Creative Director Job Descriptions: Template, Tear-Downs, and More
WORKING NOT WORKING
Ready to hire a creative director? If you’ve been in the creative world for a while, you’ll know that’s not a simple task. “Creative director” isn’t a cookie-cutter job. The exact expectations and skill set needed vary wildly from industry to industry. Because of that, your job description needs to be specific enough to illustrate what YOU define a creative director to be.
So if you’re looking for inspiration, it’s not going to come from a jargon-packed template that lists generic advice you could copy and paste to practically any other role. If you want a great creative director, it takes a nuanced approach.
While we have provided a template, it’s more like an outline ... followed by more specific instructions on how to flesh it out. We also provide creative director job description tear-downs from real job listings (but keep them anonymous to avoid hurting feelings).
We could keep going ... or we could jump straight into it.
Note: If you’re new to our site and don’t know what we do, check out our founding story. We talk about why we think hiring in creative industries is broken — and what we’re doing to fix it.
The Creative Director Job Description Template (er, Outline)
Once again, it’s important to emphasize that creative director roles don’t all look the same. In this case, we’ve used an example of a creative director in charge of marketing for a new sportswear line. In the following sections, we’ll break down what’s important to include for each one.
[a] Write a few lines on exactly who you’re looking for (essentially, summarize their role).
Example: Acme Corp seeks a creative director who can oversee strategy on advertising campaigns across multiple channels, including social media, traditional print magazines, video, and live events for a new sportswear line. Experience with building and managing a creative team preferred. Will report directly to our VP of Brand Marketing.
[b] Cover the when & where.
Example: This is a full-time position starting in February 2020. Candidates are expected to work on site at least 3 days per week at our office in Manhattan, New York.
[c] Explain exactly what they’ll do.
Example: You will be expected to:
Meet with and present plans to stakeholders
Ensure that all marketing materials for the product line are aligned with our brand & vision
Manage a team of first-class talent to execute that vision (and hire new talent as needed)
Brief videographers, copywriters, graphic designers, photographers, and others
Provide feedback on their work (you will collaborate with an art director for this task)
Remain accountable for all marketing deadlines & budget.
[d] Expound on what skills and traits they need, especially any technical requirements.
Example:
Must have’s include:
6+ years of experience in creative direction
Bachelor’s degree in Fine Art or similar subject.
Would be nice:
Familiarity with Adobe Creative Suite
Cinematography background
Previous experience with textiles and/or sportswear marketing.
[e] List the perks.
Example: So what’s in it for you? Besides the full-time salary, 401(k) matching, and healthcare benefits, you’ll get access to our cozy, food-stocked office (pics below), paid paternity/maternity leave, 3+ weeks vacation, and the chance to work with who we think are some of the most talented & dedicated professionals in the business.
[f] Talk about yourself.
No example needed here. Describe your company in 3-4 sentences (you can usually lift this from your company’s “About Us” page). You can also describe your group’s work culture if you want. If you have them, add a few photos so candidates can visualize what it would be like to work with you.
Making the Template Yours
The above outline is just a start. In this section, we’ll dive into specific advice for each section of the outline.
Who Do You Want?
This is perhaps the most important part of the job description. Since “creative director” means different things to different people, you need to be as specific as possible about who you want. It seems like an obvious step to take, but we’ve seen plenty of finished job descriptions that remain vague.
Are you looking for someone to:
Build your brand from the ground up?
Manage strategy on a targeted campaign?
Oversee photoshoots & ensure they’re on brand?
Ensure consistency across all video-based marketing?
These are all reasonable asks for a “creative director,” hence why the actual job description and requirements can differ wildly from company to company.
If you nail this description, it will be far easier to attract the right candidates. If you explain that you want a creative director of videography, you’re not likely to see many job seekers with only copywriting experience applying (for example). But if you want someone who will mainly do brand development, expect to see a wide variety of backgrounds in your applicants.
When and Where Do You Want Them?
This should be obvious, so we’ll keep it short. You need to convey:
Whether the position is full-time, part-time, or freelance
How long the engagement will last (if not full time)
If work can be done remotely or if it will be all onsite (remember to name the location)
If onsite, whether you allow flexible hours, work-from-home days, etc.
Keep in mind that, of the 272 Creative Directors on Working Not Working who responded to our 2019 survey, 47% preferred freelance work and 33% preferred full-time opportunities. Those same creatives were equally split between preferring to work onsite, preferring to work remotely, or not having a preference.
Note: Are you looking for a top-notch creative director to motivate your team or elevate your next project? Get access to nearly 8,000 of the most respected creative directors around on Working Not Working today. For more about who we are and what we do, read our founding story.
What Do You Expect Them to Do, Specifically?
Keep in mind both where the new hire would fit in your company structure (i.e., details in an associate creative director job description ought to differ from those for an executive creative director job description) and what their day-to-day responsibilities will be.
This is the place to expand upon the general description you provided earlier in the post.
If you’re hiring an in-house creative director to liaise with advertising agencies, the daily to-do’s will be very different from someone who is managing product photoshoots and packaging.
If you’re hiring for a freelance opening, you need to give details about the project. What’s the scope and purpose? Who will they need to collaborate with? What outcomes are they responsible for?
If you’re hiring for an in-house position, get specific about recurring duties. Do they need to make marketing plans? Attend meetings and report on results? Travel to represent the brand in client meetings? Spend their days hands-on with the creatives producing the work? Hire teams? Manage budget?
You don’t have to write every single expectation in the description, but listing the key points is a must.
What Skills and Experience Do You Prefer They Have?
It can be helpful for candidates if you split this section into needs and wants. Is a fine arts degree mandatory? Would it be nice if they had a master’s degree? Is copywriting experience non-negotiable? Do they have to have experience in After Effects?
Once you’ve split requirements into needs and wants, take a look at the language you’re using. In general, it’s helpful to shy away from vague statements. “Leadership skills” and “interpersonal skills” sound nice, but they don’t help a candidate discern if the role is right for them. Every creative director needs to be good with people since they’ll often be collaborating with other creative leads and specialists.
The more granular the role, the more precise you need to be with the technical expertise requested. For example, one company that was hiring for a creative director to handle photo shoots, branding, and team management listed experience with Adobe Illustrator, Adobe InDesign, Adobe Lightroom, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Premiere Pro, and Adobe XD as their preferred technical requirements.
Why Should They Pick You?
There are nearly 8,000 creative directors on Working Not Working. Many are the best in their field. How do you plan to attract them?
You can inject personality into your post (sorry, you’ll have to find your own path on that one), but that’s only a start. In our 2019 survey of creative directors on our platform, we found that total compensation, flexibility in hours/location, and independence are more important to most respondents than how famous your brand is or how much they believe in your product.
For a majority, having medical insurance is important.
One more interesting fact: the majority want to work with agencies, independent brands, and startups (in that order). So if that’s not you, you may need to find creative ways of getting their attention.
All this to say: You’re hamstringing your job description’s effectiveness if you don’t make an effort to “sell” candidates on working with you.
Note: Are you looking for a top-notch creative director to motivate your team or elevate your next project? Get access to nearly 8,000 of the most respected creative directors around on Working Not Working today. For more about who we are and what we do, read our founding story.
Tear-Downs of Creative Director Job Descriptions From Job Boards
Sometimes, it’s easier to learn by looking at what someone else did and copying (or avoiding) that. Here are three examples of job descriptions we found floating around the internet, plus a breakdown of what they did well and what they did poorly.
1. This Executive Creative Director Job Description in the Skincare Space (Found on Indeed.com)
The Good
The list at the bottom of the summary tells applicants exactly which disciplines they’ll be overseeing
It immediately lays out general responsibilities.
The Bad
The whole job posting (not pictured) is over 700 words long (a good rule of thumb is 200 - 300, otherwise applicants’ eyes will glaze over)
There’s business jargon everywhere. “Origination and creation of breakthrough assets,” anyone?
The post goes on to list out all possible duties of the role and fourteen qualification requirements (not shown because ... it’s long). Cutting this information down to the bare necessities and replacing jargon with simpler statements (like “help other creative directors come up with new marketing ideas”) would help considerably.
2. This “Creative Director, Design” Job Description in the Makeup Space (Found on LinkedIn.com)
The Good
Topics are clearly laid out and separated appropriately — there’s an overview of the business division, an overview of the job, more details on the day-to-day job, an explanation of what they’re looking for, and the reason a candidate should be excited to join the team
Not shown, but at the end of the post, they have a short video on what it’s like to join their team
There’s still some jargon, but most of the post is written plainly so that candidates can grasp what they’d really be doing on the job.
The Bad
It’s still on the long side, but how it’s organized and written mostly makes up for the length.
Overall, this is a strong post. The recruiter who posted it took the time to learn exactly what the new hire would be doing and describe it plainly, along with details on what background and experience level they’re looking for.
3. This Executive Creative Director Job Description in the Skincare Space (Found on WorkingNotWorking.com)
The Good
It’s short and to the point
Since it’s for a freelance position, they give context for the specific project they need help with
You can see from the heading, skills section, and paragraph description that they want someone with video experience for a video marketing campaign.
The Bad
Precisely what the creative director will do is still vague. They do mention they’d like to start with concept pitches and storyboarding, but it’s unclear what the scope of the engagement is and what the creative director’s responsibility will be after starting.
This is a nice, concise post, but its brevity comes at the cost of clarity. A few more details on what they expect the job to entail and how long they think it will last would help candidates discern whether it’s a good fit. Fortunately, the writing is personable and candidates can assume the hirer is willing to explain via conversation.
In Summary
You’re the expert on the role you’re hiring for — so make sure you communicate the most important details to candidates as clearly as possible.
Remember not to:
Post a vague, single-paragraph job description
Leave out critical info such as when/where/why
Stuff the page with jargon.
But do go ahead and:
Be clear about exactly what you’re looking for and why
Keep things light & friendly.
Note: Are you looking for a top-notch creative director to motivate your team or elevate your next project? Get access to nearly 8,000 of the most respected creative directors around on Working Not Working today. For more about who we are and what we do, read our founding story.