Head of Strategy

Pink Squid Ltd; Greater London; On-site; GBP 125,000 - GBP 150,000; Full time

Job summary

A creative agency is seeking a Head of Strategy to drive the strategic direction of the organization. This senior leadership role involves shaping how strategy impacts client work, overseeing team performance, and leading innovative projects that unlock transformative outcomes. Candidates should possess extensive experience in strategy leadership within employer branding environments. The position includes competitive benefits such as a bonus, generous holiday allowance, and a vibrant work culture.

Benefits

26 days holiday plus public holidays

Agency wide % bonus

Annual xmas trip

Office snacks and drinks

Qualifications

• Experience in senior strategy leadership within an employer brand or creative agency environment.
• Proven experience leading and scaling impact of a department.
• Exceptional strategic judgement balancing rigour, creativity and commercial realities.

Responsibilities

• Lead the strategy discipline and ensure its quality across projects.
• Act as a senior strategic voice within the leadership team.
• Shape strategic ambition for clients and oversee the creation of innovative strategies.

Skills

Senior strategy leadership

Strong commercial acumen

Storytelling and communication

Curiosity and empathy

Job description

This is a senior leadership role at the heart of Pink Squid, with responsibility for the strategic direction, quality and impact of the agency’s work.

As Head of Strategy, you are the ultimate guardian of strategic thinking across Pink Squid, shaping how strategy shows up in our work, our culture and our commercial success.

You will lead the strategy discipline at an agency level, while remaining close enough to the work to ensure our thinking is always rigorous, distinctive and creatively enabling.

This is not a “step away from the work” role — you will remain deeply involved in projects, client relationships and creative collaboration.

You will work as a trusted partner to the Senior Leadership team, helping define Pink Squid’s long-term strategic ambition, positioning and growth. Externally, you will be a senior strategic presence for our most important clients, helping shape ambition, challenge thinking and unlock transformative work.

This role is not about stepping away from delivery — it is about setting the standard, building a world-class strategy team, and ensuring Pink Squid continues to lead the market in employer brand and employee experience thinking.

What you\'ll be doing

As Head of Strategy, you will have accountability and ownership of people management and team success, including but not limited too:

• Team structure and capability
• Performance, wellbeing and long-term development
• Progression, reward and recognition
• Recruitment, progression and succession planning
• Strategists, supporting them to be outstanding strategic partners to our internal teams and client partners
• Creating a culture where strategists feel supported, challenged and inspired to do their best work
• Continuously evolving ways of working, tools and frameworks to keep the team future-facing

Agency leadership

In this role you will sit within the agency leadership team, collaborating with peers and senior leadership team, setting the quality bar for strategy across the agency, ensuring clarity, rigour and creative ambition in everything we produce.

• Acting as a senior strategic voice within the leadership team, contributing to agency direction, growth planning and decision-making
• Representing Pink Squid externally as a thought leader — through senior client relationships, new business, industry presence and thought leadership
• Championing strategic excellence across disciplines, embedding strategy deeply into how account, creative and delivery teams work

Strategic craft, collaboration & partnership

Acting as a senior strategic partner on Pink Squid’s most complex, high-impact and high-value client relationships as their go-to partner, helping shape strategic ambition at an account and project level. Leading the strategic definition of employer brands and employee experiences agency wide, from early discovery through to clear, actionable strategic outputs.

• Setting the strategic standard and quality bar for the agency’s work, pushing for innovation, ensuring consistency, rigour and clarity across projects
• Leading & overseeing strategic framing on major opportunities, transformations and global programmes. Partnering closely with Creative and Client Leadership to turn strategy into bold, effective ideas
• Playing a central role in new business, including pitch leadership, proposition development and senior client conversations
• Helping shape commercial models and account growth through sharper strategic value
• Ensuring strategy is inclusive, empathetic and grounded in a deep understanding of people, culture and organisations

What you need to bring

• Experience in senior strategy leadership within an employer brand, brand or creative agency environment
• Deep expertise in employer branding and/or employee experience, including EVPs, talent audiences, organisational culture and activation
• Proven experience leading and scaling impact of a department, including collaboration with senior leaders
• Strong commercial acumen, with a track record of contributing to agency growth and successful new business
• Confidence operating at the most senior client and leadership levels, with the ability to challenge and influence
• Exceptional strategic judgement, able to balance rigour, creativity and commercial realities
• Outstanding storytelling and communication skills, able to inspire confidence and alignment
• Curiosity, empathy and a clear point of view on the future of work, culture and employer brands

Other Information

Pink Squid reserves the right to reasonably amend the duties of this role in line with business needs from time to time.

What will be provided

Mac or PC Laptop subject to preference / availability

Bonus: Agency wide % bonus offered.

Holiday: 26 days per year (plus public holidays) - annual increase after each full year of service up to a maximum of 30 days in total.We also offer a bank holiday exchange for alternative days of the year with religious or cultural significance, as well as a buy and sell option of up to 5 days per year.

Annual xmas trip / Socials: Every year the whole agency goes away for a two night getaway. As well as frequent socials to get the agency together

Tank supplies: Drinks fridge, snacks and treats for those days when you're in the office

Join us at Pink Squid, where our values—Clarity, Courage, and Community—drive us to continuously learn, grow, and better ourselves. In return, we offer not only the benefits mentioned above but also a fantastic workplace, a charming office, and a vibrant culture.