Associate Creative Strategist

About the role

As an Associate Creative Strategist, you’ll be part of the in‑house advertising agency (the “SHOP”), helping shape compelling, insight‑driven brand and campaign strategies across a portfolio of large‑scale brands. You’ll partner closely with the Director of Creative Strategy as well as Brand, Creative, and Insights teams to develop strong strategic foundations for brand campaigns and new product launches, translating audience understanding, cultural context, and business objectives into inspiring creative briefs, messaging strategies, and communications plans that drive effective and engaging work across the full marketing funnel.

Responsibilities

• Support strategy development across large‑scale brands, helping create approaches that can scale from the global to regional level
• Write creative briefs that inspire both clients and creative teams, resulting in work that is insightful, strategically sound, thoughtfully designed, and sparks action
• Build and maintain a strong understanding of target audiences across brands, working closely with the research team to stay connected to key learnings from audience research and creative testing and communicate the most actionable insights to creative partners
• Conduct independent research across competitive landscapes, category trends, culture, and consumer behavior to add depth, relevance, and supporting evidence to creative briefs and strategic recommendations
• Review creative concepts and provide a clear point of view on how effectively they deliver against the creative strategy, including identifying opportunities for refinement or improvement
• Contribute to 360° messaging strategies and communications plans, with an understanding of the full marketing funnel and how audiences engage across channels and touchpoints
• Present strategic thinking in a way that is clear, disarming, convincing, and inspiring to cross‑functional teams and stakeholders
• Manage multiple projects and brands simultaneously, with guidance and support from the Director of Creative Strategy

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent professional experience required
• Master's degree in Advertising, Marketing, Communications, or a related field; or 1‑2 years of experience working as a Creative Strategist or in a similar strategic role within an advertising agency or in‑house marketing team

Skills

• Ability to synthesize research and insights into clear strategic direction and compelling briefs
• Strong storytelling, writing, and presentation skills
• Relevant work samples preferred, ideally in the form of a portfolio or personal website that clearly demonstrates strategic thinking through the core framework of challenge opportunity
• Passion for branding, creativity, culture, and consumer behavior
• Confidence working cross‑functionally with Brand, Creative, and Insights teams
• Strong research instincts and curiosity about trends, competition, and emerging cultural signals
• A strategic mindset paired with a creative sensibility
• Comfort presenting ideas and defending strategic recommendations with clarity and confidence

Benefits

• Medical, dental, life, vision, disability insurance
• 401(k) retirement plan
• Employee Stock Purchase Plan
• Paid time off
• Tuition reimbursement
• Programs & benefits supporting well‑being
• Discounts on Stanley Black & Decker tools and other partner programs
• Career growth opportunities across 20+ brands
• Access to learning resources including digital learning portal, Lean Academy, and online university
• Inclusive, respectful workplace culture
• Volunteerism, giving back, and sustainable business practices

Pay

The salary range for this position is $51,700.00 – $83,300.00 annually (full‑time). The actual offer may vary based on job level, location, knowledge, skills, experience, and local wage requirements.