Associate, Cultural Intelligence

Associate, Cultural Intelligence

JOB_DESCRIPTION.SHARE.HTML

CAROUSEL_PARAGRAPH

JOB_DESCRIPTION.SHARE.HTML

• Creative
• El Segundo, California
• Saatchi US
• Intermediate
• Hybrid
• 10/5/2026
• 172398
• 26-14902

mail_outline Get future jobs matching this search

LoginorRegister

Job Description

Company description

At Saatchi we believe in creating ideas that can live anywhere. And we believe that when we work as a team, nothing is impossible. We strive to bring out the best in each other and in ourselves and expect applicants to understand the value of close collaboration. We also believe that creating transformational work requires initiative, an entrepreneurial spirit and a bold commitment to achieving measurable results and business success for the Clients we service.

Overview

Saatchi & Saatchi is looking for an Associate to join its Cultural Intelligence group, with a focus on research and insights. This role helps the team understand what’s happening across culture—surfacing emerging conversations, creators, communities and behaviors, investigating why they matter, and contributing first ideas that agency teams can develop and implement. The ideal candidate will have 2 to 3 years of experience in creative / strategy, with a track record of contributing impactful, culturally relevant work, and a deep passion for keeping up with a wide range of topics and trends that are shaping today’s cultural landscape.

Reporting to the Director of Cultural Intelligence, and working closely with the Manager, Cultural Intelligence, you’ll bring thoughtful research, useful references and early thinking into the group’s work. You’ll connect developments across entertainment, art, design, sports, technology and digital spaces to the audiences we’re trying to reach and the opportunities relevant to Toyota.

At the Associate level, you’ll take responsibility for assigned research, maintain shared intelligence resources and contribute to the group’s reports and recommendations. You’ll bring curiosity, initiative and a developing point of view, working with the Manager to strengthen your findings and shape promising opportunities.

Strong cultural intelligence begins with close observation, credible research and a willingness to ask better questions. This associate role will be at the frontlines of helping to create that foundation for Saatchi & Saatchi—allowing the group to recognize emerging shifts, understand them more fully and bring richer inputs into the work. By contributing research, early insights and first ideas, this role will support the Manager and Director in helping agency teams create work grounded in the people, conversations and communities shaping culture.

Responsibilities

• The Associate helps build the understanding behind that participation. You’ll keep a close watch on culture, investigate where signals come from and connect observations into early insights that help the team understand what’s changing, who is shaping it and why it could matter. You’ll also bring creative possibilities alongside your research. That might mean suggesting a content format, identifying an unexpected collaborator or spotting a way for Toyota to contribute to a cultural moment. These don’t need to be finished concepts; they should be thoughtful starting points grounded in what you’ve discovered.

• In short: you’ll help the group see clearly, find useful connections and bring informed first ideas into the creative process.

• Keep a close read on culture: Monitor emerging conversations, language, behaviors, creators and communities across social platforms, entertainment, art, design, sports, technology and the wider web. Track developments relevant to Toyota and flag signals that deserve a closer look.

• Research and validate cultural signals: Investigate where conversations started, who is shaping them, how they are evolving and which audiences they matter to. Combine desk research, social listening, audience information and primary sources to build an accurate picture of the cultural context.

• Connect findings into early insights: Look for patterns across your research and explain what they might reveal about people’s interests, motivations and behaviors. Develop clear summaries and initial observations, working with the Manager to test your thinking and distinguish meaningful opportunities from passing noise.

• Contribute references and first ideas: Bring rough ideas, unexpected connections and possible creative responses alongside your findings. Use examples and references to make them tangible—whether that’s a content idea, a creator collaboration or an opportunity for community participation. Work with the Manager to develop promising starting points for agency teams to build on.

• Support creator and community discovery: Research relevant creators, communities, partners and cultural spaces. Gather examples of their work, understand the audiences they connect with and explain their potential relevance to an idea. Provide the context and source material that help the Manager develop informed recommendations.

• Maintain shared intelligence resources: Organize signals, sources, reports, cultural moments, creators and references in a clear, searchable system. Keep calendars, trackers and archives current so the group can follow developments over time and quickly retrieve useful information.

• Help prepare outputs and capture learning: Contribute to cultural updates, research summaries, reports, creator shortlists and internal sessions. Check sources, gather examples and respond to research requests. Track how conversations evolve and help document audience and community responses to work after it launches.

Qualifications

Qualifications

• Cultural curiosity and attentiveness. Genuinely curious about art, music, design, sports, technology, fashion, entertainment and digital culture. You notice new voices, behaviors and ideas—and want to understand where they came from and why people care.
• Foundational research exper