Channel Development Executive Jobs in Waterloo, IL

About HLK

We believe in the power of people to drive brands.

Together, we help shape a brand's identity and inspire its next move. We believe brands have the power to influence behavior, create meaningful connections, and drive change. That's why we build brands in constant motion: brands that connect, surprise, and inspire action.

At HLK, we believe meaningful customer experiences are built through a deep understanding of people, brands, and the moments that connect them. We combine strategic thinking, data-driven insights, and cross-channel activation to help clients better understand their audiences, identify opportunities for growth, and create experiences that inspire action. The strongest strategies connect brand objectives with customer needs, driving measurable outcomes across the entire customer journey.

Position Summary

The Senior CX Strategist leads the strategic vision for how and why our campaigns resonate with audiences, influencing agency-wide execution.

They own the development of integrated activation strategies across paid, earned, and owned channels to deliver ambitious objectives and KPIs. With a holistic view of campaign ecosystems, they orchestrate mechanisms and levers to maximize impact, while championing objectives-driven campaigns backed by robust measurement frameworks, predictive analytics, and reporting that drive consistent excellence and innovation.

Responsibilities

• Work with clients and internal teams to translate brand strategies into activation plans designed to achieve defined KPIs and goals.
• Mentor and guide junior CX Strategists and cross-functional teams, providing strategic oversight and fostering skill development to build agency-wide capabilities.
• Lead the development of comprehensive activation plans mapping the full campaign journey, integrating paid, earned, and owned touchpoints within client budgets to secure executive buy-in and alignment.
• Ensure activation plans are rigorous and actionable, serving as the definitive source for scoping, briefing, and resourcing across internal execution teams, while anticipating potential risks and opportunities.
• Continuously monitor development of marketing tactics for strategic connection to overall marketing goals and tactical KPIs.
• Proactively monitor market dynamics, performance indicators, and competitive landscapes to drive data-informed decisions on budget reallocation, strategic pivots, and optimization opportunities; lead implementation with SMEs and cross-agency partners.
• Coordinate changes expeditiously with appropriate teams to keep work evolving and performing.
• Work with data on performance trends and implications and provoke strategic questions for mining data, developing tests, and creating pro formas and campaign projections.
• Responsible for campaign report development and client presentations of those reports.
• Champion innovation by identifying emerging trends, technologies, and partnerships to evolve campaign strategies and enhance client ROI.
• Feed learnings back to Planning as input into research and planning opportunities to evolve our positioning and brand direction.
• Architect annual marketing plans for key clients, synthesizing established objectives and strategies with forward-looking insights to drive long-term growth and adaptability.
• Partner strategically with Account Management to identify and pursue year-round opportunities from performance results or plan gaps, shaping enhancements that deliver superior customer outcomes and uncover new business avenues.
• Decision-making responsibility for final plans and optimizations.

Qualifications

• Minimum of 8 years of experience in senior strategic roles within agencies, leading initiatives across media, content, social, and digital strategy, with demonstrated impact on client P&L or business growth.
• Deep expertise in the full marketing ecosystem, spanning paid media, public relations, content marketing, social media, UX, marketing automation, and emerging technologies like AI-driven personalization.
• Proven mastery in translating and amplifying brand strategy across the entire customer journey, with experience optimizing omnichannel experiences for measurable uplift in engagement and conversion.
• Extensive experience leading the amplification and extension of creative concepts into innovative, non-traditional touchpoints, including experiential activations, influencer ecosystems, and data-led personalization at scale.
• Track record of mentoring teams, presenting at industry forums, or contributing to thought leadership that shapes agency or client strategies.

Benefits

At HLK, we invest in our people and provide benefits that support personal well-being, professional growth, and work-life flexibility.

• Flexible work environment
• Casual and creative atmosphere
• Unlimited time off
• Paid sabbatical
• Parental leave
• Medical insurance
• Dental insurance
• Vision insurance
• 401(k) plan with company match