Group Creative Director

Who is a Group Creative Director?

The KERTIS Group Creative Director  is a director, strategist, and creator. The role demands agility, clarity, and the ability to zoom out for strategic oversight while staying sharp in the details. They inspire the creativity and analytical thinking of their team and the company.

KERTIS specializes in narrative-based products focused on documentary and commercial video, photography and design. In addition to a firm grasp of these mediums, our Group Creative Director balances thinking with doing. Our work is rooted in strategy and executed in-house. We do a significant amount of campaign work, including brand development and concepting. Our Group Creative Director initiates and oversees these efforts.

What does a Group Creative Director do?

Our Group Creative Director is the orchestrator of a full-service team, establishes a creative vision and develops high-quality and engaging solutions for clients. This is a senior-level leadership role. The GCD reports directly to the VP and is accountable to the standards and goals set for each client and our own KERTIS brand.

Group Creative Director Scope: 

• Department Leader - The GCD leads the Creative Team, directly overseeing Creative Directors.. This is an active management role, steering the team toward standout work while staying hands-on with creative development and production. The CGD guides with curiosity and diplomacy. 

• Storyteller - The GCD role combines a passion for storytelling with deep campaign and production expertise. They transform brand and organization messages into authentic, compelling content that engages audiences and achieves business objectives. A core duty is to help convey ideas to clients for the pitch and to internal teams for the execution. 

• Creative Maker – The GCD will be the custodian for the brands in their portfolio. This includes working with the internal accounts and strategy team to help set the tone and vision for our clients. Manage multiple projects or campaigns across different teams, often overseeing the creative direction for several clients or brands.

• Standard Setter: KERTIS continuously strives for high standards of creative excellence.

Our Group Creative Director is involved in strategic decision-making and resource allocation. They ensure consistency and quality across all creative outputs within their group. 

Responsibilities:

• Lead planning and strategy sessions, resulting in clear creative briefs

• Support the Account team in developing proposals and scopes of work

• Lead the creative team, overseeing work, both for specific projects and in general, and ensuring execution is consistent and of the highest quality output

• Establish agency best practices and standards, ensuring consistent quality of work

• Develop, assign and review creative documents that support creative process and workflow

• Partner with the Executive Director of Creative Services to develop and  continuously improve the team’s capabilities and skill sets

• Collaborate with designers, writers, production, and post to set agency standards and solve design and budgetary challenges while maintaining design and brand integrity. 

• Mentor and grow the creative team and foster an open, collaborative and inclusive environment that delivers great work

• Ensure that creative projects are delivered on their agreed-upon timeline and on budget 

• Monitor and QC the creative work that will ultimately make its way to the client

• Develop and foster client relationships

Skills & Requirements:

• 5-8 years of experience in a Creative Director role at an advertising or marketing agency

• Proven affinity for leading creative teams

• Expertise in brand storytelling, visual design, digital innovation, and creative leadership

• Demonstrated ability to develop strategic creative campaigns to meet marketing objectives

• Strong creative writing and research skills

• Solid interpersonal and communication skills 

• Proven ability to creatively problem-solve for clients and  internal teams

• Ability to develop, communicate and maintain systems that increase efficiency and provide growth opportunities for the agency

• Ability to maintain accurate schedules and budgets, and be flexible to the pivots

• Diplomatic and supportive team member  

• Community and globally minded 

• Interest in historical and current trends in storytelling/marketing/advertising 

• Strong knowledge of layout design, graphic fundamentals, and typography 

• Familiarity with Adobe Creative Suite, Figma, and relevant tools

• Understands and uses AI as a tool, not a content source

Salary Range:

$90,000 - $100,000

Benefits

• Medical + Dental + Vision (50% of employee premium covered)

• Long-term disability + life insurance 

• Cell phone reimbursement ($50 monthly, distributed quarterly)

• 401K matching up to 4% (eligible after 1st year) 

• 18 paid vacation days, plus additional company holidays

• Family Leave for Primary & Secondary caregivers when welcoming a new child

• Profit share per quarter (starting from hire date)

To Apply 

Please submit your resume, cover letter, and work examples HERE. We understand that this role may have other titles in the industry, so please include a relevant portfolio or examples of experience in a similar role. Applications submitted without work examples will not be considered. 

Equal Opportunity Employer 

The KERTIS workplace is one in which individual differences are recognized, appreciated, respected, and responded to in ways that fully develop and use each person’s talents and strengths.

We are committed to building and sustaining an inclusive and equitable work environment for all team members.

Because we value the diversity of the people we hire and work with, we are proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, military or veteran status.