Creative Director, Art and Design
VML · New York, New York, United States ·
- Category
- Design
- Company size
- 1000+
- Salary
- USD 100,000 – 230,000 / year
Senior creative leadership role at VML's Passport Brand Design studio in New York: you direct and mentor a large team of art directors and designers, driving premium brand identity, packaging, and integrated campaign work for clients — primarily in the tobacco industry. Hybrid role, in office ~4 days a week.
Who We Are
VML is a global creative company that combines brand experience, customer experience, and commerce to create connected brands that drive growth. Guided by a Human First philosophy, VML is known for its innovative work for brands and consistently ranks among the world’s leading creative companies, including the WARC Creative 100. VML’s global network spans 55+ markets with principal offices in Buenos Aires, Kansas City, London, New York, São Paulo, Shanghai and Singapore.
VML is part of WPP, the trusted growth partner for the world's leading brands. Powered by exceptional talent and our agentic marketing platform WPP Open, WPP unites cutting-edge media intelligence and data solutions, creativity, production, enterprise solutions and expert strategic counsel.
For more information, please visit and follow along on LinkedIn #WeAreVML.
Who We Are Looking For
Passport Brand Design, a VML company and part of the WPP network, is seeking a forward-thinking Creative Director of Art & Design to lead a talented, large-scale team of art directors and designers. As a globally respected premium brand agency, we rely on this senior leadership role to drive conceptual and design excellence across brand identity, packaging, and campaign design.
As part of the WPP network, Passport Brand Design is committed to a Human First approach. You will bring this to life by deeply investing in the growth of your team, helping them translate technological and creative capabilities into meaningful, high-impact outcomes for our clients.
Please note: This role primarily supports creative work within the tobacco industry. We share this upfront to ensure transparency and alignment with your personal preferences and comfort level.
What You'll Do
- Lead and Inspire: Mentor, manage, and empower a team of art directors, designers, and copywriters, fostering a culture of creative excellence that elevates the agency's overall output.
- Drive Creative Vision: Own the creative direction and execution across multiple simultaneous accounts, delivering premium brand identity, packaging, and integrated campaign designs that drive measurable brand growth.
- Present with Confidence: Articulate and defend creative concepts to executive-level clients with clarity, conviction, and strategic grounding to build trust and consensus.
- Collaborate Cross-Functionally: Partner closely with strategy, account management, and production teams to ensure all work is strategically sound, flawlessly executed, and aligned with business objectives.
- Embrace Constraints: Navigate the nuances of a highly regulated industry, using parameters as a catalyst to deliver innovative, compliant, and standout creative solutions.
- Champion Standards: Act as a steward of the agency's premium design standards, ensuring consistency, craft, and quality across all deliverables.
- Execute Conceptually: Lead the creation of strong conceptual campaigns across print, out-of-home, digital, experiential, and activations to build cohesive brand experiences.
Who You Are
- A strategic, curious problem-solver who can distill complex category rules into elegant, compelling design systems.
- An empathetic leader who builds trust, champions collaboration, and creates an inclusive space for creatives to do their best work.
- A bold idea-driver who is comfortable with ambiguity and has the conviction to push for exceptional, high-impact work, even within regulated spaces.
What You'll Need
- Proven Creative Director experience within an agency environment, with a demonstrated ability to orchestrate and manage creative workflows.
- A compelling, high-caliber portfolio demonstrating exceptional craft in brand identity, packaging, and campaign design.
- A proven track record of managing, mentoring, and developing large creative teams.
- Exceptional client-facing skills, including experience presenting to and aligning with C-suite stakeholders.
- Comfort and willingness to work on tobacco industry accounts.
- Willingness and ability to accommodate occasional required travel.
The base salary range for this position at the time of this posting is indicated below. Individual compensation varies based on job-related factors, including location, business needs, level of responsibility, experience, and qualifications. We offer a competitive benefits package, click WPP Benefits for more details.
We believe the best work happens when we're together, fostering creativity, collaboration, and connection. That's why we’ve adopted a hybrid approach, with teams in the office an average of four days a week. If you require accommodations or flexibility, please discuss this with the hiring team during the interview process.
WPP (VML) is an equal opportunity employer and considers applicants for all positions without discrimination or regard to characteristics. We are committed to fostering a culture of respect in which everyone feels they belong and has the same opportunities to progress in their careers.
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