Social Lead

Role: Social Lead Location: London, United Kingdom About the role: The Social Lead sits at the intersection of social strategy, creativity, operations and team leadership. You'll own the social media direction across all channels, translating cultural insight and brand plans into content that genuinely connects with communities, while setting the creative standards and systems that make great work possible at scale. You live and breathe social: you know who our audiences are, what drives their engagement, and what it takes to grow. What you will be doing: Lead social media strategy across organic channels, including TikTok, Instagram, Facebook and emerging platforms, driving reach, engagement and community growth Act as the day-to-day social expert and advisor to brand teams, feeding into wider campaign and marketing decisions Lead the organic social response within the Integrated Agency Team (IAT) per campaign, ensuring organic channels are fully integrated and activated in harmony with wider campaign activity Set and uphold creative quality standards across all formats, including short-form video, Reels, TikTok, Stories, UGC, motion and statics, bringing fresh platform references and cultural context into every brief Pioneer a test & learn culture, proactively trialling new formats and platform features (e.g. Reels, Remix, collaborative content) and feeding structured findings back into content planning and strategy Stay on the pulse of cultural conversations, identifying opportunities to embed brands authentically into the moments that matter Guide influencer and creator briefs, ensuring alignment with brand look, feel and content themes; oversee tone of voice and claim accuracy across all output in line with R&D guidance and sustainability commitments Track and report against channel KPIs on a monthly and quarterly cadence, analysing performance data and translating insight into clear recommendations that improve content and channel strategy Ensure the team are actively informed by performance learnings, embedding insight into briefing and creative iteration; use social listening tools (e.g. Sprinklr, Meltwater) to monitor brand conversation and sentiment Work alongside the paid social team to identify best-performing organic content and make clear recommendations for amplification Lead and develop a team of social-first content specialists, setting direction, giving regular feedback and managing workload effectively across a multi-brand programme; own the always-on editorial calendar Build quality frameworks that ensure consistency across always-on content, influencer partnerships and reactive moments; use and help embed AI tools into day-to-day workflows to improve output quality and efficiency What you need to be great in this role: A portfolio or track record of standout content and community growth for consumer brands, ideally in FMCG/CPG or a social-first environment, with strong short-form video and creator-led work Proven experience leading social strategy and execution across TikTok, Instagram, Meta and emerging platforms, with a clear point of view on what works and why A genuine feel for cultural movements and online communities; you spot trends before they peak and know how to act on them with brand authenticity Experience managing and developing a team across a fast-paced, multi-brand environment Confidence using social data and listening tools (e.g. Sprinklr, Meltwater) to track performance and translate insight into clear, actionable recommendations Experience working alongside influencer and creator partnerships, and collaborating with paid social teams to inform organic content amplification Confidence managing client and stakeholder relationships and communicating creative decisions clearly and with authority Experience localising global brand or social frameworks for a local market Familiarity with content operations tools, including editorial trackers, repurposing workflows or performance review processes Experience with or curiosity about Gen AI tools for content and social work; we'll develop this further on the job Familiarity with UK regulatory guidance, including ASA/CAP, CMA, brand safety and claims substantiation