Strategy Director - #2195744

Strategy Director - Social & Digital Agency

Manchester – Hybrid Working - min 2 days in office per week

Salary – £75,000–£85,000 DOE + bonus and benefits

Focus 5 Recruitment is delighted to be working with a leading social media agency to recruit a Strategy Director. This is a senior leadership opportunity for an experienced strategist to shape the agency's strategic direction, build and develop its strategic offering, and play a key role in its continued growth.

As a member of the Senior Leadership Team, you'll take ownership of the agency's strategic function, working closely with senior clients and internal teams to turn audience insight, cultural understanding and commercial challenges into compelling social-first strategies and creative work.

This is an opportunity to make a genuine impact, not only on the quality of the agency's client work, but also on its people, capabilities and future direction.

Key responsibilities for the Strategy Director –

• Lead and elevate the agency's strategic offering, setting the vision, standards and direction across social strategy.
• Build, manage and develop the strategy team, creating a culture of strong strategic thinking, collaboration and continuous improvement.
• Become a trusted strategic partner to senior clients, leading workshops, challenging thinking and identifying opportunities to address wider business and brand challenges.
• Translate audience research, consumer behaviour, cultural trends and data into powerful insights, brand propositions and social-first strategies.
• Work closely with Creative, Content, Creator and Account teams to develop distinctive, culturally relevant campaigns that connect with audiences.
• Oversee and develop the agency's paid media and creator strategy capabilities, ensuring they work effectively alongside wider social strategies.
• Strengthen the agency's approach to measurement and effectiveness, moving beyond reporting to understand performance, demonstrate impact and identify what should happen next.
• Champion the use of AI, data and technology to improve strategic thinking, insight and delivery.
• Identify opportunities to develop new services, strategic propositions and approaches that differentiate the agency in the market.
• Play a leading role in pitches, new business opportunities and the development of long-term client relationships.
• Represent the agency through thought leadership, industry events and wider opportunities to raise its strategic profile.
• Contribute to the overall direction, commercial performance and growth of the business as part of the Senior Leadership Team.

Experience and skills we're looking for –

• Significant experience in social strategy, ideally gained within a social media, creative or integrated marketing agency.
• A strong understanding of social platforms, creator culture, audience behaviour and paid media, alongside broader brand and communications strategy.
• Proven experience developing social and/or creator strategies for consumer brands, connecting business challenges with effective strategic and creative solutions.
• The ability to turn research, data and cultural observations into clear, compelling insights and opportunities.
• A strong balance of creative thinking and analytical rigour, with an understanding of how to measure effectiveness and demonstrate commercial impact.
• Experience leading and developing teams, setting strategic standards and influencing people across different disciplines.
• Confidence building senior client relationships, leading strategic workshops and presenting recommendations to senior stakeholders.
• Commercial awareness and the ability to contribute to pitches, new business and agency growth.
• A curious, forward-thinking approach to AI, data, technology and the future of social marketing.

This is a fantastic opportunity for an established strategic leader who wants to shape the future of a growing agency, build an exceptional strategy function and influence work at the highest level.

You'll have a seat at the leadership table and the opportunity to make a lasting contribution to the agency's success.

For immediate consideration and further details, please submit an application ASAP.