Marketing Consultant Jobs in Chicago, IL

WHAT MAKES US A GREAT PLACE TO WORK

We are proud to be consistently recognized as one of the world’s best places to work. We are currently the top ranked consulting firm on Glassdoor’s Best Places to Work list and have earned the #1 overall spot a record seven times.

Extraordinary teams are at the heart of our business strategy, but these don’t happen by chance. They require intentional focus on bringing together a broad set of backgrounds, cultures, experiences, perspectives, and skills in a supportive and inclusive work environment. We hire people with exceptional talent and create an environment in which every individual can thrive professionally and personally.

WHO YOU’LL WORK WITH

FRWD is Bain & Company’s marketing acceleration capability, a 200-person community of expert practitioners who partner with clients (and their agencies) to drive meaningful business results and transformation. We are:

• Expert practitioners sourced from some of the world’s leading in-house marketing teams, agencies and tech platforms
• Focused on delivering actionable insights with a passion for results
• Define not only What to do and Why but also How – rooted in real marketplace expertise

FRWD’s work revolves around solving Bain clients’ toughest marketing challenges. Often, this tends to take a few common forms:

• Marketing diagnostic – Develop a data-driven perspective of marketing performance of a company, brand or asset, along with prioritized opportunities to drive value
• Marketing acceleration – Help clients drive transformational change, new capabilities and learning to create sustainable competitive advantage.
• E-commerce acceleration – Improve operational value capture in key commerce channels with 3P retailers and DTC.
• Operating model – Set up the marketing organization for success (including MarTech and data strategy); build capabilities and ways-of-working.
• Due diligence – Partner with private equity fund clients to assess the marketing capabilities of target assets, and help build value creation plans.

WHERE YOU’LL FIT WITHIN THE TEAM

A FRWD Expert Consultant is a seasoned practitioner and emerging marketing expert, driving key workstreams (specifically relating to B2B) within integrated Bain casework. Expert Consultants work hand-in-hand with client teams and cross-functional peers from across the Bain ecosystem. They have a proven track record of leveraging in-platform experience, data, and analysis to generate insights for clients and contribute to overall case results. They partner effectively with client teams and can clearly explain the impact and importance of their workstream on the broader marketing strategy and connect marketing insights to the broader business goals.

WHAT YOU’LL DO

The Expert Consultant role at FRWD centers around a few key functions, specifically:

Problem solving and case delivery

• Drive key workstreams (with support from leadership team) and deliver results to meet client expectations and build client promoters
• Partner with generalist Bain consultants in a blended team environment, bringing to bear the best of all skillsets and expertise
• Demonstrate their reputation as a seasoned marketing practitioner with proficiency in distinct areas of expertise (e.g., industries, channels, platforms, products, tools, etc.)
• Lead a wide range of analyses and consistently deliver outputs and materials that are insightful and free of errors
• Leverage proficiency in-platform (digital ad, E-commerce, etc.) to gather data, generate insights, and develop testing plans
• Bring knowledge and expertise at the forefront of marketing technology and tools (GenAI, attribution and measurement, MarTech/AdTech, data)

Client communication and results

• Leverage expertise and interpersonal skills to build trusting relationships with clients and their agencies and work collaboratively with all parties
• Communicate clearly and consistently with team and clients to share insights and ensure alignment on workplan
• Bridge between specialized expertise and client business challenges, transforming marketing insights into actionable strategic recommendations that drive measurable impact

Extraordinary teaming

• Maintain a consistently positive and at-cause attitude, and contribute to day-to-day work across the case team
• Actively seek out and act upon feedback from team, peers, and leaders in the business
• Share expertise and best practices with team members across the FRWD ecosystem and across the broader Bain ecosystem
• Contribute to FRWD strategy and operations (e.g., sponsor internal initiatives, support the recruiting and hiring process, etc.)

ABOUT YOU

• 5+ years of relevant industry experience in marketing roles (e.g., agency, brand, in-house, or technology platform) with clear leadership experience and consistent trajectory
• Demonstrated marketing experience within B2B
• Bachelor’s degree required; MBA not required but preferred
• Exceptional strategic thinking and analytical skills to solve complex problems
• Experience contributing to high performing, cross-functional, integrated teams
• Ability to solve tough problems effectively and efficiently, breaking them down into pieces and taking a hypothesis-driven approach
• Demonstrated proficiency in specific marketing domain(s), recognized by peers and superiors
• Strong expertise in the digital media landscape, including media partners/products and industry best practices
• Exceptional planning and organizational skills, ability to meet deadlines and work with cross-functional teams
• Strong verbal and written communication skills
• Positive, at-cause attitude
• Willingness and ability to travel as needed

In addition to broad marketing expertise, deeper expertise across a select few areas of focus and growth for FRWD, including:

• B2B marketing
• E-commerce and retail media
• Marketing measurement and analytics
• Marketing technology
• GenAI in marketing (e.g., agentic search)
• Client services experience (from consulting, agency, or other similar contexts)
• Certification in some subset of relevant digital channels: Meta Blueprint, Google Ads, Amazon Ads, The Trade Desk Trading Academy, Adobe Marketing Platform

About us

Bain & Company is a global consultancy that helps the world’s most ambitious change makers define the future. Across 61 offices in 38 countries, we work alongside our clients as one team with a shared ambition to achieve extraordinary results, outperform the competition, and redefine industries.

Our vibrant ecosystem of digital innovators complements our tailored, integrated expertise to deliver better, faster, and more enduring outcomes. We’ve committed $2 billion in pro bono services over the next decade to support organizations tackling today’s urgent challenges.

We’re proud to be recognized with a platinum rating from EcoVadis, placing us in the top 1% of consulting firms for environmental, social, and ethical performance. Since 1973, we’ve measured success by the success of our clients—and we continue to lead the industry in client advocacy.

U.S. Compensation information:

Compensation for this role includes base salary, annual discretionary performance bonus, 401(k) plan with an annual employer contribution based on years of service and Bain’s best in class benefits package (details listed below). Some local governments in the United States require a good-faith, reasonable salary range be included in job postings for open roles. The estimated annualized compensation for this role is as follows:

• For New York, the good-faith, reasonable annualized full-time salary range for this role is between $122,000-146,500. Placement within this range will vary based on several factors including, but not limited to experience, education, licensure/certifications, training and skill level.
• For Illinois, the good-faith, reasonable annualized full-time salary range for this role is between $107,000-128,500. Placement within this range will vary based on several factors including, but not limited to experience, education, licensure/certifications, training and skill level.
• For Minnesota, the good-faith, reasonable annualized full-time salary range for this role is between $97,000-117,000. Placement within this range will vary based on several factors including, but not limited to experience, education, licensure/certifications, training and skill level.

Additional compensation may include:

• Annual discretionary performance bonus
• 4.5% 401(k) company contribution, increasing after 3 years and fully vested upon start
• Full coverage of individual medical, dental, and vision premiums
• Generous paid time off, including parental leave and holidays
• Paid life and long-term disability insurance
• Annual fitness reimbursement

Bain & Company's comprehensive benefits and wellness program is designed to help employees achieve personal independence, protection and stability in the areas most important to you and your family.

• Bain pays 100% individual employee premiums for medical, dental and vision programs, offering one of the most comprehensive medical plans for employees without impacting your paycheck
• Generous paid time off, including parental leave, sick leave and paid holidays
• Fully vested 401(k) company contribution
• Paid Life and Long-Term Disability insurance
• Annual fitness reimbursements