Managing Director, Cultural Mobilization

Bully Pulpit International•Los Angeles, CA

2d•Hybrid

About The Position

Bully Pulpit International (BPI) is seeking a Managing Director, Cultural Mobilization to build and lead a new practice focused on cultural intelligence, strategic relationship-building, and senior advisory. This role involves understanding culture, building credibility within it, and engaging in ways that drive real-world impact. The individual will cultivate relationships across entertainment, sports, media, and other cultural institutions, working with key figures like showrunners, creators, studio executives, and journalists. This practice complements BPI’s existing creator programs by emphasizing cultural strategy, long-term relationship building, and strategic activations. This is a practice-building role where the individual will initially focus on developing strategy, building industry relationships, originating opportunities, and enabling execution through BPI’s client teams and a network of contractors. As demand grows, there will be an opportunity to build and lead a dedicated team. The practice will serve a diverse client roster, including major corporations and philanthropic/advocacy groups, driving impact across industry transformation, public policy, and brand reputation.

Requirements

15+ years of experience in entertainment, communications, media, marketing, advocacy, consulting, or a related field.
Public affairs knowledge or policy expertise.
Demonstrated track record of building trusted relationships and influence within culture.
An established network and strong credibility across entertainment, talent representation, media, sports, philanthropy, or other cultural institutions.
Ability to continually expand and deepen those relationships.
Deep understanding of how influence moves through today’s media ecosystem and how cultural narratives shape public perception, legitimacy, and behavior.
Exceptional strategic judgment and the ability to advise CEOs, foundation presidents, communications executives, and other senior leaders on complex, high-stakes challenges.
Commercially minded, with experience building a practice, leading a business line, managing a P&L, generating new business, or otherwise contributing to profitable growth.
An entrepreneurial builder who thrives in ambiguity and is energized by creating new capabilities.
Comfort operating across sectors, with the ability to move fluidly between mission-driven organizations, public affairs, philanthropy, entertainment, media, and the broader cultural landscape.

Responsibilities

Define and evolve the Cultural Mobilization practice, including its operating model, service offerings, methodologies, and intellectual property.
Establish and evolve service offerings and deliverables to maintain competitiveness and client delivery.
Recruit, develop, and lead the team as the practice grows, and represent BPI externally through speaking, publishing, industry engagement, and business development.
Present to senior clients (CCOs, heads of corporate affairs, heads of philanthropic organizations) to demonstrate expertise and ensure work drives impact.
Develop and execute a marketing and visibility strategy to elevate the practice’s profile and position BPI as a thought leader.
Build BPI’s cultural intelligence capability by identifying key narratives, communities, creators, platforms, and moments that shape public attitudes and behavior.
Identify and leverage cultural mapping tools to understand target audience engagement.
Identify emerging cultural trends, opportunities, and reputational risks, translating them into actionable recommendations.
Partner with the Insights team to produce cultural intelligence briefings and trend analyses.
Lead BPI’s “cultural lobbying” practice by building sustained, trusted relationships with cultural influencers.
Develop and steward a network of advisors, partners, and cultural experts across various sectors.
Cultivate relationships, partnerships, and institutional knowledge for early access to emerging ideas and cultural moments.
Position BPI as a trusted thought partner within the cultural ecosystem.
Partner with senior client leaders to identify opportunities for culture to accelerate priorities and translate objectives into cultural strategies.
Advise clients on building credibility, relationships, and influence within culture, integrating cultural mobilization with other strategies.
Serve as a trusted advisor to senior leaders on high-stakes cultural strategy, narrative development, and relationship-building.
Translate strategy into action by partnering with BPI’s client teams and specialists to deliver high-impact cultural engagements.
Design approaches, assemble collaborators, and oversee flagship work to ensure quality and strategic intent.
Build, manage, and expand a trusted network of contractors, advisors, and subject-matter experts.
Equip BPI’s client teams with tools, guidance, and support for delivering cultural mobilization work, developing repeatable methodologies and measurement frameworks.