Senior Director - Brand Portfolio Strategy

Elsevier•Raleigh, NC

About The Position

We are looking for a strategic and dynamic Brand Portfolio Strategist to lead initiatives that enhance brand clarity and coherence across our portfolio. This role will play a key part in shaping a consistent, modern brand structure that supports business growth and improves the way customers interact with our solutions. You will work hands-on across divisions, providing expert-level guidance to ensure our brands are aligned, easily navigable, and positioned for long-term success. We need someone who can produce high-quality strategic deliverables, lead complex portfolio branding projects end-to-end, guide naming development for new and existing solutions, and partner deeply with product, marketing, and strategy teams. You will be a trusted expert who teaches, challenges, and elevates brand thinking across the organization. The Senior Director - Brand Portfolio Strategy will work directly with divisional marketing leads, product managers, commercial teams, and executive stakeholders to ensure that branding strategy, positioning, architecture, and naming across the portfolio are clear, differentiated, and aligned with business goals

Requirements

Bachelor’s or Master's degree in Marketing, Business, Communications, or related field
Solid experience in brand strategy, brand architecture, or portfolio management -ideally in a complex, global, technology or knowledge-based business
Demonstrated ability to produce brand strategy deliverables personally -not just manage or delegate them
Proven expertise in naming (new, existing, and portfolio-level), positioning, narrative development, and messaging
Experience partnering with product, marketing, strategy, and commercial teams
Exceptional communication and storytelling skills
Ability to lead cross-functional projects with confidence and influence at all levels
Good analytical skills with the ability to interpret insights and translate them into strategic recommendations
Comfort working in a dynamic, evolving environment with multiple stakeholders and priorities.

Responsibilities

Strategic Brand Portfolio Leadership Lead the creation and evolution of brand architecture strategy across Elsevier, ensuring clarity from the corporate level through to divisions, portfolios, and individual products
Develop compelling, insight-driven positioning and messaging frameworks that can be adopted by divisional marketing and product teams
Interrogate existing strategies to ensure they are relevant, differentiated, and grounded in customer and market insight.
Portfolio & Architecture Strategy Define and maintain a coherent brand architecture that simplifies navigation and strengthens brand equity across the Academic & Government, Corporate, and Health divisions
Lead product and portfolio-level reviews to ensure alignment with architecture principles and Elsevier’s long-term brand strategy
Partner with business and product leadership to identify gaps, overlaps, and opportunities within the portfolio.
Cross-Functional Leadership Work closely with divisional marketing teams to guide the adoption of positioning and messaging frameworks for products and go-to-market initiatives
Partner with product and strategy teams to ensure brand strategy informs solution development early and continuously
Provide expert consulting to senior stakeholders to align on naming, messaging, and architecture decisions.
Tangible Deliverable Creation Lead naming development for new solutions and renaming efforts for existing products, ensuring strategic coherence and legal viability
Produce strategic deliverables such as brand narratives, product naming frameworks, architecture models, messaging guides, value propositions, and portfolio storylines
Translate brand strategy into clear tools and templates that enable divisional teams to apply the work effectively.
Market Insight & Competitive Analysis Use customer insight, market research, and competitive analysis to inform brand decisions and strengthen value propositions.
Identify opportunities for brand-led innovation within divisions and across Elsevier
Governance, Training & Capability Building
Establish and maintain brand architecture and naming governance across divisions
Lead workshops, training, and working sessions to build brand fluency across marketing, product, and strategy teams.
Provide coaching and guidance to divisional marketers to strengthen brand capabilities at every level.
Change & Transition Leadership Lead change management associated with naming or repositioning initiatives, ensuring smooth adoption across internal and external audiences
Partner with legal and IP teams to oversee trademarking, brand clearance, and naming compliance.
Performance & Impact Track the success of brand initiatives and naming transitions, providing clear metrics and recommendations for continuous improvement
Ensure that brand strategy drives measurable business outcomes across all three divisions.