Brand Strategist
- Work mode
- Hybrid
For 10 years, FourthCanvas has worked with good people to build great brands. With a growing understanding of the role of strategy, we have a bigger opportunity to shape how African businesses think about owning a place in the minds of people.
We are looking for an experienced Brand Strategist who cares deeply about the work, the people, and the reason we do what we do. This is how we imagine that person:
- A little more than basic decency. You are not only being polite, you are genuinely thoughtful and considerate of others.
- Creative courage. You do not wait for precedence to make a direction feel valid. You are able to lead a direction no one has followed before, without hiding behind what is already familiar.
- Depth of thought. You do not stop at the first explanation that makes sense. You stay with the question, look beneath the surface, and keep going until something truer begins to show itself.
- Documentation. You communicate thoughtfully and document clearly, not as a formality to get through, but because you recognise its role in keeping everyone aligned and making great thinking usable.
- Growing, insatiable taste. You read widely, study case studies closely, and keep exposing yourself to better ideas, sharper thinking, and richer perspective. You stare at what others glance through till you see what they don’t.
- Disciplined work-rate. You know strong strategy is not just clever phrasing. It takes patience, rigour, and the willingness to stay with the problem until the thinking can stand up to pressure.
- Respect for the perspective of others. You know that great strategy is forged through the difference of perspectives and the willingness to look again. And think again.
- Cross-functional leadership. You are able to work well with designers, developers, marketers, and other collaborators, helping them understand the thinking deeply enough to bring it to life as imagined.
Role & Responsibilities
Smooth eloquence is cool, but this role will require some more.
Leading the strategic phase of our brand projects, this role will primarily involve turning complexity into clear positioning, strong narrative direction, and the kind of insight the rest of the work can confidently build on.
This will include:
- Working with the Project Director and other team members to uncover the business ambition, market context, audience truth, and strategic tensions shaping a brand.
- Leading discovery across stakeholder interviews, audits, research, workshops, competitive review, and synthesis.
- Turning raw insight into clear strategic direction, including positioning, messaging, narrative frameworks, and other core brand thinking.
- Writing clearly and persuasively across strategy documents, presentations, workshops, and client-facing deliverables.
- Presenting thinking clearly and confidently (the eloquence coming handy here), helping clients and stakeholders understand not just what is being recommended, but why it matters.
- Working closely with brand designers and other collaborators to ensure strategy translates well into strong, fitting expressions and adaptations.
- Supporting junior strategists and collaborating with peers through feedback, review, shared thinking, and problem-solving to keep the overall quality of the team’s work as high as possible.
- Maintaining a high standard across thinking, writing, documentation, and client handover.
- Contributing to FourthCanvas’ own strategic needs when off client work, through proposals, case studies, thought leadership, and internal brand work that helps move with more intention.
Applying for this role
The application begins with your basic details, then moves into four questions that help us understand how you think, followed by a prompt to share your portfolio.
At some point in the process, we may ask for contact details from previous employers or clients for background checks.
