Back to jobs

Head of Strategy (On-site, Hybrid)

New York, New York

Head of Strategy | Job Description [NY, NY]

Who are we?

MATTE is a 360° full-service creative studio at the convergence of hype, storytelling and design. We bring people together to inspire new ways of engaging, to provoke long term progress, and to entertain audiences around the world, while helping forward-thinking brands and institutions nimbly and truly do the same. Our studio capabilities range from strategic ideation and insights, creative development, branding and identity, experiential, web design and development, campaigns and content creation, all the way through full-scale production and execution.

About this role: 

We’re seeking a dynamic, multi-disciplinary strategic leader to join our team as Head of Strategy. This person will be instrumental in evolving the strategic practice at MATTE—bridging culture, insight, and creativity—and embedding strategy into the heart of our agency’s work.

They will lead strategy across all pillars of our business—from brand to campaign to content and experience—while playing an active, embedded role across client work streams. They will partner directly with executive leadership to scale our strategic offering, strengthen client relationships, and set the vision for how strategy drives value across everything we do.

Strategic Leadership & Vision

  • Define and evolve MATTE’s strategic practice, methodologies, and POV across culture, brand, campaign, social, and experiential strategy across all client accounts.
  • Partner with Executive Leadership to grow strategy as a core capability at the agency—building a world-class department that delivers differentiated thinking and measurable results.
  • Champion thought leadership internally and externally, identifying new frameworks, trends, and cultural shifts that fuel client and internal growth.

Client Strategy & Day-to-Day Engagement

  • Serve as a senior strategic lead on key client accounts—immersing in their business, shaping strategy, and staying close to execution.
  • Lead strategic development across major brand initiatives, social and content calendars, campaign planning, cultural activations, and experiential programs.
  • Uncover deep insights that inform creative development, grounded in audience behavior, platform nuance, and cultural relevance.
  • Ensure strategy is an active, visible function in client relationships—contributing to growth, retention, and trust.

Team Leadership & Development

  • Hire, manage, and mentor a multidisciplinary team of strategists with expertise in brand, content, culture, social, and research.
  • Create a collaborative, high-performing environment focused on rigorous thinking and creativity.
  • Design professional development paths and implement practices that promote diversity of thought and consistent elevation of strategic craft.

Insights, Research & Innovation

  • Develop proprietary research tools, methodologies, and cultural frameworks to drive strategic differentiation and client value.
  • Translate data and insights into sharp, actionable strategies that inspire breakthrough creative work.
  • Stay ahead of emerging trends in consumer behavior, media, and culture—and educate internal teams and clients on their impact.

Cross-Functional & Creative Collaboration

  • Act as a critical partner to Creative, Production, Accounts, and New Business teams to ensure strategic cohesion across the full lifecycle of work.
  • Lead the development of briefs, strategy presentations, and pitch narratives that inspire internal teams and excite clients.
  • Elevate strategic consistency and integrity across all client touchpoints—from pitch to production.

Growth & New Business

  • Contribute to new business efforts, helping to shape proposals, RFP responses, and pitch strategy.
  • Identify opportunities to expand existing client relationships through strategic innovation, upselling, and strong delivery.

 

What you will bring:

  • 12+ years of experience in brand, creative, and cultural strategy within a top-tier creative or advertising agency environment.
  • Expertise across a wide spectrum of strategy disciplines: campaign, brand, social, content, culture, experiential, research and insights.
  • Proven experience leading integrated strategy across multiple accounts and industries.
  • Demonstrated success in building and scaling strategic teams and functions.
  • Deep understanding of cultural and consumer behavior trends and how they inform brand action.
  • Strong communicator and storyteller who can distill complexity into compelling, persuasive narratives.
  • A collaborative leader who thrives in a dynamic, creative, and entrepreneurial environment.
  • Proficiency in qualitative and quantitative research techniques, trend analysis, and insight generation.

Salary: $200,000-$240,000/year

Benefits include:

  • Full Medical, Dental, and Vision coverage
  • 401k with a 4% company contribution max match 
  • Fully covered Citibike membership 
  • Talkspace membership 
  • Competitive PTO package
  • End of Year Recharge 
  • Sabbatical Program 
  • Paid Parental Leave
  • 4x days a week in office [Monday-Thursday]

Everyone is welcome at MATTE - we’re passionate about building a team that reflects the diversity of our community and creating an environment where our differences are celebrated. MATTE provides equal employment opportunity (EEO) to all persons regardless of age, color, national origin, citizenship status, physical or mental disability, race, religion, creed, gender, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, genetic information, marital status, status with regard to public assistance, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local law. In addition, MATTE will provide reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disab

Apply for this job

*

indicates a required field

Resume/CV*

Accepted file types: pdf, doc, docx, txt, rtf

Cover Letter

Accepted file types: pdf, doc, docx, txt, rtf

Voluntary Self-Identification

For government reporting purposes, we ask candidates to respond to the below self-identification survey. Completion of the form is entirely voluntary. Whatever your decision, it will not be considered in the hiring process or thereafter. Any information that you do provide will be recorded and maintained in a confidential file.

As set forth in MATTE PROJECTS’s Equal Employment Opportunity policy, we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.

Select...
Select...
Race & Ethnicity Definitions

If you believe you belong to any of the categories of protected veterans listed below, please indicate by making the appropriate selection. As a government contractor subject to the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA), we request this information in order to measure the effectiveness of the outreach and positive recruitment efforts we undertake pursuant to VEVRAA. Classification of protected categories is as follows:

A "disabled veteran" is one of the following: a veteran of the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service who is entitled to compensation (or who but for the receipt of military retired pay would be entitled to compensation) under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; or a person who was discharged or released from active duty because of a service-connected disability.

A "recently separated veteran" means any veteran during the three-year period beginning on the date of such veteran's discharge or release from active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval, or air service.

An "active duty wartime or campaign badge veteran" means a veteran who served on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service during a war, or in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized under the laws administered by the Department of Defense.

An "Armed forces service medal veteran" means a veteran who, while serving on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service, participated in a United States military operation for which an Armed Forces service medal was awarded pursuant to Executive Order 12985.

Select...

Voluntary Self-Identification of Disability

Form CC-305
Page 1 of 1
OMB Control Number 1250-0005
Expires 04/30/2026

Why are you being asked to complete this form?

We are a federal contractor or subcontractor. The law requires us to provide equal employment opportunity to qualified people with disabilities. We have a goal of having at least 7% of our workers as people with disabilities. The law says we must measure our progress towards this goal. To do this, we must ask applicants and employees if they have a disability or have ever had one. People can become disabled, so we need to ask this question at least every five years.

Completing this form is voluntary, and we hope that you will choose to do so. Your answer is confidential. No one who makes hiring decisions will see it. Your decision to complete the form and your answer will not harm you in any way. If you want to learn more about the law or this form, visit the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) website at www.dol.gov/ofccp.

How do you know if you have a disability?

A disability is a condition that substantially limits one or more of your “major life activities.” If you have or have ever had such a condition, you are a person with a disability. Disabilities include, but are not limited to:

  • Alcohol or other substance use disorder (not currently using drugs illegally)
  • Autoimmune disorder, for example, lupus, fibromyalgia, rheumatoid arthritis, HIV/AIDS
  • Blind or low vision
  • Cancer (past or present)
  • Cardiovascular or heart disease
  • Celiac disease
  • Cerebral palsy
  • Deaf or serious difficulty hearing
  • Diabetes
  • Disfigurement, for example, disfigurement caused by burns, wounds, accidents, or congenital disorders
  • Epilepsy or other seizure disorder
  • Gastrointestinal disorders, for example, Crohn's Disease, irritable bowel syndrome
  • Intellectual or developmental disability
  • Mental health conditions, for example, depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorder, schizophrenia, PTSD
  • Missing limbs or partially missing limbs
  • Mobility impairment, benefiting from the use of a wheelchair, scooter, walker, leg brace(s) and/or other supports
  • Nervous system condition, for example, migraine headaches, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis (MS)
  • Neurodivergence, for example, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder, dyslexia, dyspraxia, other learning disabilities
  • Partial or complete paralysis (any cause)
  • Pulmonary or respiratory conditions, for example, tuberculosis, asthma, emphysema
  • Short stature (dwarfism)
  • Traumatic brain injury
Select...

PUBLIC BURDEN STATEMENT: According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 no persons are required to respond to a collection of information unless such collection displays a valid OMB control number. This survey should take about 5 minutes to complete.