Career Profile
Job Summary:

A Creative Director is responsible for the creative direction and outputs of an advertising, marketing or branding agency/department. As a Creative Director, you lead the creative team to create marketing, advertising and branding products to help your clients sell their products or services. Creative directors work across a range of industries including film, TV, music, video game, fashion, graphic design, marketing & advertising, web design and software development.

The outdoor industry has industry-specific creative agencies, who work wholly or mainly with sports & outdoor brands, either nationally or globally.

Job Tasks:

This role is varied and involves a wide range of tasks that will vary depending on the company you work for. It is a position of considerable responsibility, so you are likely to need to be flexible to successfully meet the requirements of the role.

Tasks include:

• Having creative input in projects
• Formulating innovative approaches
• Taking responsibility for all department outputs (when it goes right & wrong!)
• Copywriting
• Managing creative outputs of the team
• Managing, training & developing team members
• Presenting and pitching to clients
• Managing project budgets & schedules
• Keeping abreast of new technology
• Learning about design & communication trends
• Hiring staff
• Communicating with senior managers & partners

Skills Needed for this Job:

You will need design skills and flair for this role, however, this alone will not lead you to success. The ability to do the following may also be essential:

• High level strategic thinking
• Decision-making
• Influencing others
• Managing time effectively
• Process-driven workflow
• Analysis
• Flexibility to apply yourself to different projects
• Learning new skills
• Accepting & adapting to criticism
• Presenting & pitching confidently
• Engaging with clients and partners
• Technical know-how
• Managing individuals
• Motivating a team
• Administration duties

Working Hours:

This role usually functions during office hours, full time, but some roles may be available on a freelance basis and there may be opportunities for part-time working, especially for smaller companies, with small departments, wanting to build and grow their creative team.

There is an increasing trend for freelance work, and the creative industries are at the forefront of this change in the way we work. Find out more about how the world of work is changing.

Income:

In the wider advertising, PR & marketing industries in the UK, salaries for this type of role can range from £30,000 to over £100,000, with the possibility of earning profit shares in some companies.

However, in the outdoor field, opportunities are limited and therefore can be competitive. On this basis, the salaries are likely to be at the lower end of the scale: £30,000 – £50,000.

Profit shares can make a mediocre or average salary into a more appealing proposition, and can give the incentive to work hard to help the business to success, so don’t rule out lower paid roles straight away.

Training, Qualifications & Requirements:

You will usually need a degree in Graphic Design to start off in the field, although you could also train via the apprenticeship route, if you can find a design agency willing to put the time in to train you. You can search for apprenticeships online: .gov Find an Apprenticeship. You can search for university courses online: UCAS

Becoming a creative director takes time, because you need a wide range of experience and skills, as detailed above, to become a competent and well-rounded creative director.

Requirements & Experience could include:

• Working for Blue Chip Companies
• An outstanding portfolio
• Typography, layout, design, colour
• Print & web experience/ evidence
• Experience with a leading design agency
• Leading a team in a creative environment
• Copywriting experience
• Advertising experience
• Marketing experience
• PR experience
• Market research experience
• Agile knowledge and experience
• Mac proficiency
• Adobe Design Suite competence
• MS Office proficiency

Live example from indeed.co.uk:

To make this work you’ll be a current Creative Director or Design Director with a presence, well-formed opinion and your feet nailed to the ground. Ideally you’ll have spent time in a leading brand or design consultancy that have a reputation for solving complex business problems through design.

Looking at current job vacancies can help you to identify the skills you need to develop to get this job.

Mentors/ Industry Information:

The majority of creative director roles across the industry, especially those with higher salaries, are found in London.  Other large cities will have some job availability, but the salaries may be lower, to reflect the lower living costs and more limited number of jobs available outside of London.

Alternative Job Titles & Progression Opportunities:

Creative Lead

Creative Branding Designer

UX UI Designer

UI Artist

Concept Designer

Company Director

Design Director

Associate Design Director

Digital Art Director

Head of PR & Content

Director of Content Strategy

Chief Executive Officer