Creative Director

We are seeking a proven & experienced Creative leader to develop and lead the creative strategy for Uncommon Schools. This role is responsible for cultivating and directing execution against a vision for how the Uncommon visual brand manifests and is engaged across network, regional, and school contexts. This role will own the creative strategy and development for all of Marketing’s workstreams, steward the production process, and manage creative resources, including external designers, agencies, and vendors.

The Creative Director role develops the most authentic and compelling manifestation of our brand, elevating the impact of design while advocating for our students and the communities we serve.

Our ideal candidate will have a strong background in visual storytelling & campaign development, a ready-to-share strong creative portfolio with proven impact on brand metrics, experience managing people and production, branding systems, a track record of leading complex, integrated design efforts, and a passion for educational equity.

Duties and Responsibilities

Serve as the resident Creative Brand Strategy Expert for Uncommon.

Lead the brand strategy for storytelling (art direction, graphic design, photography, and video). Serve as creative subject matter expert for external agencies, functional stakeholders, team members, and vendors. Develop and lead a comprehensive brand architecture and visual brand strategy, building cohesion across our events to ensure a “One Uncommon” look & feel.

Lead the development and implementation of Creative Strategy.

Proactively build overarching visual creative concepts that create a cohesive look and feel across Uncommon’s programs and regions. Leverage existing insights and agency work to develop year-long creative concepts to support promotional campaigns and organizational strategic priorities. In partnership with Marketing, proactively develop creative concepts for internal campaigns, key events, and moments.

Drive the top and end of the creative production process.

Partner with Marketing to manage the production of photo and video shoots, building and achieving alignment for creative concepts. Develop and grow relationships with cross-functional partners to support sell-in of concept proposals. Build & manage relationships with local creative vendors, small shop agencies, and studios.

Creative Team & Resource Management

Build and steward the organization’s asset management system, including brand standards and creative assets. Manage and track the creative and production budgets, identifying opportunities to drive stronger value for creative dollars spent. Maintain the team’s ongoing design project tracking and cost management.

Requirements

• 8-10+ years experience in visual brand development
• 5+ years leading a team of creatives
• 3+ years leading visual branding programs and successful creative vendor management.
• Proven experience building and executing concepts for regional or national promotional campaigns
• Experience with Adobe Creative Suite required
• Creative portfolio required