Creative Director job description: duties, skills and qualifications.

Core duties

12

O*NET task statements

Preparation

Job Zone 4 of 5

considerable preparation

Typical entry education

Bachelor's degree

BLS 2025–35

Median pay

$114,850

BLS May 2025

Data Government data groups this job as Art Directors (O*NET-SOC 27-1011.00). Figures on this page are for that occupation.

1. Work with creative directors to develop design solutions. importance 4.6 of 5
2. Present final layouts to clients for approval. importance 4.5 of 5
3. Manage own accounts and projects, working within budget and scheduling requirements. importance 4.4 of 5
4. Confer with creative, art, copywriting, or production department heads to discuss client requirements and presentation concepts and to coordinate creative activities. importance 4.3 of 5
5. Confer with clients to determine objectives, budget, background information, and presentation approaches, styles, and techniques. importance 4.3 of 5
6. Formulate basic layout design or presentation approach and specify material details, such as style and size of type, photographs, graphics, animation, video, and sound. importance 4.2 of 5
7. Review and approve art materials, copy materials, and proofs of printed copy developed by staff members. importance 4.2 of 5
8. Create custom illustrations or other graphic elements. importance 4.1 of 5
9. Attend photo shoots and printing sessions to ensure that the products needed are obtained. importance 4.1 of 5
10. Review illustrative material to determine if it conforms to standards and specifications. importance 4.0 of 5
11. Hire, train, and direct staff members who develop design concepts into art layouts or who prepare layouts for printing. importance 4.0 of 5
12. Research current trends and new technology, such as printing production techniques, computer software, and design trends. importance 3.7 of 5

Work activities O*NET rates most important here: Thinking Creatively, Working with Computers, Getting Information, Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates and Making Decisions and Solving Problems.

Also part of the job

Supplemental tasks O*NET lists for this occupation: less central than the core duties above, and not done in every job.

• Mark up, paste, and complete layouts and write typography instructions to prepare materials for typesetting or printing.
• Conceptualize and help design interfaces for multimedia games, products, and devices.
• Prepare detailed storyboards showing sequence and timing of story development for television production.
• Negotiate with printers and estimators to determine what services will be performed.

Knowledge areas: Design, English Language, Computers and Electronics, Fine Arts and Communications and Media.

Software O*NET lists for this occupation: Adobe After Effects, Adobe Creative Cloud software, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe InDesign, Adobe Photoshop, Figma. These are examples O*NET records for the job, not a list of tools every employer uses or a checklist of what you must know.

• Education: BLS lists a bachelor's degree as the typical entry-level education.
• Experience: BLS lists 5 years or more of work experience in a related occupation as typical.
• Training on the job: BLS lists no typical on-the-job training once hired.
• Preparation: O*NET places the job in Job Zone 4 of 5 (considerable preparation). A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations.
• Licenses and certifications: not listed here. A license is a legal requirement set by a state; a certification is a credential from a private or professional body. Rules vary by state and employer, and a missing entry on this page does not mean none is required: check with your state's licensing board and see how to become a creative director.

Most creative directors surveyed by O*NET (68%) name a bachelor's degree as the education the job requires.

Job title: Creative Director
[Company] · [City, State] · [Full-time or part-time] · [Pay range, where your state requires one]

About the role
[Company] is hiring a Creative Director to formulate design concepts and presentation approaches for visual productions and media, such as print, broadcasting, video, and film.
[One sentence on your team and why this role matters.]

What you will do
- Work with creative directors to develop design solutions.
- Present final layouts to clients for approval.
- Manage own accounts and projects, working within budget and scheduling requirements.
- Confer with creative, art, copywriting, or production department heads to discuss client requirements and presentation concepts and to coordinate creative activities.
- Confer with clients to determine objectives, budget, background information, and presentation approaches, styles, and techniques.
- Formulate basic layout design or presentation approach and specify material details, such as style and size of type, photographs, graphics, animation, video, and sound.
- Review and approve art materials, copy materials, and proofs of printed copy developed by staff members.
- Create custom illustrations or other graphic elements.

What we are looking for
- [Education: BLS lists a bachelor's degree as typical for this occupation; set the level this role truly needs]
- [Experience: BLS lists 5 years or more in a related occupation as typical; adjust to this role]
- Strength in active listening, speaking and judgment and decision making
- Working knowledge of Design and English Language
- [Software your team uses, e.g. Adobe After Effects or Adobe Creative Cloud software]
- [Any license or certification your state or company requires]

[Schedule, benefits and how to apply]

Illustrative: every name, employer, school, date and number in these samples is fictional or a bracketed placeholder. Replace each bracket with your own true details; never copy a result you did not achieve.

Not a real job posting. This template is TryHired's illustration built from government occupational data. It is not an opening at any employer, and no employer wrote it.

The median annual wage was $114,850 in May 2025. The median hourly wage was $55.22. BLS estimates about 53,070 jobs in this occupation in the U.S.

BLS projects employment of creative directors to grow 4.2% from 2025 to 2035, with about 12,200 openings a year over that period, including openings to replace workers who leave.

See the full creative director salary breakdown by percentile, state and metro.

• Read a real creative director posting next to the core duties above. Duties it repeats, such as “Work with creative directors to develop design solutions”, tell you what that employer weighs most; anything it adds is specific to that team.
• Tailor your resume to the posting, not to this page: describe only creative director work you have actually done, with your own results.
• Prepare a story for each of the top-rated skills (active listening and speaking); creative director interview questions turns them into practice questions.