LocationNew York, NY / Hybrid in office
How will you fit into the big picture?The Senior Manager, Connections Strategist - Growth & Insurgent Brands is responsible for building modern, consumer-first connection strategies for brands with outsized growth potential, including brands that are scaling quickly, entering new consumer spaces, or requiring more agile, culturally fluent go-to-market models. This leader translates brand ambition, consumer insight, business priorities, and marketplace signals into integrated connection plans that drive awareness, trial, relevance, demand capture, and measurable growth.
This role will serve as the strategic connective tissue between Brand, Creative, Media, Commerce, Earned/Shared, Social, Measurement, and agency partners-ensuring growth brands receive the right level of strategic rigor, speed, experimentation, and integration without defaulting to a one-size-fits-all model. The ideal candidate is comfortable operating in ambiguity, building plans from limited data, pushing for sharper briefs, challenging legacy assumptions, and helping brands move from isolated tactics to connected growth ecosystems.
What will you do?Hershey is transforming Consumer Connections into a modern growth engine that integrates media, creative, commerce, content, social, and measurement. This role will help define and scale a differentiated growth playbook for insurgent and emerging brands, balancing strategic rigor with speed, experimentation, cultural relevance, and measurable business impact.
Key ResponsibilitiesConnections Strategy & Integrated Planning- Develop integrated connections strategies aligned to business objectives.
- Create consumer-first ecosystem plans across paid, owned, earned, retail, commerce, creator, and cultural channels.
- Define the role of each touchpoint across the consumer journey.
- Partner with brand teams and agencies to ensure clear strategic direction and effective execution.
- Lead integrated go-to-market plans for launches, innovation, seasonal moments, and growth initiatives.
Growth & Insurgent Brand Leadership- Build and evolve a scalable Connections playbook for high-growth brands.
- Prioritize audiences, channels, and investments for brands with limited budgets or historical data.
- Identify alternative approaches across agencies, creators, social content, community building, and commerce activation.
- Connect fragmented tactics into cohesive growth ecosystems.
- Evaluate investment strategies and ensure alignment to growth objectives.
Audience, Culture & Content Strategy- Leverage consumer, cultural, social, and commerce insights to identify growth opportunities.
- Partner across creative, social, and agency teams to develop culturally relevant, platform-native ideas.
- Use performance data to optimize, scale, or discontinue content and initiatives.
- Build connected content systems that create consistent brand experiences across channels.
- Help brands establish distinctive voices, partnerships, and cultural relevance.
Media, Commerce & Investment Strategy- Partner with media, commerce, finance, measurement, and agency teams to develop investment recommendations.
- Ensure national media, retail media, social, creator, search, and commerce efforts work as an integrated system.
- Balance investments across awareness, trial, penetration, sales, and market share objectives.
- Recommend where to invest, test, scale, or stop based on performance and business outcomes.
Agency & Cross-Functional Leadership- Serve as the strategic lead across integrated agency partners.
- Build strong partnerships across Brand, Creative, Commerce, Sales, Measurement, Social, and agency teams.
- Bring clarity and structure to complex planning decisions.
- Recommend the right operating model for each brand, leveraging internal and external capabilities as needed.
- Maintain high standards of strategic thinking, execution, accountability, and business impact.
Success Profile- Strategic and decisive problem solver.
- Deep understanding of modern consumer behavior and marketing ecosystems.
- Strong collaborator and influencer across functions and partners.
- Curious marketer with knowledge of emerging platforms, creator ecosystems, AI-enabled planning, retail media, social commerce, and modern measurement practices.
Minimum Education & Requirements- 8+ years of experience in communications planning, media strategy, integrated marketing, brand strategy, commerce marketing, social strategy, or related fields; CPG, consumer brand, agency, or high-growth brand experience preferred.
- Strong understanding of modern marketing ecosystems, including paid, earned, owned, social, creator, commerce, retail media, and emerging channels.
- Proven ability to develop integrated marketing and connections strategies that drive measurable business results.
- Experience leading cross-functional teams and agency partners in fast-paced, ambiguous environments.
- Strong communication and storytelling skills with the ability to influence senior stakeholders.
- Working knowledge of marketing measurement, performance analytics, retail media, social metrics, and optimization frameworks.
- Demonstrated success building processes, playbooks, or operating models that improve effectiveness and speed.
- Bachelor's degree in Marketing, Communications, Business, Media, or a related field required; advanced degree preferred.
Benefits & PerksAt Hershey, we offer competitive pay and a comprehensive total rewards package designed to support your wellbeing, financial security, and life outside of work.
- Health & Wellbeing: Medical, dental, and vision coverage, plus wellness programs that support your physical and mental health
- Financial Security: Competitive pay, annual incentive opportunities, and a 401(k) with company match
- Time Off & Flexibility: Paid time off, company holidays, and flexible ways of working where applicable
- Growth & Development: Career development programs, learning opportunities, and internal mobility
Benefits may vary based on role, location, and eligibility.
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The anticipated base salary range for this role is $143920 to $179900 per year. The actual base salary offered will depend on a variety of job-related factors, including, but not limited to, experience, skill set, education, and training. In addition to a market-competitive base salary, our Total Rewards package includes performance-based incentives and a comprehensive, competitive benefits package designed to support overall physical, mental, and financial well-being (as applicable). Learn more about Hershey's benefits and all the resources Hershey provides to support our employees' physical, emotional, and financial well-being by visiting the Hershey Digital Employee Experience at www.askHRbenefits.hersheys.com
