The Culinary Edge
Strategist
The Culinary Edge, San Francisco, California, 94199
Strategist. May, 2024 Reports to: Strategy Director. About us. TCE is the USA's leading food & beverage innovation consultancy. We work with or have worked with, 25% of the top 200 restaurant brands in the USA. And sometimes we create and operate our own, like Starbird. At TCE you'll find classically trained chefs working alongside designers, branding experts, and food anthropologists. We're a collection of entrepreneurial individuals who bring together diverse experiences & perspectives, fusing culinary excellence with human-centered design, to fuel the future of how we eat and drink. Our method is four-fold: Lead with empathy. Follow through with know-how. Ask questions. Collaborate. Make ideas happen. Discover inspiration that empowers action. See and solve problems from every angle. Join us. We are committed to creating a more diverse, equitable and inclusive workplace. Our goals and commitments are shaped and strengthened by our team. There is more work to be done. Join us, and help us build a future where all voices are heard and everyone can feel they belong. About the role. We are looking for creative Strategists who think big and can steer the visions of our clients. Specifically, we're looking for our next food & beverage branding wizard - someone who is passionate about the corporate restaurant and CPG world, who is eager to craft inspiring strategic narratives, and who is ready to find clear solutions to ambiguous problems. Sound like you? Read on. Responsibilities. As a Strategist, you will Co-create compelling and grounded strategies with a diverse team of collaborators to shape world-class F&B brand experiences. Support Senior Strategists in guiding the project engagement and content creation. Guide internal and external client teams through our process. Develop deliverables and presentations employing captivating storytelling and a keen visual aesthetic. Constantly work to make yourself, your team, and the work better. Your Experience And Skills You have 2 years of agency experience in consulting/brand strategy (food & beverage experience is a huge plus here). You are a passionate brand storyteller and copywriter, killer with decks, confident with clients. You have hands-on experience working in the world of food and beverage, from either a restaurant perspective, a brand perspective, or otherwise. You have a keen understanding of consumer trends, their business implications and the difference between a trend and a fad, particularly in the food world. You are versed in design methods & processes needed to produce outstanding frameworks and deliverables. You are able to synthesize a wealth of primary and secondary research into integrated, prioritized insights. You have a strong design sensibility and are well-practiced in choosing the right presentation content, narrative and supporting imagery. You are able to frame information for different audiences, and can edit and build presentations accordingly for maximum impact. You are able to write and deliver presentations with content that is to-the-point, memorable and impactful. You are a dynamic public speaker who is able to deliver presentations with composure, confidence and joy. You are flexible and comfortable working in a sometimes ambiguous and dynamic environment. You are comfortable working closely with cross-functional teams and eager to learn. In your cover letter, please address the following. About you and TCE: Why are you interested in joining our team? About brand strategy: Describe a challenging brand strategy project or problem that you were involved with. What made it challenging for you? How did you approach the problem? And what was the ultimate insight and outcome? About F&B strategy: If you came to work at TCE, which company, product or service would you want to redesign? Please note that applications without a cover letter will not be considered. Remuneration. Intermediate level: $75,000 - $90,000 Base Salary. Company bonus up to 10% of Base Salary. $200/month Culinary Research & Development Stipend for meals & ingredients, books, and other culinary research materials. Health, Dental and Vision plans. 401k with employer matching. Senior Brand Strategist level: $90,000 - $105,000 Base Salary. Company bonus up to 10% of Base Salary. $200/month Culinary Research & Development Stipend for meals & ingredients, books and other culinary research materials. Health, Dental and Vision plans. 401k with employer matching.