Brand Strategist

Contract to start, with opportunity for full-time New York or Remote (EST preferred) We are hiring a brand strategist to lead positioning, narrative, and messaging architecture for early-stage companies. At Little Plains, strategy does not live in decks or Google Docs. It lives in the frameworks, architectures, and decision-making tools that guide how a company shows up across design, language, and the market. You develop the thinking and build the frameworks that make everything else possible. Why This Role Exists Founders are asked to move faster, spend more efficiently, and still deliver work that feels considered, credible, and differentiated. Brand strategy is the work of defining what a company stands for and building frameworks that adapt as products, teams, and markets evolve. One thing that sets this work apart: we deliver brand frameworks in both human-facing formats and agent-readable ones. The strategy has to work as a document a founder can read and as structured data an AI system can act on. That is a newer challenge, and it is central to what we are building. Speed and synthesis tools have made it easier to produce strategy-shaped documents. Developing a real point of view is still hard. That gap is where this role operates. About Little Plains Little Plains is a modern brand and product studio. We work primarily with early-stage companies, often from pre-launch through Series A, at moments where clarity, speed, and conviction matter most. Our partners are founders and small senior teams building new products, categories, and narratives under real constraints. We operate as an embedded creative partner rather than a traditional digital agency, building brand, product, and go-to-market work into cohesive systems that can scale as companies grow. Our work spans healthcare, biotech, SaaS, and consumer products. What You Will Do Day to day, you will: Lead brand strategy from discovery through positioning for your projects Define what companies stand for: their category, differentiation, and audience truth Build messaging architecture: positioning statements, value props, brand pillars, and audience-specific messaging layers Design frameworks and strategic systems that guide design, copy, product, and go-to-market decisions Create outputs that work at scale: positioning decks, brand architecture documents, and frameworks that feed into LLMs, agents, and internal repositories Use AI tools to accelerate research synthesis and first-draft frameworks, while developing your own point of view on the work Collaborate with designers to translate strategy into visual direction Work with copywriters to ensure written outputs reflect strategic intent Present strategy clearly and defend positions with founders and stakeholders How We Work Strategy is developed in context, alongside design and product decisions. Frameworks are live documents, not fixed handoffs. Work evolves as companies do. AI is part of how we work. The thinking stays yours. The Bar for Craft This role requires the ability to synthesize complex information into simple, defensible frameworks. Points of view should be clear and well-reasoned, not safe or hedged. Strategy matters when it actually guides decisions. What We're Looking For 3–5 years of experience in brand strategy or related roles Proven ability to lead positioning and develop messaging architecture for early-stage companies Strong research and synthesis skills: you can find the signal in a lot of noise Ability to build frameworks that designers, writers, and founders can actually use Active use of AI tools (e.g. Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini) to accelerate research and synthesis, while developing your own point of view Collaborative by nature, and clear when presenting a point of view Benefits (Full-Time) Quarterly profit share tied to studio performance Equity participation for long-term team members Medical, dental, and vision insurance (50% employer-covered) 15 days PTO (Year 1, increases by 2 days/year) Parental leave: 12 weeks (birth parent), 6 weeks (non-birth parent) at full pay Prenatal leave: 20 hours paid per year $1,000/year craft and tools stipend $200/month coworking stipend What to Submit Resume or LinkedIn profile Examples of strategic work: positioning docs, brand architecture, messaging frameworks A short note on the kinds of brand problems you want to work on next If you want to do serious brand strategy, defining what companies stand for and building frameworks that actually guide the work, let's talk. Equal Opportunity & Fair Chance Little Plains is an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law, including the New York State and New York City Human Rights Laws. In accordance with the NYC Fair Chance Act, we consider applicants with criminal histories. Any background check will occur only after a conditional offer of employment has been made. We appreciate your consideration. We will do our best to view every submission carefully, and in a timely manner. Please allow a few business days for us to get back to your submission, and we look forward to hopefully talking more. #J-18808-Ljbffr