Kai Douglas
Chicago,USA
Summary
Creative strategist and cultural translator with experience in turning audience behavior, cultural shifts and complex business challenges into brand opportunities that earn attention and move people. Deeply fluent in Gen Z and trusted across creative, media, analytics and integrated agency teams for bringing a sharp pulse on culture, a clear point of view and strategies teams can act on.
Overview
6
6
years of professional experience
Work History
Strategist
DDB Chicago
Chicago, IL
10.2022 - Current
- Unearth cultural opportunities that help Gen Z and parents envision an Army future, translating economic uncertainty, declining national pride and service skepticism into strategies that challenge misperceptions and renew belief in what's possible.
- Connect paid media, DCO, multicultural media, web analytics and copy-testing insights to identify Officer performance drivers and guide creative rotation and future optimizations.
- United aspiring medical professionals seeking stability and practicing professionals pursuing legacy around one strategic truth, shaping the patient-centered positioning behind Where Healing Leads and helping a limited-budget launch increase Army Medicine leads 11%.
- Build forward-looking social briefs and lead creatives across TBWA, FleishmanHillard and Fluent360, translating emerging conversations, cultural moments and platform behaviors into relevant Army messages that spark dialogue and inspire Gen Z inside and outside the force.
- Lead Army x Navy game-day strategy across creative and social teams, using sports culture's stakes and rituals to turn passive viewers into active participantsshifting Gen Z from betting on the game to betting on themselves and their future.
- Transformed 11 research-grounded Gen Z segments into 22 AI prospect avatars with distinct identities, backgrounds, motivations and behaviors. Guided Virti on authentic interactions, supporting 1,880 practice sessions, 356 training hours and ~40-percentage-point average improvement among recruiters with lower starting scores.
- Client: U.S Army
Strategy Professor
Book180
Chicago, IL
01.2024 - Current
- Taught 40+ emerging creatives to find the human truth behind a business challenge, translating consumer behavior and cultural context into insights and briefs that give creative ideas direction.
Jr. Strategist
MullenLowe Boston
Boston, MA
09.2020 - 01.2022
- Unearthed the human truth behind post-COVID travel: the longer people waited, the stronger their urge to go. Helped shape Royal Caribbean's return-to-sea strategy around that pent-up desire.
- Translated JAMRS audience research into opportunities to extend a campaign encouraging parent-child conversations about military service
- Drafted Effie cases, identifying compelling campaign results and helping shape a short-film narrative showing how the work inspired parent-child conversations about military futures.
- Clients: JAMRS, Royal Caribbean, Century 21, PLUS+, Black @ Mullen
Education
Bachelor's Degree - Marketing, Gender Studies, Psychology
Bentley University
Waltham, MA05-2019
Skills
- Brand strategy
- Consumer insights
- Cultural analysis
- Audience segmentation
- Creative briefing
- Campaign planning
Timeline
Strategy Professor
Book180
01.2024 - Current
Strategist
DDB Chicago
10.2022 - Current
Jr. Strategist
MullenLowe Boston
09.2020 - 01.2022
Bachelor's Degree - Marketing, Gender Studies, Psychology
Bentley University