Job Description

In my Advanced Portfolio Development class, we were asked to create our own job descriptions. Here is my first stab at what I want to be and where I want to work.

Job Description: Strategic Planner

The job of Strategic Planner changes from agency to agency. You may be called a Context Planner, Consumer Context Planner, Account Planner, Brand Strategist, Channel Strategist, etc, etc, etc. The list goes on and on, but there are some overarching qualifications. The best Planners are not afraid of all the change, but rather inspired by it. They are always reaching for the next level of involvement with and knowledge of the consumer, the brand, and the people they work with. And if the titles and the job descriptions have to change every year to keep up, that just adds to the excitement.

We Offer:
• An agency where planners are considered partners in the creative process/product
• A forward thinking attitude toward the use of media
• An agency large enough to afford quantitative resources, small enough to start out as a presence/personality instead of a number
• An environment where you will be encouraged to strike out on your own, but will still have active and interested mentors.

Responsibilities:
• Develop creative briefs that inspire and excite your creative team
• Be able to relate well with clients and truly take an interest in their business
• Work closely (and in harmony) with creatives, account teams and media teams
• Search for new media with which to effectively reach consumers
• Qualitative and Quantitative research and data interpretation
• Supplying communication strategies and insights for your accounts

Required Skills:
• Be actively interested in any brand that you are presented with
• Think outside the box and see things from many perspectives
• Skilled at long term planning
• An understanding of the difference between what people say and what they mean
• Willingness to take the leap from solid ground to more abstract ideas
• The ability to support and sell fresh, and possibly provocative, ideas
• Great people skills; in the office, on the street and with clients
• A talent for written and verbal expression
• “No Quiet Chairs”: The client is paying for everyone at the table, so we expect you to feel comfortable voicing your opinion
• Creative thinking skills
• Flexibility; a love for project-based environments and sometimes-odd hours