Back to jobs

Creative Director (Art)

Chicago

About Us

DDB Chicago is a communications agency dedicated to making creative work that works.

We believe in the power of creativity to create the change we want to happen in the world and develop audacious and famous ideas for our clients that help to grow their businesses and shape culture by driving behavior change at scale.

We are a global network of agencies who believe firmly in respect, kindness, openness, self-expression, and creativity, making spaces for the lived and learned experiences of all our people, and helping them to be the best they can be. We are intellectually curious about difference, embracing change for the better, and are committed to opposing injustice and constantly challenging the status quo. We are a place packed with the energy and passion to make things happen.

The Role

This position is Creative Director at Team DDB, a DDB-led integrated organization consisting of nine agencies for one of the largest accounts in our global network: the U.S. Army. The Army provides an enormous array of opportunities for young people who want to make a dent in the Universe, but misperceptions and barriers loom large—and we’re inspired by this formidable challenge. Team DDB’s ambition is to make the Army the most irresistible life choice for young Americans, and in doing so, have an outrageously good time doing the most meaningful work of our careers. 

We’re looking for a Creative Director with a background in Art Direction who can think in stories and systems, simultaneously flexing creative vision and analytical logic. You’ll lead and contribute to work across the entire marketing ecosystem—broadcast film, media partnerships, social content, experiential, digital design, and everything in between. You’re a film nerd who can elevate the craft of our brand-building creative, but also see an idea through all the stages of the customer journey, including lower-funnel digital execution—everywhere our audience lives. 

This role demands both right-brain creativity and left-brain reasoning. You’ll sell brand platform ideas and rigorous systematic solutions to Army leaders—stakeholders who aren’t marketers—so your work needs to inspire, clarify, and withstand scrutiny. You will be expected to lead by example, motivating creative teams to consistently hone their craft and deliver outstanding work. 

If you like a weighty conversation, want to do emotionally powerful work, and aren't afraid of complexity, get ready for the biggest challenge of your advertising career.

Qualifications

· LEADERSHIP: 10+ years in a fast-paced agency environment, with 5+ years as a supervisor leading multidisciplinary teams and mentoring creative talent with empathy. 

· 360 PORTFOLIO: Award-winning conceptual and design skills; able to direct and inspire work across film, digital, social, CRM, website, experiential, and integrated campaigns. 

· STORIES: Mastery in the art of narrative storytelling and film craft; ability to tailor the content approach to consumption behaviors on various media platforms and social channels. 

· SYSTEMS: Expert at implementing, adapting, and evolving brand identity systems at scale; able to think in UX structures, evaluation frameworks, and atomic design. 

· MODERN APPROACH: Deep understanding of the digital and social landscape; able to flex conceptually across all channels and keep up with rapidly changing advancements; strong command of industry-standard software and AI tools. 

· COMMUNICATION: Effectively present, sell, and defend creative work to senior leadership (and non-marketers) in the Army; clearly communicate in the form of impactful, artful decks. 

· STRATEGY: Comfortable joining forces with the strategy team to pull data and insights that instigate, inform, or sell creative solutions. 

· COLLABORATION: Highly organized and responsive facilitator of collaboration; ability to seamlessly blend working teams with various superpowers across the nine agencies that support the Army marketing contract.

What We Offer

  • 💰 Competitive Salary, $185,000 - $220,000 commensurate with experience
  • ⚕️Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision plans
  • 🏝️Generous Time Off
  • 👶Paid parental leave
  • 🎒Tuition Reimbursement
  • 🥕Family Planning Assistance
  • 📈Stock Discounts
  • 🚌Transit Discounts
  • 💡LinkedIn Learning Access
  • 🧠Employee Assistance Programs

Please let us know should you require any additional support or assistance through the recruitment process.

DDB is an equal opportunities employer and will never favor or discriminate against anyone based on their age, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disability, pregnancy or maternity, religion or belief, marriage or civil partnership, gender identity, expression, or realignment.

This role requires regular in-office presence with a minimum of three days per week, to engage and collaborate in in-person team interactions and meetings as required.

The range below represents the low and high end of the base salary someone in this role may earn as an employee of DDB Chicago. Salaries will vary based on various factors including but not limited to professional and academic experience, training, associated responsibilities, and other business and organizational needs. The range listed is just one component of our total compensation package for employees. Salary decisions are dependent on the circumstances of each hire.

Illinois Pay Range

$185,000 - $220,000 USD

Your personal information will be used according to our Recruitment Privacy Notice. View our Recruitment Privacy Notice here when you apply.

 

 

Create a Job Alert

Interested in building your career at DDB Chicago? Get future opportunities sent straight to your email.

Apply for this job

*

indicates a required field

Resume/CV*

Accepted file types: pdf, doc, docx, txt, rtf

Cover Letter

Accepted file types: pdf, doc, docx, txt, rtf

Select...
Select...

Voluntary Self-Identification

For government reporting purposes, we ask candidates to respond to the below self-identification survey. Completion of the form is entirely voluntary. Whatever your decision, it will not be considered in the hiring process or thereafter. Any information that you do provide will be recorded and maintained in a confidential file.

As set forth in DDB Chicago’s Equal Employment Opportunity policy, we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.

If you believe you belong to any of the categories of protected veterans listed below, please indicate by making the appropriate selection. As a government contractor subject to the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA), we request this information in order to measure the effectiveness of the outreach and positive recruitment efforts we undertake pursuant to VEVRAA. Classification of protected categories is as follows:

A "disabled veteran" is one of the following: a veteran of the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service who is entitled to compensation (or who but for the receipt of military retired pay would be entitled to compensation) under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; or a person who was discharged or released from active duty because of a service-connected disability.

A "recently separated veteran" means any veteran during the three-year period beginning on the date of such veteran's discharge or release from active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval, or air service.

An "active duty wartime or campaign badge veteran" means a veteran who served on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service during a war, or in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized under the laws administered by the Department of Defense.

An "Armed forces service medal veteran" means a veteran who, while serving on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service, participated in a United States military operation for which an Armed Forces service medal was awarded pursuant to Executive Order 12985.

Select...

Voluntary Self-Identification of Disability

Form CC-305
Page 1 of 1
OMB Control Number 1250-0005
Expires 04/30/2026

Why are you being asked to complete this form?

We are a federal contractor or subcontractor. The law requires us to provide equal employment opportunity to qualified people with disabilities. We have a goal of having at least 7% of our workers as people with disabilities. The law says we must measure our progress towards this goal. To do this, we must ask applicants and employees if they have a disability or have ever had one. People can become disabled, so we need to ask this question at least every five years.

Completing this form is voluntary, and we hope that you will choose to do so. Your answer is confidential. No one who makes hiring decisions will see it. Your decision to complete the form and your answer will not harm you in any way. If you want to learn more about the law or this form, visit the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) website at www.dol.gov/ofccp.

How do you know if you have a disability?

A disability is a condition that substantially limits one or more of your “major life activities.” If you have or have ever had such a condition, you are a person with a disability. Disabilities include, but are not limited to:

  • Alcohol or other substance use disorder (not currently using drugs illegally)
  • Autoimmune disorder, for example, lupus, fibromyalgia, rheumatoid arthritis, HIV/AIDS
  • Blind or low vision
  • Cancer (past or present)
  • Cardiovascular or heart disease
  • Celiac disease
  • Cerebral palsy
  • Deaf or serious difficulty hearing
  • Diabetes
  • Disfigurement, for example, disfigurement caused by burns, wounds, accidents, or congenital disorders
  • Epilepsy or other seizure disorder
  • Gastrointestinal disorders, for example, Crohn's Disease, irritable bowel syndrome
  • Intellectual or developmental disability
  • Mental health conditions, for example, depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorder, schizophrenia, PTSD
  • Missing limbs or partially missing limbs
  • Mobility impairment, benefiting from the use of a wheelchair, scooter, walker, leg brace(s) and/or other supports
  • Nervous system condition, for example, migraine headaches, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis (MS)
  • Neurodivergence, for example, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder, dyslexia, dyspraxia, other learning disabilities
  • Partial or complete paralysis (any cause)
  • Pulmonary or respiratory conditions, for example, tuberculosis, asthma, emphysema
  • Short stature (dwarfism)
  • Traumatic brain injury
Select...

PUBLIC BURDEN STATEMENT: According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 no persons are required to respond to a collection of information unless such collection displays a valid OMB control number. This survey should take about 5 minutes to complete.