Company Summary:

At Pearson, our purpose is simple; to add life to a lifetime of learning. We envision a future where everyone can realize the life they imagine through learning. To achieve this, we create vibrant and enriching learning experiences designed for real-life impact.

For over 20 years, Pearson Virtual Schools has been reimagining K-12 education with full-time virtual schools for students who want a personalized, more flexible approach to learning. Our flagship products and services include Connections Academy, US-based online public charter schools; Pearson Online Academy, a global online private school; and Pearson Connexus, our comprehensive online school program for school districts nationwide.

The following description is intended to describe the general nature of the job that may include other duties as assumed or assigned; it is not intended to be all-inclusive or limit the duties of the position.

Position Summary:

The Senior Brand Director will be responsible and accountable for developing and championing the brands within Pearson Online and Blended Learning, including Connections Academy and Pearson Online Academy, plus new business lines (Career). The successful candidate will have robust brand strategy experience, specifically in managing complex consumer brands across multiple online and offline marketing channels. The Senior Brand Director will be responsible for development and/or refinement of brand architecture, brand positioning, integrated marketing campaign strategies, visual identity and messaging development. The Senior Brand Director is also responsible PR, internal and external communications for Connections Academy, and creative across all marketing and web touchpoints. The Senior Brand Director will be responsible for driving brand health measures for all affiliated brands. This key team member should be a highly motivated, data-driven, self-starter with the ability to initiate big ideas to drive change across the organization.

Primary Responsibilities:

• Build comprehensive strategy and operational plan for advancing brand health measures across multiple brands. The brand health will ultimately lead to increased leads, applications, and enrollments, and will be a vital leader in driving to increased enrollments year over year.
• The Senior Director brand will be responsible for architecting the roadmap across Brand, Communications, PR, and Organic Social to deliver on enrollment and revenue goals.
• Responsible for the total brand marketing budget, ensuring coming in on plan (total enrollments effective 9/30) and on budget.
• Oversee brand planning process including definition or refinement of target audiences
• Play a key role in the establishment of brand building strategies across all channels; lead development of brand marketing mix and strategies for consumer-brand interaction to drive increased engagements
• Spearhead brand activation strategies to spark lower funnel consumer actions
• Collaborate with research and insights team to leverage consumer market insights from primary and secondary research to steer the strategic direction of our brands Refine and implement brand architecture, brand positioning, visual identity and message strategy across all lines of business
• Develop strong agency partner and vendor relationships; manage coordination of multiple external partners
• Lead and mentor the Creative Services Manager to develop and/or refine brand guidelines, visual identity and voice/tone across all lines of business
• Lead Creative team to strengthen brands’ messaging and creative designs in order to attract prospective families, with the goal of driving qualified leads, resulting in increased applications and enrollments.
• Partner with Advertising Manager to evaluate and test new awareness driving marketing efforts and make strategic recommendations for planning and budgets, across all marketing touchpoints.
• Provide guidance on advertising strategies, as well as media and creative campaigns, to drive innovation and impact
• Lead and develop PR teams to develop thought leadership and brand activation strategies
• Monitor competitive landscape with an eye towards blue ocean strategies and brand opportunities.
• Establish ongoing relationships with brand teams across Pearson to ensure coordination, consistency and efficiency
• Work with partner marketing, sales and legal teams to ensure brand consistency across schools
• Champion our brand positioning and brand guidelines across all lines of business
• Provide counsel and ensure internal and external teams understand our brands
• Partner with product and sales teams on new product strategies
• Monitor and enforce brand and message consistency across all channels
• Stay current with marketing trends and industry best practices and identify areas of opportunity that will ensure the business a competitive edge in brand awareness, acquisition and retention
• Maintain brand marketing expertise, consistently hone skills and develop a deep understanding of consumer mindsets and barriers to brand marketing and subsequently offering the creative and sustainable solutions.
• Track, benchmark and report on key performance indicators and report out to leadership and team on results and actions taken or need to increase KPI’s
• Assist other departments as needed with consumer-facing branding and communications activities
• Foster an environment of motivation, inspiration, curiosity and passion for the work we do

Requirements:

• Minimum 15+ years of brand marketing/management experience and at least 5 years of experience leading brand strategy
• At least 10 years of working experience developing creative and innovative marketing strategies that heavily leverage offline and online channels in facilitating effective brand marketing programs and messages
• Experience managing and delivering results on budget and on time.
• Previous experience leading creative work with measurable outcomes
• Bachelor’s degree in Marketing, Communications or other related field
• Previous management of large multi-media consumer brands required
• Strong organizational skills and ability to manage and prioritize multiple projects based on business-critical needs
• This is a highly collaborative position requiring masterful collaboration and partnership skills and experience
• Proven strength in communication, presentation and influence skills; able to speak comfortably and clearly to key stakeholders, leadership teams and external partners
• Experience writing strategic creative briefs and working with marketing strategy and agency partners
• Has a deep understanding of brands and the ability to create and communicate in ways that align with each brand’s unique vision to drive brand engagement
• Proven ability to create strong brand marketing campaigns to deliver on business goals and KPIs
• Experience in managing large or complex brand integration projects
• Analytical skills are imperative; strong ability to enable data-driven decisions and show an interest and comfort working with metric-driven models
• Demonstrates both creativity and performance-mindedness
• Has the energy and drive to deliver the best work in the industry and an adaptability to a range of time and budget constraints
• Is a self-starter with a strong aptitude for solving problems individually and in teams, with the ability to propose alternative solutions

Preferred Qualifications:

• Master’s degree
• At least 2 years of experience managing Fortune 500 brands Agency experience will be considered a plus
• Strong experience working with brand campaigns across television, radio, print, out-of-home, digital and mobile
• Incredibly organized with a natural drive to follow every project, big or small, to completion

What to expect from Pearson

Did you know Pearson is one of the 10 most innovative education companies of 2022?

At Pearson, we add life to a lifetime of learning so everyone can realize the life they imagine. We do this by creating vibrant and enriching learning experiences designed for real-life impact. We are on a journey to be 100 percent digital to meet the changing needs of the global population by developing a new strategy with ambitious targets. To deliver on our strategic vision, we have five business divisions that are the foundation for the long-term growth of the company: Assessment & Qualifications, Virtual Learning, English Language Learning, Workforce Skills and Higher Education. Alongside these, we have our corporate divisions: Digital & Technology, Finance, Global Corporate Marketing & Communications, Human Resources, Legal, Strategy and Direct to Consumer. Learn more at We are Pearson.

We value the power of an inclusive culture and also a strong sense of belonging. We promote a culture where differences are embraced, opportunities are accessible, consideration and respect are the norm and all individuals are supported in reaching their full potential. Through our talent, we believe that diversity, equity and inclusion make us a more innovative and vibrant place to work. People are at the center, and we are committed to building a workplace where talent can learn, grow and thrive.

Pearson is an Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity Employer and a member of E-Verify. We want a team that represents a variety of backgrounds, perspectives and skills. The more inclusive we are, the better our work will be. All employment decisions are based on qualifications, merit and business need. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, ethnicity, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status or any other group protected by law. We strive for a workforce that reflects the diversity of our communities.

To learn more about Pearson’s commitment to a diverse and inclusive workforce, navigate to: Diversity, Equity & Inclusion at Pearson.

If you are an individual with a disability and are unable or limited in your ability to use or access our career site as a result of your disability, you may request reasonable accommodations by emailing ppsmhr@pearson.com.

Note that the information you provide will stay confidential and will be stored securely. It will not be seen by those involved in making decisions as part of the recruitment process.

Job: MARKETING

Organization: Virtual Learning

Schedule: FULL\_TIME

Req ID: 11658