Director, Strategy

This is a fantastic opportunity to join WPP Media as a Strategy Director, shaping ambitious, insight-led media strategies that unlock growth for our clients. You will be a senior strategic partner, challenging the status quo, defining the role of communications and media in solving business problems, and turning complex opportunities into clear, compelling direction. Working across WPP Media, Production, Creative and Enterprise, you will lead annual planning and major brief responses, inspire award-winning thinking, and ensure strategies translate into distinctive, effective activation.

Responsibilities

Media strategy and planning: Define the business challenge and the role communications and media can play in solving it; Lead annual planning and major brief responses; Insight and discovery: Identify actionable audience, market and cultural insights that guide strategy, implementation, creativity and activation; Implementation, creativity and activation: Translate strategy into an integrated media approach covering channels, audiences, phasing, messaging and budgets; Learning and measurement: Build a culture of continuous learning and experimentation; Oversee client measurement frameworks and establish clear planning and buying principles; Data, technology and analytics: Ensure clients have a clear strategy for applying data, technology and analytics; Champion WPP Open and AI tools, and oversee the client's Data Growth Plan and maturity; Digital, performance and commerce: Advance high-performing digital strategies that help clients grow; Communication and presentation: Shape compelling narratives for key presentations and special projects; Commerciality and new business: Identify incremental revenue and profitability opportunities and play a leading role in new business pitches; People and culture: Challenge and inspire client leadership and planning teams; Coach and nurture junior and high-potential planners; Client and agency relationships: Become a trusted partner to senior clients and build strong, integrated relationships with creative, social, measurement and other specialist agency partners

Requirements

Significant experience developing integrated media and communications strategies within an agency, consultancy or client environment; A strong understanding of marketing, advertising and the wider media ecosystem, including commercial, creative, audience, budget and measurement considerations; A track record of converting insight into clear strategic direction and effective activation across paid, owned, earned and shared channels; Confidence working with data, analytics, technology and AI-enabled planning tools to improve decisions and client outcomes; Strong knowledge of digital, performance and commerce, with the ability to connect these disciplines to broader brand and growth objectives; Exceptional written, verbal and presentation skills, with the ability to simplify complexity and influence senior stakeholders; Commercial acumen and experience identifying growth opportunities, developing proposals and contributing to or leading pitches; Strong people leadership, coaching and collaboration skills, with a commitment to developing diverse, high-performing teams; Excellent judgement, attention to detail and the ability to prioritise and remain calm across multiple high-profile projects; Honesty, integrity, curiosity and a constructive desire to find a better way

Benefits

Competitive medical insurance; Group retirement plans; Vision and dental insurance; Significant paid time off; Preferential partner discounts; Employee mental health awareness days; Access to the WPP Media and WPP global networks; Employee resource groups and in-office events