Account Director / CPG Strategy Lead

Account Director / CPG Strategy Lead

Dossier Creative | Vancouver, BC | Full-Time | Senior Leadership

Role Overview

Dossier Creative is seeking an Account Director / CPG Strategy Lead to serve as a senior strategic partner to our clients and a trusted leader within our studio. This is a leadership role for someone with direct experience in CPG, food, beverage, or wine, who brings both strategic rigor and the confidence to lead high-stakes brand and portfolio conversations.

You will guide senior client stakeholders through complex decisions around brand positioning, portfolio architecture, SKU strategy, and innovation pipelines, translate business objectives into clear, actionable strategic direction for creative teams. This role also plays a critical mentorship function, developing mid-level strategists and account leads and strengthening Dossier’s overall strategic practice.

While candidates may come from either agency or client-side backgrounds, some prior agency experience is essential. Success in this role requires comfort working in a fast-moving, collaborative, design-led environment and the ability to think strategically while staying close to the work.

This role is based in Vancouver, BC. A hybrid working model is supported. Fully remote arrangements may be considered for exceptional candidates with prior agency leadership experience.

Client Leadership & Strategic Direction

Serve as the senior strategic lead on key CPG, food, beverage, and wine accounts

Build trust and credibility with senior marketing, innovation, and business executives on the client side

Lead high-level client conversations on:

Brand positioning and brand architecture

Product and portfolio strategy

SKU rationalization and expansion

Innovation pipelines and commercialization roadmaps

Clearly articulate strategic rationale, trade-offs, and recommendations in a way that aligns brand ambition with commercial realities

Partner closely with creative leadership to ensure strategy translates into focused, effective design and execution

Strategy Development & Oversight

Shape brand and innovation strategies grounded in consumer insight, category dynamics, and business objectives

Provide strategic framing for large rebrands, brand refreshes, new product launches, and portfolio evolution

Ensure strategic thinking is rigorous, well-structured, and consistently communicated across teams and deliverables

Maintain a strong point of view on category trends, consumer behavior, and emerging opportunities

Team Leadership & Mentorship

Mentor and develop mid-level strategists and account leads

Coach teams on how to structure thinking, lead client conversations, and defend strategic recommendations

Raise the overall quality and confidence of strategic output across the studio

Collaborate with project management and production teams to ensure strategic intent carries through execution

Must Haves

CPG Experience: Direct experience in CPG, food, beverage, or wine (agency-side and/or client-side)

Agency Exposure: Prior experience in a creative, brand, or design agency environment

Senior Client Leadership: Proven ability to lead and influence senior-level marketing and business executives

Strategic Fluency: Strong command of brand positioning, brand architecture, portfolio strategy, SKU strategy, and innovation pipelines

Clear Communicator: Ability to synthesize complexity into clear, persuasive strategic narratives

Earned Authority: A grounded, credible presence that builds trust through judgment and experience

Ideal to Have

Experience across both client-side and agency-side roles

Exposure to large-scale rebrands or portfolio transformations

Familiarity with stage-gate or innovation pipeline models

Experience mentoring or coaching strategists or account leaders

Comfort working in a boutique, entrepreneurial agency where senior leaders stay close to the work

Not Required (and Important to Clarify)

Design Background: This is not a design role

Creative Management: This role does not manage designers or creative teams

Hands-On Execution: The role focuses on strategic leadership, not day-to-day production

Venture / Startup Focus: Clients are primarily established and growth-stage brands

Sales Quota: While relationship growth matters, this is not a sales role