Senior Creative Art Director

CRYSTAL MEDIA is a borderless creative agency. Our advantage is the value provided through our international network of talent. Our strength comes from a deep understanding of businesses, customers and objectives. Headed by a team of industry veterans with over 15 years experience, we know firsthand what works and where traditional digital agencies tend to fall short. We created Crystal Media with two clear purpose: to provide greater value to businesses big and small, and to deliver quality work quickly.

Overview:

We’re looking for a high-performing experienced Senior Creative Art Director - a.k.a. genius thinker, inspiring mentor and unrivalled multitasker - to lead our creative department. As Senior Creative Director you will report directly to the company’s CEO and will be expected to consistently bring fresh ideas to our clients.

In this role, you’ll guide all projects and will be responsible for the overall quality of work produced by the creative department. With a strong background in concept development, design, strategy and execution, you will ultimately be expected to translate business objectives into results-driven, creative and inspiring deliverables.

What You'll Do:

• Attend project kick-off meetings with senior creative team members, account, strategy, and project management, serving as an expert on the client brand, creative strategy and concepting
  • Take notes based on creative brief discussed
  • Ask clarifying questions to understand the assignment and any specific creative requests
  • Confirm role on the project
• Participate in creative brainstorms
  • Provide input on concepting ideas based on knowledge of current trends, pop culture, and current and past design themes
  • Bring own ideas to meeting and share with team
  • Build upon other participants’ ideas
  • Constructively critique ideas discussed
• Partner with a copywriter to design and create agreed upon concept per brainstorm meeting
  • Create designs based on strategy, target audience, brand, brand guidelines and retailer
  • Design logos and sketch out ideas or layouts
  • Search for photos to be used in the design
  • Identify the correct font and imagery that works best with the idea
  • Understand usage rights of purchased items, such as stock photography and fonts
  • Use color appropriately to facilitate the idea or direct the eye
  • Work within the industry standards and follow company procedures and protocol
• Present work internally to the senior creative team members for review and externally to the client in concept presentations
• Further explore and/or revise concept per creative lead’s direction, interpreting feedback and adjusting design accordingly while ensuring it’s on strategy
• Work with production, directors, photographers, illustrators and/or editors throughout the production process to achieve the desired creative product as concepted
• Prepare and package files for transfer to the next phase (i.e. transitioning a file to the studio)
• Review creative concepts and designs of junior teams and provide feedback and recommendations on how to improve the work

Our Ideal Candidate:

• 5-7+ years of experience as an art director, preferably in an agency or in-house creative department
• Proficient in Adobe Creative Suite applications
• Solid understanding of advertising and marketing principles
• Functional knowledge of typography, layout and design principles
• Knowledge of current trends, pop culture, current and past design themes
• Able to communicate clearly, thoroughly and succinctly both verbally and in writing; can clearly articulate an idea and the reason(s) behind a specific creative direction
• Strong presentation skills; able to present creative work, clearly explaining the assignment, creative strategy, creative idea and how it accomplishes the client’s objectives
• Able to accept constructive feedback and apply in work
• Current knowledge and understanding of where and how people interact with media, including at home, on the go, while shopping, mobile, broadcast, print, event, etc.
• Collaborates well with others, demonstrated by partnering with other creatives to successfully brainstorm and concept ideas
• Anticipates potential problems and obstacles to project success, communicates concerns and develops solutions
• Able to provide actionable constructive feedback