, creators, influencers, and external partners as needed.
• Develop comprehensive influencer and affiliate strategies in partnership with the Influencer & Affiliate Manager.
• Oversee community strategy and ensure community insights and engagement inform broader social and brand strategies.
• Continually improve social performance through testing, learning, cultural intelligence, platform expertise, and innovative creative approaches.
• Develop unique strategies to navigate social media platform restrictions, advertising limitations, and the evolving cannabis regulatory environment.
• Stay current on social platforms, algorithms, emerging channels, creator culture, cannabis culture, and industry trends, translating relevant developments into opportunities for the business.
• Foster strong relationships with followers, creators, influencers, industry partners, and other relevant communities.
• Develop a clear point of view on the role of each social channel and the optimal channel mix for individual brands and audiences across the portfolio.
• Build, scale, and continuously improve the team's capabilities, operating model, tools, standards, processes, and ways of working as the function grows.
• Partner with brand teams to develop differentiated social identities, content strategies, and audience engagement approaches that support the unique positioning of each brand.
• Champion the role of social media across the organization, influencing senior stakeholders and advocating for strategic investments that drive business impact.

Benefits

• Competitive pay based on experience, qualifications, and/or location
• Discretionary annual incentive program driven by organization and individual performance

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Manager
• Education Level: No Education Listed