Director of Creative Services

General Summary

The Director of Creative Services leads the vision, strategy, and execution of all creative and design initiatives across Artis–Naples. Reporting to the Vice President of Marketing and Sales, this role is responsible for defining and maintaining brand identity, overseeing the production of all visual communications, and ensuring creative excellence across print, digital, advertising, and experiential platforms. The Director manages the Creative Services team, collaborates closely with Marketing, Programming, Development, Communications and external vendors, and ensures all creative output aligns with institutional goals and the patron experience.

Supervises

Graphic Designer

Program Insert Graphic Designer

Essential Duties \& Responsibilities (other duties may be assigned)

Creative Strategy \& Brand Leadership

• Lead the creative vision and brand identity for Artis–Naples, ensuring consistency, clarity, and impact across all platforms and touchpoints.
• Translate institutional and marketing strategies identified by VP of Marketing and Sales and Director of Marketing into compelling creative concepts and visual systems.
• Partner closely with the Director of Marketing to align creative execution with campaign strategy, audience goals, and revenue objectives.
• Establish, maintain, and evolve brand standards, ensuring adherence across internal and external channels.

Campaign Creative Development \& Execution

• Lead concept development, design direction, and execution of integrated marketing campaigns across print, digital, social, outdoor, and experiential formats.
• Provide art direction for seasonal campaigns, institutional initiatives, performances, exhibitions, and development-related communications.
• Ensure all creative deliverables support audience engagement, ticket sales, subscriptions, memberships, and institutional visibility.
• Oversee the full creative production lifecycle from concept through final delivery, ensuring accuracy, quality, and timeliness.

Team Leadership \& Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Lead, mentor, and develop a high-performing creative team, fostering a culture of innovation, collaboration, accountability, and excellence.
• Collaborate closely with Marketing, Programming, Development, Communications, Education, and Operations to ensure cohesive storytelling and visual alignment.
• Serve as the primary creative partner to marketing leadership in campaign planning, messaging alignment, and audience engagement strategies.

Production Management \& Vendor Oversight

• Manage relationships with external agencies, printers, freelancers, and production partners, including contracting and quality control.
• Direct multiple concurrent creative projects in a fast-paced environment, ensuring prioritization and timely delivery across institutional needs.

Brand Governance \& Asset Management

• Maintain organized and accessible creative asset libraries, ensuring version control and brand consistency.
• Ensure compliance with brand standards across all internal and external communications.
• Review and approve creative execution across advertising platforms including television, radio, print, outdoor, and digital media.

Marketing \& Institutional Support

• Support production of program books, donor materials, fundraising collateral, and institutional publications.
• Collaborate with Marketing on campaign rollout, ensuring alignment between messaging strategy and visual execution.
• Contribute to planning discussions that integrate creative strategy with audience development and revenue goals.

Budgeting \& Resource Management

• Contribute to planning and management of creative production budgets.
• Track project costs and vendor expenditures to ensure efficient use of resources.
• Support forecasting and prioritization of creative needs across institutional departments.

QUALIFICATIONS:

Competencies, Core Values, Education and Experience

Competencies

To perform this job successfully, an individual should possess and demonstrate the following competencies:

• Analytical: Collects and researches data; is able to analyze and interpret data.
• Financial: Has knowledge of general accounting standards.
• Problem Solving: Identifies and resolves problems in a timely manner; gathers and analyzes information skillfully; develops alternative solutions; works well in-group problem solving situations.
• Technical Skills: Knowledge of construction, engineering and all facets of property management operations.
• Oral Communication: Speaks clearly, confidently in positive or negative situations; listens and gets clarification; responds well to questions in office and in public settings; demonstrates group presentation skills; participates constructively and thoughtfully in meetings.
• Written Communication: Writes clearly and informatively; varies writing style to meet needs; presents numerical data effectively.
• Teamwork: Contributes to building a positive team spirit; puts success of team above own interests; supports other’s efforts to succeed; fosters a cooperative work environment.
• Leadership: Displays passion and optimism; inspires respect and trust; exhibits confidence in self and others.
• Quality Management: Improves and promotes quality; demonstrates accuracy and thoroughness.
• Business Acumen: Understands business implications of decisions; aligns work with strategic goals.
• Cost Consciousness: Works within approved budgets; assist in developing and implementing cost saving measures; conserves organizational resources.
• Diversity: Shows respect and sensitivity for cultural differences; educates others on the value of diversity; promotes a harassment-free environment; builds a diverse workforce.
• Ethics: Treats people with respect; keeps commitments; inspires the trust of others; works ethically and with integrity; upholds organizational values.
• Strategic Thinking: Assist in developing strategies to achieve organizational goals; understands organization's strengths and weaknesses.

Organizational Core Values

• Collaborative: Working internally and externally to accomplish something together that we may not be able to accomplish separately in order to realize shared goals.
• Transparency: Behaving and communicating in a manner that exudes openness and sheer honesty.
• Excellence: A standard of performance that surpasses ordinary standards.
• Accountability: The acceptance and assumption of responsibility for actions, decisions and results.
• Patron-first: Placing the patron at the center of our efforts.
• Integrity: A commitment to the highest standards, values and principles through every action and decision.

Education/Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Graphic Design, Communication Design, Marketing, or related field
• Minimum 7-10 years of progressive creative leadership experience, preferably in arts, culture, or nonprofit environments
• Demonstrated experience leading creative teams and managing multi-channel campaigns
• Strong portfolio of work demonstrating brand leadership and design excellence
• Proficiency in Adobe Creative Cloud (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, After Effects preferred)
• Experience with digital content management systems (CMS), email platforms, and marketing automation tools
• Strong understanding of web design principles, UX/UI, and responsive digital content
• Experience in multimedia production (photo/video direction) strongly preferred

Physical Demands

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• While performing the duties of this position, the employee is regularly required to sit and use hands to finger, handle, or feel.
• The employee is frequently required to reach with hands and arms and talk or hear. The employee is occasionally required to stand and walk.
• The employee must regularly lift and/or move up to 25 pounds, frequently lift and/or move up to 50 pounds, and occasionally employee may be required to move up to 100 pounds.
• The employee may be required to crawl in high and or tight spaces.
• Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision and color vision.

Work Environment

The work environment is varied and may include working indoors (general office conditions, with moderate noise) or outdoors (exposure to weather conditions). Operating motor vehicles in various weather and lighting conditions. Also, may include exposure to stage lighting effects, and noise associated with those effects or a performance.

The above noted position description is not intended to describe, in detail, the multitude of tasks that may be assigned but rather to give the employee a general sense of the responsibilities and expectations of the position. As the nature of business demands change so, too, may the essential functions of this position.