Head of Strategy & Planning

Directive Consulting is the leading B2B marketing agency for companies that are done optimizing for metrics that don't move the business. With over a decade of expertise and 420+ B2B brands behind us, we know what real results look like. We operate through 3 divisions: Performance, Communications, and Commerce, each built to share intelligence and align on revenue. Our methodology, DiscoverabilityOS™, aligns brand and demand to guide your ICP to choose you across every decision point. Across Technology, Industrial, and Services verticals, that system spans everything from Paid Media and Content Marketing to PR and Paid Social to Marketplace and Lifecycle Marketing.

At Directive, we're always looking to connect with talented people who care about work that actually counts. As we grow across all 3 divisions, we're seeking forward-thinking people who thrive in fast-paced environments, are obsessed with analytics and storytelling, and are ready to make their mark doing B2B marketing that actually means something.

The Role

We're looking for an Associate Director, Integrated Strategic Planning dedicated to Performance Marketing to connect business goals, audience insights, brand positioning, and channel strategy into a clear plan for growth. This is not a channel-by-channel planning role. You'll wear two different “hats”: uncovering the insight that gives a brand a meaningful advantage and leading the translation of that insight into an integrated performance marketing plan that teams can execute and measure.

You'll lead strategic planning for Performance Marketing engagements, aligning paid media, performance creative, landing page experiences, analytics, and client business outcomes around a shared understanding of the customer and the business opportunity. You'll turn complex inputs into focused briefs, fully connected conversion journeys, and actionable recommendations. Your job is to ensure its channels and teams work toward shared business outcomes.

Roles & Responsibilities

Audience Research & Insight Development

• Lead research into client businesses, ideal customer profiles, buying committees, competitors, and category dynamics.

• Synthesize customer interviews, market research, search behavior, and campaign data into insights that shape strategy.

• Map the B2B buying journey, identifying decision points, barriers, and opportunities to influence consideration and conversion.

• Turn research into a clear strategic point of view — not just a collection of observations.

Integrated Strategy & Planning

• Lead integrated strategic planning within Performance Marketing, connecting audience insight, messaging, paid media, performance creative, and conversion experiences to client growth objectives.

• Define the audience, positioning, messaging priorities, channel roles, and sequencing needed to meet client business goals.

• Partner with paid media, design, copy, landing page, and analytics specialists to define coordinated performance marketing plans across paid search, paid social, display, and video.

• Apply DiscoverabilityOS™ principles within Performance Marketing, aligning audience targeting, messaging, and conversion experiences with the decision points that matter to the client's ideal customers.

Creative Briefing & Collaboration

• Write focused strategic and creative briefs that clarify the business challenge, audience insight, value proposition, and desired response.

• Partner with performance design, copy, paid media, and landing page teams to turn strategy into compelling creative and connected conversion experiences.

• Facilitate planning workshops and working sessions that align stakeholders around one direction.

• Evaluate concepts and plans against the brief, keeping work grounded in audience needs and business outcomes.

Strategy & Client Partnership

• Own the strategic planning direction for assigned Performance Marketing engagements, partnering with client success and channel leads to clarify objectives, challenge assumptions, and prioritize opportunities.

• Present research, strategic recommendations, and integrated plans in language clients and senior stakeholders can act on.

• Lead the strategic narrative for Performance Marketing pitches and account expansion opportunities, grounding recommendations in audience insight and evidence.

• Build alignment across Performance Marketing teams and clients, documenting decisions and explaining the trade-offs behind the plan.

Measurement & Business Impact

• Translate business objectives into a measurement framework with shared goals, channel-specific indicators, and clear learning priorities.

• Partner with analytics and paid media teams to interpret performance across engagement, conversion, lead quality, pipeline, and revenue where data is available.

• Develop test-and-learn plans that validate audience, messaging, creative, and channel assumptions.

• Recommend adjustments based on evidence, acknowledging attribution limits and balancing short-term performance with long-term brand growth.

• Consider budget, scope, and delivery constraints so recommendations are commercially sound and executable.

AI & Technology Integration

• Use AI and research tools to support insight synthesis, competitive analysis, and planning efficiency.

• Validate AI-generated outputs against reliable sources and protect confidential client information.

• Establish repeatable research, briefing, and planning standards for Performance Marketing, coaching colleagues in their use and improving strategic quality — not just the speed of producing presentations.

What You Offer /Qualifications

Experience & Background

• Substantial experience in strategic planning, integrated performance marketing, or account planning within an agency or growth-focused business, with demonstrated ownership of complex client strategies.

• A portfolio demonstrating strategic leadership: how audience insights shaped performance marketing briefs, coordinated channel plans, and measurable business outcomes.

• Experience with B2B performance marketing, complex buying journeys, paid media, performance creative, and conversion strategy.

• Ability to independently lead planning engagements, advise senior client stakeholders, and mentor colleagues while remaining hands-on with research and briefing.

Business Acumen

• Strong understanding of how brand, demand generation, and customer experience contribute to business growth.

• Ability to connect marketing recommendations to commercial priorities, budgets, and realistic execution plans.

• Confidence interpreting quantitative and qualitative evidence, distinguishing meaningful signals from vanity metrics.

• You think beyond individual channels and make decisions with the full customer journey in mind.

AI & Tools

• Hands-on familiarity with research, audience intelligence, analytics, and planning tools.

• Ability to use AI responsibly for research and synthesis while applying independent judgment and source validation.

• Comfort interpreting campaign reporting and working with analytics specialists to define measurement and learning plans.

Communication & Stakeholder Management

• Strong storyteller who can turn complex information into a clear insight, strategic narrative, and actionable brief.

• Skilled facilitator who builds alignment across clients, performance creative practitioners, paid media specialists, analytics teams, and senior leadership.

• Confidence asking thoughtful questions, challenging assumptions constructively, and explaining strategic trade-offs.

• Strong organization and prioritization skills, with the ability to manage multiple planning workstreams in a fast-paced environment.

What Success Looks Like:

In the first 90 days, you've built strong relationships within Performance Marketing and with key client stakeholders, developed a working understanding of assigned client businesses and audiences, and taken ownership of strategic planning priorities. You've delivered clear insights and briefs and identified opportunities to improve research, channel alignment, and conversion journeys.

Within six months, you're confidently owning strategic planning for assigned Performance Marketing engagements — leading evidence-based recommendations, aligning paid media and creative around shared objectives, and using results to refine plans. You're strengthening planning standards, mentoring colleagues, and articulating the value of Performance Marketing strategy in client and new business conversations, with a clear connection between audience insight, creative direction, and business impact.

What We Offer:

• 🏠 We have a set living wage at Directive; The annual base salary range for this position based in Canada is $150,000- $190,000 CAD with potential for bonus eligibility. This salary range is an estimate, and the actual salary may vary based on Directive's compensation practices, job related skills, and depth of experience.

• 🙏 Medical, dental, vision plans, disability, and life insurance coverage for you and your family that fit your lifestyle

  • Including a 100% employer-paid plan for you and a 50% employer contribution for your dependents (US, CAD, MX)

• Benefits to Support the Whole Person:

  • 🧠 Mental - Access to certified therapists through Spring Health, membership to Headspace

  • 💪 Physical - Physical therapy through Omada, thousands of Aaptiv virtual workouts, complimentary One Medical membership for primary and virtual care

  • 🛫 Time Off - Unlimited PTO (2-week minimum), Paid Company Holidays, Your Birthday Off, End of Year Recharge (Closed December 24 - January 1), Paid Parental Leave

  • 💰 Financial - Traditional and Roth 401(k) with a 3% company match

  • 🌟 Bonus - Annual bonus based on tenure, which scales in total amount over time

  • 🌴 Annual Company-wide Retreat

Work Environment Requirements

As a remote-first company, you’ll have the ability to work from your home office. For some positions, as posted, we will accommodate global opportunities where we have established businesses, including Canada, Mexico, and the UK. For global locations, you must have established and current work authorization and permanently reside in that country.

This role has the opportunity to operate 100% virtually from your home office. We primarily collaborate with our colleagues through virtual meetings (Zoom), and Slack. In this role, you will be required to operate a laptop computer (PC or Mac available), computer software platforms, and other office productivity tools as necessary. Due to the nature of this role, you must be able to remain stationary for extended periods, must be able to observe and interpret written and/or verbal communication, must have reliable internet access, and a professional background.

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential job duty satisfactorily. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform essential job functions.

If you require reasonable accommodations in completing this application, interviewing, completing any pre-employment testing, or otherwise participating in the employee selection process, direct your inquiries to [email protected].

Additional Information

At Directive, one of our core values is People First. We’re committed to fostering a more diverse and inclusive culture in the digital landscape. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or veteran status.