Associate Creative Director, Art

About the role

We are in relentless pursuit of an equitable and inspiring workplace that is respectful of all, reflects and represents the world in which we live, and fosters trust, collaboration and belonging. Consistent with this approach, we hire the best qualified candidates for all positions.

We're an earned-first creative agency, which means we build our ideas around what we want the world to talk about, not around a media plan. In fact, there's almost never a plan at all, so we doitlive.gif, and that's half the fun. Your week will change constantly: a reactive TikTok shot in your backyard on Monday, an exhausting 37-page deck on Wednesday, and on Friday a big, complex 360 launch with PR, influencer, digital, and a brand film that makes international news. We need an ACD team that's comfortable doing all of it, often at the same time.

What, exactly, you'll do all day

• Concept and sell integrated campaigns: social, digital, video, experiential, content, whatever the idea needs. Sometimes (but not always) with an ACD, Copy partner
• Think up brilliant ideas that earn attention on their own merit, then build the endless decks it takes to get them through client approval. There's gonna be so many decks
• Own the art, obviously. But at the ACD level, the art is only part of it. We want someone with real opinions on the cast, the cut, the track, the type, the thumbnail, the way it feeeeeeels, man, when you're scrolling past it at 2am. Know which of those opinions to say out loud, and when, while never losing sight of the pixel width requirements.
• Work shoulder to shoulder with account, strategy, influencer, and production, ensuring that your work consistently adheres to Earned Acceleration Principals. In an integrated shop like Edelman, your ideas only survive with support from other departments. You gotta sell the whole team on your dream!
• Juggle several projects at once, giving direction to the jr. team around you while managing up to a handful of creative leaders across who won't always agree, and are rarely in the same room
• Keep the idea sharp through the twists and turns of production, comms planning, launch, and no less than two client freakouts
• Take a long weekend on a quiet lake somewhere, then come back and get straight to work on the case study while it's all still fresh, so everyone knows how brilliant your idea was and how well it worked

Oddly specific things we're looking for

Work that's actually out in the world. Yes, we want to see your portfolio, but what we're really interested in is what shipped. One awesome thing you actually launched, however small, weird, or far outside your day job (we love side projects!), beats a deck of beautiful spec that "the clients were just not smart enough to understand." Getting good things made is the skill we're screening hardest for.

Internet fluency, not trend-chasing. Anyone can read a trend report with the right stolen login. We want people who actually live online: a Reddit account older than some of our interns, a strong opinion on why Geese is or is not a psyop, deep-fried memes from Discords we've never heard of. We're looking for interesting taste and weird insight, not regurgitated TikTok formats.

Capital-P Purpose that goes way deeper than optics. We care about what our work does out in the world for real. Not in the performative, hand-wavy way. We love win-win ideas that aren't a drain on anyone. You don't have to be a hippie, but we do want you to be conscious of what the work does to the world around you.

Ego-free ambition. Yeah yeah, we all have cat statues, and yes, you'll need to help us win a few more to keep us all employed. But we want you here because you love the game, not just the ticket to France.

Qualifications

• 6+ years in a creative role, with a track record of ideas that made it into the wild
• Comfort managing details and pivots, with an entrepreneurial streak
• A portfolio link! Applications without one won't be considered
• A bachelor's degree, or equivalent experience that's weird and/or interesting
• AI fluency, and a very strong opinion on the difference between smart AI use and work slop

How to apply

• Send your portfolio and a note on the one live project you're proudest of.
• You may also receive a short questionnaire about what you read, watch, and post.
• It's the fastest way for us to get a sense of your taste, and possibly the most fun part of our process.

#LI-KG1 $86,000-$138,000 per year

Pay and benefits

An employee's pay position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to, relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, seniority, geographic location, performance, travel requirements, revenue-based metrics, any contractual agreements, and business or organizational needs. The range listed is just one component of DJEH's total compensation package for employees. Other rewards may include annual bonuses, a Paid Time Off policy, and region-specific benefits.

DJEH offers a wide range of benefits

medical and dental insurance, vision, 401K, life insurance, disability insurance, paid time off, travel assistance and wellness programing.