VML is a leading creative company that combines brand experience, customer experience, and commerce, creating connected brands to drive growth. VML is celebrated for its innovative and award-winning human-first work for clients including AstraZeneca, Colgate-Palmolive, Dell, Ford, Microsoft, Nestlé, The Coca-Cola Company, and Wendy's. In 2026, VML was named Campaign's Global Network of the Year and ranked #2 Creative Network of the Year at Cannes Lions. VML's global network spans 55+ markets with principal offices in Buenos Aires, Kansas City, London, New York, São Paulo, Shanghai and Singapore.
VML is part of WPP, the trusted growth partner for the world's leading brands. Powered by exceptional talent and our agentic marketing platform WPP Open, WPP unites cutting-edge media intelligence and data solutions, creativity, production, enterprise solutions and expert strategic counsel.
For more information, please visit www.vml.com and follow along on LinkedIn #WeAreVML.
YOUR ROLE IN A NUTSHELL
The purpose of this role is to define the problems our clients want to solve and collaborate with blended teams on the solution. The Experience Strategist finds the opportunities and solutions in the customer journey for creating authentic value for customers and the client.
They have an innate curiosity and desire to understand human behaviour and are able to bring the voice of the customer to life in storytelling. They have a sharp focus on business viability, and confidently engage, align and challenge stakeholders. They are passionate about understanding a brand's true purpose for being and hunt for opportunities to create differentiated value.
They conduct customer research and facilitate business workshops to craft goals, metrics frameworks, problem definitions, customer value propositions, customer journey maps and personas. They co-design solutions with creative teams, client teams, technologists and the customer. They are practical and can translate a concept into a prototype that works within the confines of the client's technology, people and processes.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
- Collaborate with the client to understand and craft business objectives, scale of ambition, metrics and prioritisation framework
- Design and coordinate immersive qualitative customer research (such as co-creation events, contextual interviews, observation exercises) and quantitative techniques with an eye for unearthing deep human insight and emotions.
- Conduct competitive research to understand the 'status quo' and opportunities for differentiation.
- Synthesise insights into artefacts such as personas, and journey maps.
- Understand and champion how the brand platform influences the future state experience and express via customer value proposition.
- Craft ideation exercises and workshops with the client and customer, and ideate with Creative and the client to evolve 'baby ideas' to workable concepts
- Facilitate the feasibility and viability validation process, involving deep collaboration with the client and potential partners
- Design and facilitate customer validation methodologies including quantitative and qualitative research and other more inventive methods of surfacing proof for hypotheses
- Design low fidelity prototypes and service blueprints that bring to life how the product, service or experience might work, considering back of stage requirements, but with the human experience a firm focus
REQUIRED EXPERIENCE/SKILLS/CAPABILITIES
- Innately curious and loves to learn, naturally pushing the boundaries of 'how design's done'
- Strategically focused, always ensuring the insight drives the artefact and not the other way around
- Approaches collaboration with a 'yes and' mentality
- Self-driven and accountable
- Empathetic and natural storyteller
- Can create visually appealing artefacts in MIRO, Figma
VML AUNZ HIGHLIGHTS
There are many things that make VML an awesome place to work, but we think there are a few worth mentioning:
- Energise Leave - 5 paid half days off each year, for time to recharge.
- Birthday Leave - a paid day off to celebrate your Birthday each year.
- Loyalty Leave - a paid day off each year to celebrate your work anniversary.
- Employee Assistance Program access 24/7 support.
- Mental Health Support.
- LinkedIn Learning access for all employees.
- Foundation Day - the anniversary of our establishment where every employee works together to give back to the community.
- PerkSPACE - a dedicated platform for employee benefits that help you save, grow and generously make life easier.
- Parental Leave – time off for new parents.
We believe the best work happens when we're together, fostering creativity, collaboration, and connection. That's why we've adopted a hybrid approach, with teams in the office an average of four days a week. If you require accommodations or flexibility, please discuss this with the hiring team during the interview process.
WPP (VML) is an equal opportunity employer and considers applicants for all positions without discrimination or regard to characteristics. We are committed to fostering a culture of respect in which everyone feels they belong and has the same opportunities to progress in their careers.
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