Senior Social Strategist

Senior Strategist (Social) 

About Havas Play 

At Havas Play, we build brands in culture. As an integrated culture marketing agency, we create culture-first 360 campaigns that sit in the space between traditional advertising and media - connected through culture, powered by partnerships, creators, talent, media and experiences. 
 
 

The Opportunity 

We are looking for a Senior Strategist (Social) to support strategic social-first thinking across major client relationships and help shape Havas Play’s offer across the social and creator landscape 
 

This is an exciting opportunity to be part of a growing social strategy team: We’re looking for someone immersed in social innovation and culturally fluent, with a strong sense of strategic rigour to bring fresh thinking to the team.  

Core Responsibilities 

• Champion social-first thinking and audience-centred approaches across client work, new business and internal initiatives. 

• Maintain a strong understanding of contemporary culture, communities, behaviours and social platforms. 

• Unearth and apply social and cultural intelligence to strategy and creative help brands participate credibly and effectively in culture. 

• Translate business challenges into clear strategic questions and opportunities. 

• Lead and contribute to the development of strategic workstreams across a diverse range of brands and rights holders. 

• Develop robust strategic recommendations grounded in audience understanding, cultural insight and platform behaviour. 

• Produce clear, inspiring and actionable briefs for Play creative teams. 

• Identify emerging trends, shifts and opportunities relevant to client categories and audiences. 

• Demonstrate an understanding of client business challenges and commercial objectives. 

• Support senior team members in managing strategic relationships and opportunities for growth. 

• Work with cross-agency teams on new client and new business opportunities, leading on social workstreams. 

• Contribute to agency thought-leadership, marketing initiatives and new business opportunities when required. 

Expectations 

Strategic Craft 

• Produces strategic thinking that is insightful, clear and commercially relevant. 

• Connects audience understanding, cultural insight and business objectives effectively. 

• Frames problems and opportunities in ways that unlock creative and social solutions. 

• Owns the development of a strategic point of view on social ecosystems. 

Culture & Social Expertise 

• Demonstrates strong judgement around brand participation in culture. 

• Maintains a strong understanding of creator ecosystems, online communities and platform-native behaviour. 

• Uses social intelligence and audience signals to identify emerging cultural opportunities and shifts. 

• Demonstrates strong judgement in how brands engage with creators, communities and culture in credible and relevant ways. 

• Understands how subcultures, fandoms and interest-based communities shape conversation and influence behaviour. 

Collaboration & Leadership 

• Supports the wider agency in strengthening its social, influencer and culture-led strategy capabilities. 

• Builds strong working relationships across disciplines and teams in Play and beyond. 

• Manages workstreams with multiple collaborators and stakeholders. 

• Supports and develops junior team members: knowledge-sharing, upskilling and coaching. 

 
Measurement & Effectiveness 

• Define success frameworks and KPIs that connect activity to brand and commercial outcomes. 

• Work with client, creative, data and insight teams to ensure delivery against strategic objectives. 

• Use campaign performance and learning to continuously refine and evolve strategy. 

Personal Qualities 

• Strategic, curious and culturally engaged. 

• Creatively ambitious with strong judgement. 

• Collaborative, generous and team-oriented. 

• Clear and persuasive communicator, able to simplify complexity. 

• Passionate about creating effective work that earns attention and drives impact. 

Working Arrangements 

• Office presence: 3 days per week with the Havas Play team. 

• Travel: Occasional travel for client meetings and events. 

Why Join Havas Play? 

This is an opportunity to join an agency built around creativity that drives impact, and to play a leading role in shaping how brands win in culture. 

You will work with ambitious clients, talented collaborators and a team that values smart thinking, strong partnerships and exceptional work. 

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