Associate Director, Strategy (New York)

Business Overview

We believe in the power of media to reshape our industry and orchestrate a brand’s entire consumer experience, by balancing both what unites people and what makes them different. When brands unite people in culture, they build Fame, and when brands connect individuals to their unique journeys, they build customer Flow. Initiative builds Fame & Flow for brands like Nike, Amazon, Merck, and T-Mobile. Media responsibility is at the forefront of everything we do, whether it’s creating media plans that reflect the diversity of our communities, promote brand safety, and foster sustainability. Our agency celebrates diversity in an inclusive environment where all of our 6,000+ strong talent across 90+ markets feel seen, heard, and valued. Our vision is to create not only a better media company, but also a better media industry, and maybe even a better world.

We make a promise to our people that we double down on seeing, celebrating & elevating all the things that make you, uniquely you. And just as we do for our brands and clients, we connect our people to the journeys that matter in building a meaningful career.

There are four I’s in Initiative and these represent our core values and behaviors.

• INDIVID(YOU)ALITY – you bring your genuine and unique self to and into the work, every day.
• INSTINCT – you’re tuned in and armed with intelligence; you have a bias for action – shit happens when you’re around.
• IMPACT! – you care deeply about the impact you have on our clients, their customers, our community, the media landscape and our world at large.
• IMAGINATION – your ability to imagine and bring to life the ideas, solutions, and the future of Initiative, makes us THE create media agency in the world.

Position Summary

As an Associate Director of Strategy you are responsible for the development of strategic recommendations that solve client challenges. You will work across all accounts & clients (depending on the Brief ask/rating & the skillset need) and should strive to produce outstanding communications strategies, as recognized through awards, client satisfaction scores and tangible examples of innovation.

You will help to strategize, produce and make sense of the key cultural, consumer and market intelligence required to design the best possible holistic communications plan to deliver on that task.

You have a passion for people, brands and ideas and an insatiable curiosity for culture in every sense. You believe that brands can & should mean in the world, and are driven by the desire to understand the changing world and people’s subsequent shifting motivations and behaviors.

You are responsible for creating the strategic recommendations and engaging with the client in an advisory capacity in conjunction with the Strategy Team. It is not your responsibility to manage the client relationship & you will – by Brief – report to the Client Lead to deliver brilliant strategic thinking for the client team. Creative thinking and sound presentation skills are critical in delivering success in this role. You should produce work that drives re-appraisal of communications and what media can do in the world, and your work should be seen as one of the key levers working to drive the agency forward.

Responsibilities

• Demonstrate a good understanding of consumers & their behaviors, using qualitative and quantitative communications channel & cultural tool research to develop applicable insights into the consumer connection with the brand
• Craft strategic narratives that show how the strategy delivers on the business need and focus on results and measurement
• Bring fresh thinking & inspiration into the Strategic Process to help the teams springboard to better thinking, leading ideation team sessions in conjunction with the Communications Design team and relevant SBUs to generate creative & compelling communications ideas
• Be considered a valuable contributor during client meetings, providing, for example, research &/or deep understanding of how consumers are interacting with culture (their behaviors & motivations/mindsets)
• Maintain effective relationships with key strategic partners (vendors, academic institutions, creative consultancies), keeping up to date on their offer & using that information to help the Strategy Team unlock new growth opportunities for the client &/or the agency

Required Skills & Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in related field or equivalent work experience
• 6-8 years in integrated planning role in media, creative, innovation or communications discipline (digital, content, invention, social, activation)
• Ability to think differently: creative & adaptive, entrepreneurial, independently-minded; deeply immersed in cultural understanding and driven by a desire to know more about the world / to better understand people’s motivations & behaviors in the shifting landscape

Desired Skills & Experience

• Ability to think differently: creative & adaptive, entrepreneurial, independently-minded; deeply immersed in cultural understanding and driven by a desire to know more about the world / to better understand people’s motivations & behaviors in the shifting landscape

Wage and Benefits

We offer a Total Rewards package that includes medical and dental coverage, 401(k) plans, flex spending, life insurance, disability, employee discount program, employee stock purchase program and paid family benefits to support you and your family.

The salary range for this position is posted below. Where an employee or prospective employee is paid within this range will depend on, among other factors, actual ranges for current/former employees in the subject position, market considerations, budgetary considerations, tenure and standing with the Company (applicable to current employees), as well as the employee’s/applicant’s skill set, level of experience, and qualifications.

Employment Transparency

It is our policy to provide equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, ethnicity, gender, age, religion, creed, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, citizenship, genetic information, veteran status, disability, or any other basis prohibited by applicable federal, state, or local law.

Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties, or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

The employer will make reasonable accommodations in compliance with the American with Disabilities Act of 1990. The job description will be reviewed periodically as duties and responsibilities change with business necessity. Essential and other job functions are subject to modification. Reasonable accommodations may be provided to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

For applicants to jobs in the United States: In compliance with the current Americans with Disabilities Act and state and local laws, if you have a disability and would like to request an accommodation to apply for a position, please email