WHO WE ARE LOOKING FOR

As a Digital Marketing Design Director, you are both an outstanding leader and a collaborative teammate with a passion for world class art direction, and an obsession for craft. Focused on concepts, stories, and execution alongside a Brand Narrative Director, you will drive creative excellence and collaboration across projects through to production and delivery — ensuring that the team delivers innovative creative solutions against the seasonal strategy and across all appropriate channels.

You are connected to youth culture & the creative industry — this ever-expanding knowledge, network, and interest both inspire and drive your creative thinking. Your expertise is centered on directing the following: photography, motion, styling, graphic design, experiential design, retail design, and social. You’re also not afraid of working within new areas, pushing your thinking to deliver innovative storytelling. You have experience socializing a vision for creative concepts with cross-functional partners in functions like Brand Marketing. You also have experience working at scale, manage to work in agile and nimble ways — and can handle your own time management effectively to deliver on deadlines. You enjoy crafting the details all the way to delivery.

You are an experienced creative leader who is capable of directing agencies as well as individuals — both internal creative talent and external creative partners. You have an ability to both understand and participate in strategic conversations while leading others through the creative process. In this role, you will directly manage creative talent.

WHAT YOU WILL WORK ON

• Work with the Senior Creative Director and Designers to develop visual directions aligned against seasonal to year-long narratives.
• Lead a variety of projects, working closely with Narrative Directors/Managers, Writers, Designers, Studio Managers, and Creative Producers to deliver a well-crafted and innovative creative vision. Drive excellence and collaboration across multiple projects simultaneously.
• Deliver end-to-end creative concepts across Product Launches, Brand Stories, and Media Executions working from concept through to production and delivery with premium executions at all levels, across all channels. This includes: Seasonal Stories/Products, Long Term Consumer Concepts, Construct Specifics, Purpose Stories, Sport/Cultural Moments, Social Media Content, with a keen eye to obsess contemporary photo and video content creation.
• Deliver best-in-class art direction through photography, video, and design in service of the concepts, consumers, and culture.
• Proven ability to define art direction for photography and video/film shoots, and creatively lead productions delivering against said art direction; from pre-production to on-set leadership + vision, and post-production delivery.
• Proven ability to ideate and push boundaries on social and media platforms.
• Fluid within social platforms to create digitally native content against Meta, TikTok, Snapchat, and YouTube.
• Creatively direct, manage, and coordinate work with external creative partners to deliver high-caliber work across project expectations and Nike standards. Expertly manage and maintains relationships with: photographers, film directors, agencies, retouchers, editors, design studios, designers, illustrators, animators, stylists, set designers, hair & makeup artists, movement directors, and more.
• Manage the Design team, providing inspiration, guidance, support, and direction. Encourage excellence, ambition, and team spirit. Foster opportunities for individual development, performance management, and recognition.
• Develop and maintain relationships with internal Brand Marketing partners.
• Ensure all projects are well-planned, creatively exceptional, and delivered on-time and within agreed budgets.
• Review project work for highest standards of quality, consistency, and success.

WHO YOU WILL WORK WITH

This role leads Designers, and reports to the Senior Creative Director. Day-to-day, you will partner closely with Brand Narrative Directors/Managers, Writers, Designers, Project Managers, and Creative Producers as you orchestrate creative. This role also maintains relationships with colleagues in Brand Marketing, Digital Marketing, Media, and Brand Voice!

Outside of Nike, you will collaborate with a range of individual creative partners and external agency partners.

WHAT YOU BRING

• Minimum 8+ years of agency or in-house creative team experience.
• Bachelor/Master’s Degree or equivalent experience in Design or related field, or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• A passion for the Athlete*, Sport*, and Culture.
• Ability to build creative concepts and provide the team with both short and long-term vision. Create presentations that are clear, concise, and thoughtful.
• Create compelling solutions when the way forward is not always clear
• Critical thinking and adept at connecting dots across multiple approaches, and outputs
• A driven, self-starter, positive attitude.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills. Ability to present new ideas or seasonal concepts to small and large groups, including presenting to executive leaders and external partners.
• Proven ability as a manager and mentor, with a passion for developing everyone on the team to grow, improve, succeed, and advance toward collective and individual goals.
• Strong interpersonal and collaboration skills with a highly developed ability to cultivate relationships in an open, positive, and inclusive environment.
• Ability to lead team efforts while also working independently to deliver on individual responsibilities.
• Validated experience leading photography and video/film productions; from pre-production to on-set leadership and post-production.
• Highly developed curiosity and in-depth understanding of visual culture — past & present.
• Thorough contemporary understanding of how people engage with content, from digital products to environments & experiences.
• Understanding of the Brand Creative/Marketing process, and experience working and communicating directly with Brand Marketing partners.
• A sense of humor, positivity, and an entrepreneurial spirit!
• A strong portfolio of relevant work, with sharp focus on proven visual storytelling.
• Proficiency in creative tools such as Keynote, Figma, and Adobe Creative Suite. Knowledge of Celtra and Sprout is a plus.
• Ability to travel as needed.