Strategic Marketing Lead, K12 Schools (Onsite or Remote)

Follett Content Solutions•McHenry, IL

8d•Hybrid

About The Position

Follett Content Solutions has been a trusted partner for educators since 1873! We support our educators that touch more than 45 million students worldwide. Follett Content Solutions helps build a diverse collection of print and digital resources to support every student. We are currently hiring for a Strategic Marketing Lead, K12 Schools. This position is an exempt full-time position offering $110,00.00 - $130,000.00 annually with bonus potential. We are looking for an onsite team member working in our McHenry, IL on a hybrid schedule of Monday, Tuesday and Thursdays in the office or for the ideal candidate we will consider remote. Any pay range disclosed is based upon a combination of neutral factors such as required qualifications, experience, education, skill, training, certifications, seniority, etc. Follett Content Solutions reserves the right to provide any successful candidate a salary at the most appropriate level set as a result of such candidate’ qualifications, experience, education, skill, training, certifications or seniority. The Strategic Marketing Lead, K12 is a forward-thinking, collaborative marketing leader who drives retention, engagement, and growth across our market-leading K12 school business. This role is responsible for developing and executing integrated marketing strategies that strengthen our brand, support sales, and deepen our relationships with K12 school customers nationwide. The ideal candidate brings a blend of strategic vision, team leadership, and hands-on marketing execution. This leader ensures our marketing efforts are optimally aligned to business priorities, customer insights, and our commitment to literacy, learning, and community impact. The Strategic Marketing Lead, K12 is responsible for driving marketing strategy, positioning, messaging, and go-to-market execution in the K12 market. This role combines deep market insight with cross-functional leadership to ensure our products, services, and communications resonate with librarians and other K12 decision-makers who serve young readers. The ideal candidate will be both strategic and hands-on, able to bridge customer understanding with impactful marketing programs that drive awareness, engagement, revenue growth, and retention. Success in this role looks like… Clear, differentiated market positioning that continually strengthens brand leadership across K12 market. Aligned, data-informed go-to-market plans that drive retention and measurable growth in customer acquisition and engagement. Strong, effective collaboration between marketing, sales, product, and business unit leaders to deliver successful marketing initiatives and seamless customer experiences. A unified voice and strategy that celebrates our deep roots in education while expanding our relevance in the broader K12 ecosystem.

Requirements

10+ years of progressive marketing leadership experience, ideally in K12 education, publishing, libraries, or related sectors.
Proven success managing strategic marketing across multiple customer segments or business lines.
Strong understanding of library systems, educators, literacy trends, and book buying workflows.
Demonstrated ability to translate insights into actionable marketing strategies and measurable results.
Proven track record of successfully launching new products and growing brand presence in existing markets.
Strong understanding of project management and how to manage the priorities of multiple stakeholders in a complex environment, while keeping focus on the delivery of results in the form of awareness, engagement, revenue, and retention.
Excellent communication, collaboration, and interpersonal skills, with a demonstrated ability to influence and align stakeholders at all levels.
Ability to work and thrive in a fast-paced, ever-evolving environment and be intellectually curious.
Strong analytical skills with the ability to leverage data and insights to develop actionable strategies and recommendations.
Passionate about reading, learning, and the library community.
Strong project management skills with a history of successfully leading and delivering complex initiatives.
Flexibility to adapt to changing priorities and manage ambiguity.
Demonstrated leadership skills, including the ability to motivate and inspire cross-functional teams.
Deep understanding of market trends and product lifecycles.
Sharp negotiation tactics.
Market research and assessment experience.

Nice To Haves

eCommerce experience is highly desired but not required.
Experience in product marketing is highly desired but not required.

Responsibilities

Strategic Marketing Leadership Develop and implement comprehensive marketing strategies for K12, driving growth, engagement, and retention.
Partner with business leadership to align marketing plans to overall company goals, market trends, and customer needs.
Partner with product management to shape product roadmaps based on customer and market insights.
In partnership with Product, lead positioning, messaging, and go-to-market strategy for key products, services, and brand initiatives.
Champion a unified brand identity while tailoring communications and campaigns to the unique priorities of each ICP/target persona.
Partner closely with Product Management, Corporate Marketing, Demand Generation, Sales, and Customer Success to ensure cohesive storytelling and market alignment.
Serve as main point of contact for all marketing-related inquiries.
Prepare presentations, when requested, that highlight marketing plans, actions, outcomes, etc.
Market and Customer Insights In partnership with Product Management, serve as company expert on K12 — funding, competitive landscape, customer challenges, etc.
Stay current on trends in education, libraries, literacy, and publishing to inform strategy and uncover growth opportunities.
Use data and market research to understand customer behaviors, persona challenges, and decision-making.
Gather feedback from customers, sales, and partners to continuously refine messaging and product-market fit.
Translate insights into actionable marketing strategies and differentiated positioning.
Go-To-Market Planning and Execution Champion development of marketing campaigns that drive awareness, demand, and loyalty across channels (email, web, events, social, PR, etc.).
Collaborate closely with demand/lead generation, creative, and communications teams to optimally execute campaigns.
Lead the creation of launch plans for new products, services, and features.
Direct thought leadership and storytelling initiatives that reinforce the company’s role as a trusted partner to K12 schools.
Be responsible and accountable for ensuring a consistent and high-quality customer experience through all asset development.
In partnership with Product teams, ensure products and services are merchandised effectively on Titlewave and follettcontent.com and align to campaigns, as appropriate, to ensure maximum impact.
Work closely with Curations Team to ensure we have updated lists to support all key initiatives and special occasions celebrated by schools at optimal times of year.
Responsible for the strategic development and tactical execution of integrated marketing plans focused on both retention plays and growth where applicable (grow wallet, grow market share).
In partnership with business/pillar leadership, develop strategies and tactics to elevate referral business where applicable.
Establish KPIs and work in partnership with marketing analytics resources to build dashboards to optimally track marketing effectiveness and ROI.
Live a continuous process improvement mindset through testing, data analysis, and performance optimization.
Take responsibility for campaign development related to other strategically related initiatives as needed to support business goals.
Cross-Functional Collaboration and Partnership Working in close partnership with sales leadership, identify marketing activities needed to support Sales in reaching company-established K12 goals.
Oversee all asset creation ensuring each adheres to brand standards and is accurate and effective. This means reviewing and approving daily projects/tasks to ensure team output is the best it can be before being shared with internal and external stakeholders.
Partner with sales leadership to align marketing and sales strategies, ensuring mutual visibility, optimal timing, and accountability for results.
Collaborate with customer success, product, and operations teams to enhance the customer experience wherever possible.
Support executive communications and brand/thought leadership initiatives that reinforce our market leadership position.
Work in partnership with events and demand gen team to ensure our presence at events (national and regional/local tradeshows) is reflective of current focus areas/strategies and all assets adhere to brand standards, are accurate, and position us well to engage with prospective and current customers to drive retention and new business where applicable.
For national conferences, support event strategy and ensure proper pre-, during, and post-event plans are put into place, measured, and shared with internal conference attendees.
Work closely with Director of Partner Management/Publisher Relations to ensure close collaboration on cooperative advertising campaigns and assets targeted to K12 specific buyer personas to ensure maximum impact.
Marketing Leadership for Future Growth Targets In partnership with other senior leaders, support existing growth areas and identify future areas for growth, determine potential revenue impact, and project what investment would be needed to achieve that growth.
Communicate regularly with all marketing team members on expansion activities and ensure the team is allocating the appropriate resources and budget to support expansion.
Budget and Resourcing Responsibility Prepare and submit budget and related reports.
Ensure revenue and expenses meet or exceed budget.
Forecast and accurately project expenses.
Take corrective action to address variances.
In partnership with VP of Marketing and other marketing leads, evaluate freelancers and/or contractors, as needed, to support workload. This includes vetting, contract negotiations, communications, onboarding, and management.