HEAD OF STRATEGY & STORYTELLING

· Cape Town

· Full time, office based with work from home flexibility

· Reports to the CEO

About the CIA

For 28 years the CIA has been bridging the gap between ideas brands have and unlocking the good, the bad and the ugly truth that matters to customers. We make sense of what matters to customers, finding insights that unlock brand growth.

The Role

We're hiring someone who leads a team of writers and holds the line on quality, they will:

· Solve real and sometimes, dead obvious problems for real brands, from household names to the ones still finding their feet.

· Shape the strategy and storytelling of every report. Set the narrative before writing starts.

· Hold the final CIA quality line.

· Lead and develop the report writing team.

· Edit, elevate and sharpen. Find the implication behind every insight.

· Run multiple projects in parallel without dropping standards.

· Present to clients. Mentor your team do the same.

You bring

· Senior background in strategy, editorial or strategic storytelling.

· Conceptual range. You find the way in, the angle, the metaphor, the frame that turns insight into story.

· Editorial sharpness and creative flare.

· Commercial instinct, can spot the opportunity.

· Proven track record of developing writers or strategists.

· Calm, no space for drama.

Apply if

· You're conceptual. You see the pattern that turns insights into one sharp idea.

· Strategy comes before slides. You ask "What does this mean for our client" first.

· You're obsessed with the story nobody's telling yet, the stuff you didn't know you didn't know.

· You see the 5slide story inside a 60slide deck.

· You write and edit with conviction. You know what good looks like and can teach it.

· You lead by lifting your team and own your team's output.

· Calm under pressure.

We offer

· Salary, performance bonus, cell + WiFi allowance

· 15 days annual leave

· Life Cover, Dread Disease and Disability cover

How to apply

Send all four. Missing one and we won't read it.

· CV

· ONE writing sample, a strategic report or proposal, show us how you think.

· We all use AI, but don’t rely on it, we can tell.

· Tell us the toughest strategic problem or team situation you've cracked. Write it in 250 words max.

· References, not the senior person that’s still your friend, a genuine reference.

Send your CV to ***email_hidden***

Make your opening line punchy.