Strategy Director (Contract)

Strategy Director with multi-channel integrated advertising experience and a good understanding of social.

About the Company:

VCCP is the Challenger Agency for Challenger Brands. An independent, 1,500-person strong creative company that exists to transform its clients' fortunes by disrupting the categories they operate in. VCCP is fully integrated, with deep capabilities in data and analytics, brand strategy, communications, customer experience, media, production, and distribution. The company was founded in 2002 in London, with offices in New York, San Francisco, Singapore, Shanghai, Sydney, Madrid, and Prague. Our London office has been shortlisted for Campaign magazine’s Agency of the Year almost every year for the past decade, topping the new business table 9 years out of the last 10.

About the Role:

As a Planning Director at VCCP, you’ll be a key strategic leader on some of our most ambitious and high-profile accounts. You’ll lead thinking that fuels creativity and effectiveness, working closely with creatives, clients, and internal teams to ensure our work is grounded in insight and designed to make a difference. You will be responsible for shaping brand strategies, unlocking new audience opportunities, inspiring bold creative work, and nurturing a culture of curiosity across your team and clients.

Responsibilities:

• Strategic Leadership: Own and lead the strategic direction for major accounts, providing clarity, inspiration, and commercial rigour.
• Creative Collaboration: Partner with creative teams to generate original, insight-led ideas that challenge category norms and resonate with audiences.
• Client Partnership: Build trusted senior client relationships, providing strategic counsel and driving long-term brand growth.
• Team Development: Lead, mentor, and inspire planners and junior strategists, fostering excellence in strategic thinking across the agency.
• Insight & Innovation: Use data, research, and cultural insight to uncover new opportunities and reframe challenges in original ways.
• Integrated Thinking: Work seamlessly across brand, digital, CX, media, social, and content – developing strategies that live and thrive across every touchpoint.
• New Business: Contribute to pitch strategy, helping VCCP win exciting new accounts through powerful thinking and storytelling.

Required Skills:

• A strong portfolio of strategic work that has driven creative excellence and tangible business results.
• Deep understanding of consumer behaviour, market dynamics, and the evolving media landscape.
• Brilliant communicator – whether presenting to clients, briefing creatives, writing compelling decks or pitching to new clients.
• Collaborative leadership style, with the ability to motivate and guide multidisciplinary teams.
• Passionate about big ideas, grounded in rigorous thinking and a clear understanding of effectiveness.
• Always curious, never complacent – a natural challenger with a restless, problem-solving mindset.

VCCP DE&I Statement: We believe that DE&I is about creating a strong culture of inclusion within our agency, where everyone can thrive and be their authentic self. VCCP is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of gender, age, disability, religion, belief, sexual orientation, marital status, or ethnicity. If you require any adjustments during the application or interview process, please let us know via joinus@vccp.com.

Criminal Records information: As part of our onboarding process, you will be required to complete a Criminal Records Declaration regarding any unspent convictions. For roles in finance, HR, Legal, IT or senior management, we may be required to verify your declaration with a basic DBS check, as well as an Adverse Finance and ID check.