Senior Strategist or Design Strategist; Deputy Program Manager

This role is open to Strategy or Design Strategy candidates.

Who We Are: LINK is a fast-growing Woman Owned Small Business (WOSB) that leverages human-centered design to support strategy, innovation, communication, change, and branding within the federal government and adjacent industry partners. At LINK, we partner with engineers, futurists, and thought leaders to untangle complexity, discover opportunity, and communicate clearly with visual stories.

Let us be your partners in change.

About the Opportunity:

The Senior Strategist or Senior Design Strategist; Deputy Program Manager (DPM) supports program execution and delivery while providing a consistent layer of leadership across client programs. Partnering closely with the Program Manager (PM), the DPM ensures strategic alignment, smooth execution of deliverables, and clear visibility into project progress. This role strengthens cross-functional coordination, facilitates responsive communication with clients and teams, and enables the PM to focus on business growth and strategic initiatives.

The DPM also ensures project teams are resourced, supported, and working toward shared goals. Depending on program structure, the DPM may serve as a Team Lead on specific projects, complementing the PM’s expertise and filling functional gaps as needed.

Note: The DPM role is designed to complement the PM's specific skills and experience, filling functional gaps as needed. DPMs may also serve as Team Leads on specific projects depending on program structure and requirements.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in Journalism, Communication, Design, Business, or a related field
• 10+ years of experience in strategic communication, public affairs, design strategy, program management, or strategy development
• 4-6 years of program or project coordination experience including familiarity with Agile methodologies and project delivery best practices.
• Experience in government contracting or client services preferred
• Ability to build and maintain robust client relationships and foster positive interpersonal connections
• Interest in visual storytelling, including data visualization and conceptualizing abstract ideas
• Excellent organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously, maintaining a strong focus on accuracy and attention to detail
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to communicate in a clear, approachable, and knowledgeable manner
• Active Clearance: Secret required, Top Secret preferred
• Experience with defense communications or creative work for government clients valuable
• Detail-oriented with ability to thrive in dynamic environments

Responsibilities:

A Deputy Program Manager can be a Senior Design Strategist or Senior Strategist and your expertise in your competency will play a pivotal role in driving LINK's business growth and delivering high-quality, client-focused outcomes.

Deputy Program Management responsibilities include:

Program Operations & Strategic Support

• Act as a thought partner to the PM in managing day-to-day program operations and evolving client strategy
• Track and manage delivery timelines, milestones, budgets, and team capacity across multi-workstream government contracts
• Provide input to internal reporting on project health, budget usage, risks, and staffing capacity for informed PM decision-making
• Support tracking of period of performance (POP) deadlines, deliverable quality, and communications related to project-specific changes
• Coordinate internal resource allocation in alignment with PM priorities and contract scope
• Assist with Agile ceremonies, including planning sessions, stand-ups, retrospectives, reviews, and kickoffs
• Maintain key internal documentation, including timecard reviews, deliverable tracking, and project updates.

Team Lead Coordination & Quality Assurance

• Serve as centralized operations manager to Team Leads, ensuring project delivery aligns with overall program strategy
• Facilitate regular coordination syncs with Team Leads to gather progress updates, identify blockers, and manage interdependencies
• Escalate risks and resourcing needs from Team Leads to the PM in a timely and structured manner
• Ensure team members have the tools, templates, and documentation needed for success, and maintain visibility into workloads to identify bottlenecks or underutilization.
• Cultivate team cohesion across distributed, cross-functional workstreams.
• Assist the PM in gathering input for monthly performance evaluations related to project delivery

Client Communication & Support

• Participate in and coordinate logistics for client calls, meetings, and briefings as delegated by the PM
• Draft and manage client communications including updates, reporting, and scheduling
• Represent the PM when needed, ensuring project status, scope, and timelines are clearly communicated
• Maintain transparency and trust with clients through consistent responsiveness and delivery follow-through

Work Schedule:

• Full time, 40 hours per week
• Hybrid, 2–3 days a week working onsite with the client
• Some travel required to attend relevant events and conferences, and participate in LINK team events

Salary: We're committed to offering competitive compensation. While the salary range for this position is $112,000-$151,000, your final offer may be adjusted based on factors like experience and location.

Benefits:

• $100 monthly internet/cell phone stipend
• LINK sponsored healthcare benefits including medical, dental, vision
• Company-paid Short Term Disability Insurance
• 401K with employer contribution of up to 4%
• 11 Federal Holidays per year
• 15 days of Paid Time Off (PTO) per year
• Paid Holiday Time Off (Christmas Eve through the New Year)
• Annual bonus plan participation
• Annual profit sharing participation
• $2,000 Learning and Development program reimbursement
• Technology package that includes a LINK-owned MacBook Pro, monitor, mouse and keyboard

EOE