THE ROLE:As a Director, Communications Planning, you are a senior strategic leader who sits at the heart of how we connect brands to culture.
You'll own the strategic architecture that sits between a brand's positioning and its channel execution. You know how to build a comms plan with genuine logic behind it - one that maps audience behavior to message sequencing, assigns channel roles based on insight rather than convention, and gives Reporting to the Group Director of Integrated Strategy & Media Planning, you will drive the communications planning discipline for industry-leading clients,shaping how brands show up across the full media ecosystem with precision, relevance, and impact.
You bring a rare combination of strategic depth, channel expertise, and leadership presence, translating business ambitions into integrated communications strategies that move people and drive measurable growth.
WHAT YOU'LL DO:- Lead communications planning across assigned accounts - developing audience-first strategies that define the role of each channel, the logic of message sequencing, and the measurable outcomes each phase of a plan is designed to drive. Your comms plans have a point of view. They're not channel checklists.
- Translate brand and business briefs into integrated communications frameworks: audience segmentation, consumer journey mapping, channel roles and sequencing, and a clear articulation of what moves someone from awareness through to action. The frameworks you build should be specific enough to actually guide execution.
- Write and develop creative briefs. You understand that a great brief is a strategic act - it shapes what creative makes, not just how it gets made. You know how to distill an insight, define a single-minded proposition, and give a creative team enough constraint to do their best work.
- Serve as a senior strategic partner to clients on communications, campaign strategy, channel planning, and audience engagement. You're in the room when planning decisions are being made, contributing a point of view.
- Lead integrated communications planning across paid, owned, and earned media - defining the role of each channel, sequencing messaging, and establishing clear KPIs tied to business outcomes
- Translate complex business challenges into sharp, compelling strategic frameworks that inspire both clients and internal creative and media teams
- Partner closely with discipline leads across media, creative, CRM, and e-commerce to ensure full-funnel alignment from strategy through execution. Pressure test channel recommendations against real audience and behavioral data.
- Drive new business efforts by developing insight-led communications strategies and presenting with authority and conviction on a national stage
- Oversee audience analysis, consumer journey mapping, and competitive intelligence to uncover opportunities for brand growth and differentiation
- Lead, mentor, and develop a team of planners - fostering a culture of strategic rigor, intellectual curiosity, and collaborative excellence
- Champion measurement and learning agendas, partnering with analytics teams to evaluate performance and continuously evolve planning approaches
- Stay ahead of emerging media trends, platform innovations, and cultural shifts - bringing fresh thinking and proactive POVs to clients and internal teams
- Represent DEPT®'s strategic capabilities in the market, contributing to thought leadership, industry events, and agency positioning
WHAT YOU'LL BRING:- 8-12 years of experience in communications planning, media strategy, or integrated planning within an agency environment, including leadership experience
- Proven ability to develop and own senior client relationships, acting as a strategic partner and trusted advisor at the executive level
- Deep expertise across the full media ecosystem - paid, owned, and earned - with a strong understanding of how channels work together to drive business outcomes
- Experience leading integrated marketing strategies across media, creative, CRM, and/or e-commerce
- Strong leadership skills with a track record of building, mentoring, and developing high-performing planning teams
- Exceptional strategic thinking with the ability to turn complex data, research, and insights into clear, actionable, and inspiring communications frameworks
- Outstanding written and verbal communication skills with the ability to craft and deliver compelling narratives to senior stakeholders and C-suite clients
- Proficiency with planning tools and audience intelligence platforms (GWI, MRI-Simmons, Nielsen, Comscore, etc.)
- New business experience with a proven ability to contribute to and win pitches at the agency level
- AI proficiency and a forward-thinking mindset - comfortable leveraging emerging tools to enhance planning efficiency and insight generation
- A collaborative, solutions-oriented leadership style with the ability to thrive in a fast-paced, matrixed environment
WHAT DO WE OFFER?We are a collaborative, open-door, best-idea-wins environment that fosters personal and company growth and has fun doing it. Here is a snapshot of our benefits package:
- Healthcare, Dental, and Vision coverage
- 401k plan, plus matching
- PTO
- Paid Company Holidays
- Parental Leave
#LI-RemoteThe anticipated salary range for this position is listed below. Salary is based on a range of factors that include relevant experience, expertise,
physical location, and organizational impact. This is based on a 40-hour workweek and leveling. Keep in mind, we're flexible.
US Remote Range
$138,000-$175,000 USD
