ABOUT ME

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ABOUT ME

I AM A NEW YORK-BASED INDEPENDENT STRATEGIST.

MY THING

Sharp and fearless thinking for messy business and marketing problems.

BACKED BY

A long track record of working independently with companies that are redefining what’s possible.

A background in clear-eyed, evidence-based, no bullshit, British-trained strategic thinking.

SPECIALTIES

Big messes: muddled thinking, too much information, not enough insight.

Tough cases: brands under attack, categories is turmoil.

Low interest categories: any category can and should be interesting.

Beyond communications: fixing upstream problems upstream.

COMPANIES I’VE WORKED WITH

WHAT I’M GOOD AT

Defining a brand's cause, fight, story with a sharp, provocative edge.

Getting to ideas fast. I distrust insights that need six weeks of research to get uncovered.

Using human language to get at human truths, not marketing jargon or business-speak.

Uncovering interesting stories hiding in spreadsheets or stacks of folders.

WHAT I SUCK AT

Large teams where everyone has a say. I go quiet in rooms with 20 people talking over each other. Maybe because I grew up in a large family?

Standard brand templates with their endless tweaking of words. Trying to decide between 'refresh your life, every day' or 'refreshing vitality, daily' - shoot me.

All-day meetings. Does anyone enjoy them?

Working all the time. R&D is important, not just for corporations but for people. That’s why I only work eight months a year. The other four months are 'lab time' - time to make stuff, volunteer and learn new skills.

things I do

Brand positioning work
Business + innovation strategy
New business pitches
Communications strategy + creative briefs
Audience deep dives
Competitive analysis

RESUME

EDUCATION

SCHOOL OF VISUAL ARTS (New York) - Master of Fine Arts in photography

OXFORD UNIVERSITY (Oxford, UK) - BA/MA in philosophy, psychology and physiology

JOBS

JWT (New York) - Group Strategy Director

BERLIN CAMERON UNITED (New York) - Partner/Chief Strategy Officer

FALLON MCELLIGOTT BERLIN (New York) - Senior Strategist

BARTLE BOGLE HEGARTY (London) - Planner

AWARDS

Three gold Effies, one silver and one bronze Effie, one silver Jay Chiat award, a bronze IPA Effectiveness award and a silver APG/UK award.

MY STORY

I grew up in a large family in a small village in the South of Germany. It’s lovely there, but I knew early on that I had to get out. I was punk, I was goth, I was shy, I was weird, I dropped out of high school. Working in a pants factory got old really fast, so I went on a German game show, made some money and ran away to London - note on pillow, early morning train, that kind of departure.

With no qualifications, no connections and dodgy English my career prospects were limited. I worked in fast food places and cafeterias for a couple of years, then decided to step up my game by learning to type and do shorthand. Working as secretary for a few years gave me the confidence to think about picking up my education. I took evening classes for a year and did my A-levels (SATs). I did pretty well, and got accepted by Oxford University, where I studied psychology and philosophy.

And then BBH London offered me the only trainee planner spot for the year. Which takes us to the beginning of my official résumé.

It’s a bit of an unusual bio, I’ll admit, but I thought it’s worth mentioning. I’ve learned a lot in those poverty years, the years of doing minimum wage jobs, where I was just another inarticulate foreigner.

Empathy - if you're forever on the outside you're forced to figure out how the rest of the world thinks and feels

Fearlessness - realizing that the only way to create change is to make big bets

Humility - respecting people from every walk of life, because they could be me, and I could be them

Gratitude - even when things are bad, it's not scrubbing toilets for three dollars an hour

Optimism - dreaming big has yet to let me down

Resourcefulness - good with spit and duct tape

INTERESTS

In no particular order

Fungi: I sequence fungal DNA and I have my own home lab where I do polymerase chain reaction and gel electrophoresis. I lecture on fungi and citizen science. I’m also currently the president of the New York Mycological Society and a board member of FunDiS, an organization focused on fungal conservation.

Art - Did I mention I have a master's degree in fine art, with a specialization in photography (done at SVA a few years ago)? I keep up to date what's in New York's galleries, museums and alternative spaces. I also make art - I've had group and solo shows of my work in galleries here and in Europe.

History - I'm a bit obsessed with 20th Century history, especially the World Wars and the post-war period. I have read endlessly about it and done personal research and a photographic project. It's also the reason I'm a volunteer for Selfhelp, an organization that takes care of Nazi victims living in the New York City area.

SAY HELLO

Let's talk - whether it's about a specific project or just because.

sigridjakob at gmail.com