Senior Director, Strategy - Brand & Creative

Monks•San Francisco, CA

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

As a Senior Director, Strategy – Brand & Creative, you'll lead our Brand Strategy discipline within this team. We're looking for someone who is passionate about building breakthrough brands, developing bold strategic thinking, and creating impactful work that moves businesses and culture forward. This role requires a leader who has experience developing strategy for global brands on major stages, understands how to earn a seat at the decision-making table, prioritizes great work over being right, can differentiate brand truth from brand claim, and can build brand strategy that extends beyond the brief into integrated campaigns, digital experiences, product launches, and customer touchpoints. The ideal candidate is excited by the opportunity to build and grow a modern Brand Strategy practice within a collaborative, AI-forward agency.

Requirements

12+ years in Brand Planning or Creative Strategy at a top agency.
At least 3 years in a senior leadership role.
Experience working on major global brands and high-stakes campaigns (e.g., Super Bowl, Olympics, global product launches).
Proven ability to build brand strategy that translates into integrated campaigns, digital experiences, product launches, and customer touchpoints.
Experience building a global brand platform, not just a campaign.
Ability to translate complex data and research into simple, compelling ideas.
Experience partnering closely with Executive Creative Directors, challenging, inspiring, and elevating creative work.
Experience winning new business and leading strategic portions of pitches and executive client presentations.
Track record of building and leading high-performing strategy teams.
Empathetic leadership style.
Ability to command a room, sell brave ideas, and articulate the 'why' behind the work.
Genuine curiosity about AI as a creative and strategic tool.

Nice To Haves

Experience building and growing a modern Brand Strategy practice.

Responsibilities

Lead development of foundational brand strategy, architecture, and positioning for a major tech client across its product portfolio, ensuring consistency, clarity, and relevance globally.
Drive the strategic vision for high-visibility campaigns, including Super Bowl spots, Olympics moments, global product launches, and major repositionings.
Partner with Group Creative Directors, writing inspiring briefs and staying engaged through the creative process to protect and elevate the core idea.
Maintain a pulse on cultural trends and integrate that understanding into the work proactively.
Manage and mentor a team of brand strategists, fostering an environment of rigorous thinking, creative ambition, collaboration, and curiosity.
Establish best practices, elevate the brand strategy discipline, and contribute to building a world-class strategy organization.
Build trusted relationships with senior marketing leaders, facilitate strategic conversations, present recommendations, and influence key business decisions.
Partner with Client Leadership and Creative teams to identify new opportunities, support proactive thinking, and lead strategic components of new business pitches.
Collaborate with media, data, and AI teams to ensure brand platforms translate into full-funnel consumer experiences with speed and agility.