Creative Director Resume Examples [Skills & Job Description]

Your creative engine can power everything from a small-scale ad to a massive marketing campaign. In fact, you could probably find a way to sell sand to Bedouins.

But selling yourself to hiring managers is notoriously hard because you’ve only got about six seconds. That’s how much time they’ll spend looking at your resume, and that’s exactly one second more than the unskippable 5-second portion of a YouTube ad.

And yet… you’re not doomed.

Craft an irresistible creative director resume by following our guide, and you’ll get that job in no time.

This guide will show you: 

• A creative director resume example better than 9 out of 10 other resumes.
• How to write a creative director resume that will land you more interviews.
• Tips and examples of how to put skills and achievements on a creative director resume.
• How to describe your experience on a resume for a creative director to get any job you want.

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Sample Creative Director Resume Sample

Creative and art directors are not exactly the same job. If art is your director job title prefix, check out our dedicated guide here: Art Director Resume: Sample & Guide

And if you're looking for other marketing (and managerial) resume guides, check these out:

• Marketing Manager Resume Sample & Writing Guide
• Brand Ambassador Resume Sample & Writing Guide
• Production Coordinator Resume Sample & Writing Guide
• Editor Resume Sample & Writing Guide
• Video Producer Resume Sample & Writing Guide
• Cinematographer Resume Sample & Writing Guide
• Visual Merchandising Resume Sample & Writing Guide
• Graphic Design Resume Sample & Writing Guide
• Resume Examples for Every Career

Looking for a general guide on how to write a resume for marketing jobs? See:

• Marketing Resume Sample & Writing Guide
• Digital Marketing Resume Sample & Writing Guide

Here’s how to write a creative director resume that gets jobs:

1. Choose the Best Format for Your Creative Director Resume

Your creative industry resume must stand out like an ad by DDB.

Make it do that with these steps:

• Choose the recommended resume format. The best layout for creative directors is the reverse-chronological one—unless you’re new or changing careers.
• Lead off with your name and professional job title in your resume heading.
• Avoid listing your address on the resume, though.
• Separate the information on your resume by grouping it under clear sections.
• Don’t be a stranger to white space and use a legible resume font to catch their eye.
• Confused between sending your resume in PDF or Word? Use a PDF unless they tell you not to in the job ad.

Pro Tip: How many pages should a resume be for creative director jobs? If you’ve got enough Clio-worthy achievements to fill two pages, do it. Otherwise stick to one sheet.

2. Write a Creative Director Resume Objective or Resume Summary

You know you have to hook them fast.

Do that with a resume profile unlike any other.

It must show skill, experience, and real-world accomplishments.

Got 2+ years of experience? Write a professional resume summary. That’s a short paragraph with impressive creative director achievements and a few skills.

Got less? Write a professional resume objective. Focus on your skills, but here’s a tip—list accomplishments from other jobs that show transferable skills.

Pro Tip: The best time to write your creative director resume profile? Last. That way you can fill it with the best plums from your full resume copy.

3. Create the Perfect Creative Director Position Description for Your Resume

What’s better—

Saying, “I did XYZ” or saying, “I did XYZ and created massive benefit for the company?

Want to A/B test it?

Show effect by tailoring your resume. So, match your creative director professional experience section to the job posting:

• List your last job first.
• Use your current job title, dates worked, and company name.
• Flesh out each job with 3–5 bullet points. Balance them between job duties and accomplishments.
• Add numbers. Numbers show your achievements are TBWA-sized.
• Use resume power words to keep employers glued to your resume.

Pro Tip: Write more bullets for your most recent creative director positions. As you near the bottom of your resume, add less proof you were amazing back then.

4. Write a Creative Director Resume Education Section That Sells

Here’s a tip:

You can show your education on a resume for creative industry jobs. Or—

You can use it to get hired.

To do the second, pack your education section with selling points:

• Did you accomplish things in school that prove skills creative directors need? List them.
• You can add clubs, positions, projects, sports teams, or anything that shows your leadership or other transferable skills.
• Should you list your GPA? Only if it’s so high it gives nosebleeds (or so recent you can’t avoid it).

Pro Tip: Making an entry-level resume for creative jobs? That’s tough, but you’ve got this. Make your education section longer by splitting it into different sections for each accomplishment.

5. Showcase Your Creative Director Skills

Use this creative director resume skills list to build a professional resume:

Creative Director Resume Skills

Hard Skills:

• Business design
• Management
• Relationship building
• Sales
• Budgeting
• Project management
• Branding
• Graphic design
• Strategy development
• Video production

Soft Skills:

• Leadership
• Interpersonal skills
• Written and verbal communication
• Collaboration
• Writing
• Time management
• Critical thinking
• Organization
• Mentorship

But don’t dump that list of professional skills on your resume for creative director jobs. Focus on a few hard skills & soft skills the job posting asks for.

Back each one up with the hard evidence of an achievement in your resume.

Pro Tip: Writing an associate creative director resume but never held the title? Show you have transferable skills from other jobs like copywriter or graphic designer.

When making a resume in our builder, drag & drop bullet points, skills, and auto-fill the boring stuff. Spell check? Check. Start building a professional resume template here for free.

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When you’re done, Zety’s resume builder will score your resume and tell you exactly how to make it better.

6. Add Other Sections to Your Creative Director Resume

Want to prove your passion for creative director work?

Show you’ve got it even when you’re off the clock.

Pack your achievements in “other” sections that show your skills are 24/7.

Include resume sections for:

• Volunteer experience
• Activities
• Conferences
• Publications & media mentions
• Awards & Honors
• Hobbies
• Foreign languages
• Professional associations

Fill each with accomplishments that bolster your creative director chops.

Pro Tip: A couple “other” sections is plenty in a creative director resume. That is—unless you’ve got so many show-stopping accomplishments you just have to list them all.

7. Attach a Cover Letter to Your Creative Director Resume

Yes.

A cover letter still matters.

They say recruiters hate them, but they mean generic ones.

Nearly half of all hiring managers actually insist on them.

But—

• Follow the proper cover letter format rules for your situation.
• Start your cover letter with a solid hook.
• Show off your passion for heading up creative teams.
• End your cover letter with a CTA.

Pro Tip: Make a calendar event to send a follow-up on your job application in a few days. Doing that could be the spark that gets you hired.

Plus, a great cover letter that matches your resume will give you an advantage over other candidates. You can write it in our cover letter builder here. Here's what it may look like:

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See more cover letter templates and start writing.

That’s it!

That’s how to write a resume for creative director positions.

Still scratching your head about how to write a professional creative director resume? Did you write a stellar resume yourself and want to share? Give us a shout in the comments. We’d love to talk!