Director, Corporate Strategy

Description

The Director, Corporate Strategy is a key member of The Estée Lauder Companies’ Corporate Strategy team, supporting development and execution of the Company’s enterprise strategy and priorities across Brands, Regions, and Functions.

The Director leads strategy workstreams and cross-functional projects from problem definition through recommendation, combining rigorous analysis and business judgment to develop actionable strategic perspectives. The role supports the annual strategy process and addresses priority questions related to growth, consumers, competitors, categories, channels, geographies, and performance.

Operating independently across assigned workstreams, the Director engages stakeholders, translates complex information into clear recommendations and senior-ready communication, and drives projects with pace and rigor. The role also manages and develops junior strategy talent and strengthens the effectiveness of the Corporate Strategy function.

Key Responsibilities

Corporate Strategy & Strategic Planning (45%)

Lead defined workstreams within ELC’s enterprise strategy and annual strategy process across Brands, Regions, and Functions.

Structure complex strategic questions, develop hypotheses, and determine the analytical approach to evaluate opportunities and challenges.

Lead analysis of consumers, competitors, categories, channels, geographies, market trends, and financial performance to identify implications for ELC.

Translate quantitative and qualitative analysis into clear insights, strategic perspectives, and recommendations.

Develop senior-ready presentations and strategic narratives that communicate complex information clearly and support decision-making.

Partner with Brand, Regional, and Functional teams to gather perspectives, pressure-test hypotheses, and develop integrated recommendations.

Monitor external developments, including consumer and cultural trends, competitor moves, category innovation, channel disruption, technology, and macroeconomic shifts and translate relevant signals into strategic implications.

Long Description

Decision-Making Scope: Independently determines the analytical and problem-solving approach for assigned workstreams and develops recommendations for Corporate Strategy leadership. Identifies material implications and trade-offs and escalates issues requiring Executive Director or Vice President direction.

Strategic Initiatives & Cross-Functional Delivery (35%)

Lead cross-functional strategic projects addressing priority enterprise, Brand, Regional, or Functional opportunities.

Translate strategic questions into structured project plans, analyses, milestones, and deliverables.

Coordinate stakeholders and subject-matter experts to ensure work progresses with pace and rigor.

Synthesize diverse stakeholder perspectives and data sources into coherent strategic recommendations.

Identify project risks, dependencies, and unresolved decisions and proactively develop approaches to address them.

Support business leaders in translating strategic recommendations into clear actions, priorities, and success measures.

Track progress against strategic initiatives and identify opportunities to strengthen execution and impact.

Develop business cases and strategic analyses that support prioritization, investment decisions, resource allocation, and evaluation of growth opportunities.

Team Leadership & Strategic Capability (20%)

Manage and develop Senior Manager-level talent, providing direction, coaching, feedback, and development opportunities.

Review analyses and deliverables to ensure accuracy, strategic rigor, and clarity of communication.

Create effective team structures and ways of working across assigned projects and workstreams.

Foster strong collaboration with Brand, Regional, Functional, Finance, Insights, and other partners.

Contribute to Corporate Strategy tools, frameworks, knowledge development, and ways of working.

Help build a high-performing team culture characterized by intellectual curiosity, collaboration, accountability, and excellence in execution.

Leadership Scope: Owns significant strategy workstreams or projects and is accountable for their quality, pace, stakeholder engagement, and recommendations. Coaches junior strategy talent while operating with guidance from the Executive Director on broader enterprise context and senior-level decisions.

Qualifications

Education

Bachelor’s degree required; MBA or relevant advanced degree preferred.

Experience

6+ years of experience in corporate strategy, strategic planning, business transformation, corporate development, management consulting, or a related strategic role. Min of 3 years in a top-tier consulting firm (MBB is preferred)

Strategy consulting experience strongly preferred. Experience within beauty, consumer products, prestige or luxury, retail, or another consumer-facing industry is a plus.

Demonstrated experience independently leading complex strategic analyses and cross-functional projects and translating findings into actionable recommendations.

Experience managing or coaching junior team members preferred.

Core Capabilities

Strong strategic thinking and structured problem-solving capabilities

Ability to independently structure ambiguous problems and determine the analyses required to answer them

Excellent analytical skills, including interpretation of complex market, consumer, competitive, and financial information

Strong business judgment and ability to move from analysis to insight to recommendation

Ability to connect disparate information and identify broader implications for the business

Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including clear, senior-ready presentations and strategic narratives

Strong project leadership skills and ability to manage multiple stakeholders and workstreams

Ability to build collaborative relationships, influence matrixed teams, and coach junior talent

Strong attention to detail combined with a broader enterprise perspective

Comfort with ambiguity, rapid learning, changing priorities, and a high bar for execution