Strategy Director

About WPP Media WPP is the trusted growth partner for the world’s leading brands. With exceptional talent, trusted data and intelligence, and world-class partnerships – all united by our pioneering agentic marketing platform, WPP Open – we help clients navigate change, capture opportunity, and deliver transformational growth. WPP Media is WPP's AI-driven media operating unit, bringing together media, data, and partnerships to deliver creative personalisation at scale. Connected through WPP Open and powered by Open Intelligence, clients see exactly where, how, and why their media investment is working. For more information, visit wppmedia.com . 1255 - Strategy Director - GCS Role Summary and Impact This is an unparalleled opportunity to accelerate your career, empowering Colgate brand teams to lead, fostering robust collaboration with our hubs and growth markets, and spearheading true innovation in communications planning. You will be instrumental in leading the end-to-end BEP/IMC development process, overseeing the timely delivery of planning templates, content needs, and activation guidelines across EMEA. Job Summary: As a Strategy Director, you will serve as a strategic planning leader, responsible for implementing the development of audience and communications strategies within Colgate’s BEP/IMC framework for EMEA. You will translate detailed consumer insight work, market trends, and client business objectives into actionable, integrated comms and audience plans that leverage the full breadth of WPP Media's capabilities and the wider WPP network expertise (creative, production, specialists). This role demands confident client collaborative leadership, analytical prowess, presentation skills, and a relentless passion for pushing the boundaries of media effectiveness and customer experience. Key Responsibilities: Strategic Leadership & BEP/IMC Development: Drive the end-to-end development of comprehensive audience and communications strategies for

Gold and Silver IMC projects

and

multi-market brands , ensuring alignment with overall brand objectives, business goals, and our established

BEP/IMC development framework . Be a key player in our strategic evolution, actively contributing to the 'Leading' and 'Collaborative' shifts outlined in our 2025 vision, acting as a primary strategic partner to clients and internal teams across WPP. Contribute significantly to the strategic direction of BEP for the EMEA region, guiding its implementation and internal training initiatives. Audience Expertise & Insight Generation: Leverage your deep understanding of consumer behaviour and WPP's resources to drive profound audience understanding through proprietary tools, market research, behavioural data, and cultural insights. Identify key segments, motivations, and journey touchpoints, maintaining and evolving

Colgate Audience Catalogue

for the Division. Identify sources of growth and translate them into locally relevant audience strategies, advising our

Hubs

on effective audience activation and enrichment. Oversee the development of critical

WPP comms-specific insight work

for EMEA, sharing best practices across the network. Communications Frameworks & Ecosystem Orchestration: Develop robust communications architectures and

ecosystem maps

that define the role of different channels (paid, owned, earned) and content types across the consumer journey, encompassing Colgate’s Brand Experience planning process

(touchpoints, roles, formats, KPIs, messaging, destinations). Lead

content briefing alongside creative teams

and ensure timely delivery of key comms planning elements, including the creation of

comms planning ( A ttention C onsideration P urchase L oyalty ) templates, asset lists, and toolkit production . Oversee the integration of

division-level initiatives

(e.g., Ogilvy social strategy, OAC 1PD workstream) into comprehensive comms plans, ensuring seamless execution. Client & Stakeholder Management: Serve as a trusted strategic advisor to clients, presenting complex strategies with clarity and conviction, fostering strong relationships, and identifying opportunities for growth and innovation. Manage the planning process end-to-end, coordinating crucial internal and external meetings (briefings, check-ins, creative strategy, market alignments), managing timelines, scope, expectations, and writing internal briefs. Ensure market needs are thoroughly accounted for in division comms plans, acting as a key liaison. Integrated Planning & Collaboration: Collaborate seamlessly with your colleagues in media buying, creative, data sciences, analytics, and other specialist teams (e.g.,

WPPCP creative planners, WPPCP client teams, WPP Media Digital, Audience team, ACE team, Ogilvy ), ensuring strategies are translated into effective and measurable execution within the BEP process. Work closely with

Channel specialists, including Retail/eCommerce , to develop integrated, omnichannel strategies and lead WM Hub teams on eCommerce and eRetail strategy. Innovation & Future-Forward Thinking: Stay at the forefront of evolving media landscapes, ad-tech, consumer behaviour shifts, and emerging platforms, proactively integrating new approaches into planning frameworks, specifically championing 'True Innovation' via target test-and-learn approaches. Drive the evolution towards enhanced 'CX' by fostering closer integration of commerce with the ACE team and stronger insight capabilities, leveraging your internal understanding. Contribute to adding innovation and challenging existing approaches in IMC briefs. Team Development & Mentorship: Guide, mentor, and inspire junior planners, fostering a culture of strategic thinking, creativity, and continuous professional development, and actively participating in

upskilling brand teams . Performance & Measurement: Define clear KPIs