Senior Brand Strategist

About MERGE Brand Strategy

Our clients come to MERGE because they need more than a traditional brand strategy; they need a strategy built for the complex reality of the modern consumer. Where other agencies have a strategic blind spot, lacking either the health or lifestyle lens, MERGE has a superpower: The Whole Human Insight Advantage.

This is our proprietary strategic mindset that informs every recommendation we make. We believe that to drive true growth, you must deeply understand the individual across their entire life: as a consumer and as a patient. By intentionally triangulating insights across our Lifestyle and Health divisions, we gain a complete, empathetic view of their motivations and challenges, ensuring our strategy fuels a brand journey that is relevant, seamless, and ultimately advances the crucial work of our clients' brands.

Clear Career Framework: At MERGE, we build our teams to scale. This role is deliberately structured within a defined career ladder, designed to expand your capabilities from "mastering the craft" to "learning to lead."

Role Overview

As our Senior Strategist, Brand Strategy, you will primarily focus across our diverse health portfolios, driving impactful brand foundations across Life Sciences (pharma/biotech and medtech/device), Provider/Hospital Systems, Payer/Health Systems, and Wellness industries with a curiosity and interest in consumer brands as well.

You are a creative and intellectual leader who is capable of working independently on small to mid-size projects or leading distinct pieces of larger deliverables.

In this role, you will serve as a strategic engine across portfolios, offering an intentional hybrid of autonomy and mentorship. You will independently drive distinct strategic workstreams, while partnering closely with, and supporting, senior strategic leaders on complex or multifaceted work. You will bridge market and customer insights to solve the problem of "Why," defining the brand promise and crafting roadmaps that humanize healthcare experiences across audiences including Healthcare Professionals (HCPs), Hospital C-suite, Patients, and Caregivers. You’ll have the room to run with your ideas, backed by the guidance, partnership, and air cover of seasoned agency leaders.

Be Accountable and Responsible 

• Insight & Data Synthesis: Drive the analysis of qualitative and quantitative data under the directional guidance of account strategy leads, transforming both consumer and complex payer, provider, and patient data into human truths.
• Co-Architecting Large Scale Strategy: Partner with senior strategy leads to co-author brand foundations, positioning, and long-term brand plans for enterprise Life Sciences and Health System clients, serving as a critical right-hand in insight triangulation.
• Independent Project Ownership of Strategic Deliverables: Autonomously lead day-to-day strategy deliverables on small-to-midsize accounts, taking full ownership from discovery to creative brief execution.
• Creative Partnership: Architect and present clear, compelling creative briefs that inspire creative teams to deliver emotionally resonant and impactful work.
• Storytelling & Presentation: Synthesize data into clear, persuasive, client-facing narratives that connect long-term brand building with near-term client business goals.
• Workshop Facilitation: Assist in the design and implementation of internal and client brainstorming sessions and strategic workshops utilizing collaboration platforms like Miro.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Consistently partner across different strategy roles (including Experience Strategy) and the wider MERGE organization to bridge divisions and deliver cohesive solutions.
• AI & Innovation: Maintain active proficiency with AI-driven strategic tools and proprietary platforms to optimize research efficiency and validate brand hypotheses.

Qualifications & Competencies

• Experience: 4 to 6 years of brand strategy experience within an advertising agency, market research company, or strategic consultancy (with a strong foundation supporting healthcare, health systems, or life sciences portfolios).
• Health Literacy: A strong understanding of how to apply strategic principles across complex healthcare landscapes, navigating the unique regulatory and emotional environments of patients, payers, providers, and HCPs.
• Core Strategic Fluency: Proven command of core brand strategy principles, including:
• Brand Positioning: Supporting the development of brand platforms and purpose statements.
• Competitive Analysis: Analyzing competitor branding, positioning, and messaging to identify opportunities for differentiation.
• Audience Insight: Defining audiences, developing personas, and uncovering key insights.
• Journey Mapping: Outlining customer journeys to identify key brand touchpoints.
• Communications Planning: Contributing to the development of integrated, omnichannel campaign strategies.
• Creative Brief Writing: A demonstrated ability to write clear, insightful, and inspiring briefs.
• The Toolkit: Technical proficiency with collaboration tools (e.g., Miro, Mural), research methodologies (qualitative interviews, secondary tools, surveys), and an evolving mastery of modern strategic frameworks.
• Mindset: A combination of critical thinking and creative curiosity; someone who defaults to an entrepreneurial spirit, takes accountability for outcomes, and acts as a true unifier in the room.

At MERGE, we’re committed to fostering an environment where our team members can thrive in both their careers and personal lives, ensuring they feel supported and empowered to succeed.

MERGE believes in transparency and equity. In accordance with state regulations, we’re proud to include salary ranges in our job postings to ensure fair compensation practices.

The salary range for this role is $60,150 - $88,250, based on the individual’s skills, experience, qualifications, location, and other relevant factors. The salary pay range is subject to change and may be modified at any time.  

MERGE is proud to invest in benefits that include meaningful Medical, Dental, Vision, Life Insurance, 401K, Lifestyle Spending Account, Employer Paid Life & Disability Insurance, Flexible Time off & Holidays plus many other benefits and rewards.

Applicants for employment in the US must have work authorization that does not now or in the future require sponsorship of a visa for employment authorization in the United States.

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