Director, Creative Services

Manages highly visible and complex marketing and product design projects, including aspects of the entire creative process from concept through development and delivery. Will work closely with senior leadership, marketing and product creative teams, clients, freelance and support staff to seamlessly orchestrate deliverables.

Partners with existing staff members and team leadership to recommend, interview and hire open recs to build out larger design team across both marketing and product initiatives.

Serves as a facilitator and key participant in the strategy and planning of marketing and product design needs for DHI’s multiple brands, including management and oversight of client, vendor, partner and agency relationships. Works directly with leadership to define structure, process and workflows across and amongst teams and will support resourcing, organizing and researching projects as needed.

Relies on experience and judgement to plan and accomplish goals.

Engages with ongoing education and learning, such as Project Management Certifications or educational conferences, with travel, to bolster expertise in daily output.

Essential Functions
• Helps the company at large to better understand the visual identity of DHI brands, what centralized creative resources are available to them, and how to use the company’s brand correctly in their work.
• Provides project planning and management for all Creative Services jobs and special projects. Ensures team members understand the desired outcome, budget, schedule, milestones, and purpose of each project. Helps resolve resourcing problems and acts as a sounding board to all staff when needed. Examples might be helping resolve a creative direction question, act as an independent review of work during development to ensure projects are on brand, or suggesting additional resources to help balance workload.
• Meets with leadership to talk about new projects and monitor ongoing work to ensure the smooth and efficient operation of the division. Coordinates with members of other units and represents Creative Service staff in the exchange of project information and deliverable needs up and down the communication stream.
• Constantly monitors and oversees workflow, looking for process or procedures issues that can be improved, modified, or changed to provide all creative staff with the most efficient and effective framework to work within.
• Ensures all staff has the direction, training, and resources to be successful in projects.
• Helps staff understand and negotiate change, encouraging them to be adaptable and flexible as emergency projects arise, work procedures change, roles and responsibilities realign, etc., so that each staff member can grow and thrive as an active and contributing member of the team.
• Approves and stands behind all work performed by Creative Services.

Knowledge, Skills, And Abilities
• Must be a resourceful and collaborative team leader (and player) able to develop strong working relationships both within the team and across campus.
• Must be organized, detail oriented, and able to multi-task in a fast paced environment where very simple projects run side-by-side with highly complex projects.
• Excellent interpersonal and communications skills with the ability to work with diverse audiences and supervise employees and/or interns.
• Exceptional leadership skills with the ability to lead others, encourage teamwork, motivate others and get results.

Required Qualifications
• Minimum of seven years of demonstrated experience in digital, multimedia and print.
• Bachelor’s degree, preferably in Communications, Marketing, Art Direction or similar discipline, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Minimum of five years of experience managing creative staff across multiple disciplines, including but not limited to graphic design, video production, and photography.

Preferred Qualifications
• Experience working in an agency or another fast paced, multi-stakeholder environment.