Jobs · Marketing · Illinois

Brand Strategy Manager

Grant Thornton (US) · Chicago, IL · 2 wk ago
HybridMarketing$104k–$156k/yrFull-time

Approved office locations can be found below.

About the role

Grant Thornton Advisors is expanding across more than 20 markets, with new firms continuing to join the group. This creates significant brand strategy work: developing propositions, shaping brand architecture, naming new offers and determining how acquired firms transition. As Brand Strategy Manager, you will shape the group’s positioning and narrative and lead the development of propositions and messaging for priority campaigns, services and solutions. You will prepare brand architecture, naming and acquired-brand recommendations and develop the employee value proposition. The role reports to the Director, Brand Strategy.

Responsibilities

  • Brand story and positioning
    • Develop and evolve the group’s positioning, narrative, messaging architecture and tone of voice principles for use across markets
    • Connect audience, client need, value and proof in every framework, so each claim we make is clear, credible and consistent
  • Propositions and messaging
    • Build the proposition and messaging frameworks behind our campaigns, services and solutions, working with activation, creative, content and service line teams
    • Design and lead brand workshops with leadership teams, markets and service lines to shape propositions, test the thinking and build agreement on the direction
    • Turn approved strategy into clear creative briefs and keep the agreed direction intact through development
  • Brand architecture and naming
    • Shape the group’s brand architecture as we grow, developing options and naming recommendations for acquisitions, products, platforms, services and solutions
    • Prepare decision papers for senior leaders, setting out each option with its commercial, legal and market implications
    • Partner with Legal throughout, so trademark and regulatory advice shapes each recommendation from the start
  • M&A brand strategy
    • Assess the brand equity of firms joining the group and recommend how each brand transitions, from the end state through to the approach and timing
    • Develop the positioning and core messages for acquisition announcements, connecting each new firm clearly to the wider group
  • Employer brand
    • Define and evolve the employee value proposition with People and Culture, from the promise we make to talent through to the proof points and core messages behind it
    • Brief the teams responsible for employer brand activity, ensuring the core proposition and messaging are applied consistently
  • Insight and evidence
    • Define the questions our brand tracking and testing programs need to answer, from awareness and consideration through to message performance
    • Interpret the findings and recommend changes to positioning and messaging over time
  • Other duties as assigned

Requirements

  • Bachelor’s degree in marketing, communications, business or a related field, or equivalent experience
  • Around 7 years in brand strategy, gained in-house, in an agency or in a consultancy
  • Experience working across markets or in a complex organization; professional services experience is useful but not required
  • A proven record building propositions and messaging architectures
  • Strong writing and editorial judgment, able to make complex services clear, credible and distinctive
  • Experience in brand architecture, naming and acquired-brand strategy
  • Employer brand experience and confidence working with senior People and Culture stakeholders
  • Skilled facilitation: able to design and lead workshops with senior stakeholders across markets and cultures
  • Research literacy: able to frame testing questions and turn findings into recommendations
  • The ability to build an evidence-based case, present a clear recommendation to senior leaders and gain their support

Pay

The base salary range for this position is between $104,000 and $156,000. Placement within the pay range is at Grant Thornton’s discretion, and it is based on multiple factors, including but not limited to, job-related knowledge/skills, experience, business needs, progression within the role, geographic location, and internal equity.

Benefits

We support you with personalized and comprehensive benefits that recognize and empower all the identities, roles and aspirations that make you, well, you. For an overview of our benefit offerings, please visit: https://www.grantthornton.com/careers/rewards-and-benefits

  • Internship positions:
    • Eligible to participate in the firm’s medical, dental and vision insurance programs and the firm’s employee assistance program
    • Receive a minimum of 72 hours of paid sick leave and are paid for firm holidays that fall within their internship period
  • Seasonal employee positions:
    • Eligible to participate in the firm’s medical, dental and vision insurance programs and the firm’s employee assistance program
    • May also be eligible to participate in the firm’s 401(k) savings plan and employee retirement plan in accordance with applicable plan terms and eligibility requirements
    • Receive a minimum of 72 hours of paid sick leave
    • Grant Thornton employees may be eligible for a discretionary, annual bonus based on individual and firm performance, subject to the terms, conditions and eligibility criteria of the applicable bonus plan or program. Interns and seasonal employees are not eligible for bonus compensation.

Schedule

Consistent with the firm's hybrid work model, this position will require in-person attendance at least three days per week, either at a GT office or client site.

About Us

At Grant Thornton, we believe in making business more personal and building trust into every result – for our clients and you. Here, we go beyond your expectations of a career in professional services by offering a career path with more: more opportunity, more flexibility, and more support. It’s what makes us different, and we think being different makes us better.

In the U.S., Grant Thornton delivers professional services through two specialized entities: Grant Thornton LLP, a licensed, certified public accounting (CPA) firm that provides audit and assurance services ― and Grant Thornton Advisors LLC (not a licensed CPA firm), which exclusively provides non-attest offerings, including tax and advisory services. In 2025, Grant Thornton formed a multinational, multidisciplinary platform with Grant Thornton Ireland. The platform offers a premier Trans-Atlantic advisory and tax practice, as well as independent American and Irish audit practices. With $2.7 billion in revenues and more than 50 offices spanning the U.S., Ireland and other territories, the platform delivers a singular client experience that includes enhanced solutions and capabilities, backed by powerful technologies and a roster of 12,000 quality-driven professionals enjoying exceptional career-growth opportunities and a distinctive cross-border culture. Grant Thornton is part of the Grant Thornton International Limited network, which provides access to its member firms in more than 150 global markets.

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