Job Summary
We’re seeking a Director of Strategy & Planning to serve as the strategic engine behind Rakuten Rewards’ Marketing organization. This high-impact role will drive cross-functional alignment, strategic planning, budgeting, performance tracking, and operational discipline across the marketing function. Reporting to the VP of Marketing Operations, you will partner closely with senior marketing leaders, finance, revenue planning, and analytics to ensure that Rakuten Rewards' marketing investments are efficient, effective, and future-focused.
Key Responsibilities
Strategic Planning & Road mapping
Lead the development of annual and quarterly marketing strategic plans, including goal setting, resource allocation, and cross-team prioritization
Align functional teams (Brand, Product Marketing, Growth, Loyalty & Retention, Partnerships, etc.) to strategic priorities and timelines
Facilitate strategic planning processes and ensure alignment in strategy and execution
Performance Management & Operational Excellence
Establish and maintain marketing KPIs and dashboards to monitor progress against goals on weekly, monthly, quarterly and annual timelines
Identify gaps, risks, and opportunities across marketing programs and budgets
Drive cross-functional processes to address departmental operational gaps as needed
Drive quarterly business reviews, executive updates, and post-mortem evaluations
Budgeting, Forecasting & ROI Analysis
Partner with Finance to manage the marketing budget: forecasting, tracking spend, and ensuring return on investment
Partner with Analytics to conduct marketing ROI analysis to guide spend reallocation and optimization decisions
Drive resource to return efficiencies across the department
Provide proactive financial insights that help leaders balance growth and efficiency
Cross-Functional Alignment
Act as a connective tissue between Marketing, Product, Sales, Finance, and Executive teams
Lead strategic initiatives that require collaboration across multiple functions (e.g., go-to-market prioritization, tool implementation, resource planning)
Support business cases and marketing initiatives with data-driven insights and decision support
Executive-Level Storytelling & Influence
Synthesize complex information into clear, executive-ready presentations and recommendations
Develop frameworks that guide decision-making and drive clarity across senior stakeholders
Help leadership focus on what matters most through structured thinking and strategic foresight
Qualifications:
Proven ability to lead strategic planning, budgeting, and cross-functional projects in a complex organization
Strong business acumen, particularly in consumer-facing digital businesses (e-commerce, fintech, loyalty preferred)
Experience working with senior stakeholders and distilling insights into actionable strategy
Advanced Excel and PowerPoint skills; experience with BI tools (e.g., Tableau) are critical
Highly organized, analytical, and adaptable—able to manage ambiguity and prioritize effectively
Strong communicator with excellent interpersonal, facilitation, and influence skills
Minimum Requirements
8–10+ years of experience in strategy, marketing operations, business planning, or management consulting
Bachelor's Degree Required
Master's Degree Preferred
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Five Principles for Success
Our worldwide practices describe specific behaviors that make Rakuten unique and united across the world. We expect Rakuten employees to model these 5 Shugi Principles of Success.
Always improve, Always Advance - Only be satisfied with complete success - Kaizen
Passionately Professional - Take an uncompromising approach to your work and be determined to be the best
Hypothesize - Practice - Validate – Shikumika - Use the Rakuten Cycle to succeed in unknown territory
Maximize Customer Satisfaction - The greatest satisfaction for our teams is seeing their customers smile
Speed!! Speed!! Speed!! - Always be conscious of time - take charge, set clear goals, and engage your team
Rakuten provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type. Rakuten considers applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetic information, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, provincial or local laws.
At the time of posting, Rakuten expects the base compensation for this role to be within the range shown below. Individual compensation will vary based on job-related factors, including the skills, qualifications, and experience of the successful candidate as well as business need and geographic location. The successful applicant for this role will be eligible for discretionary bonus, health, vision, dental insurance, 401k matching, PTO, Volunteer Time Off (VTO), and other employee benefits as the company implements.
USD $113,157.00 - $211,032.00 annually
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