You, as a senior art director, might struggle to condense your extensive portfolio and experiences into a concise, compelling resume that stands out. Our guide is tailored to help you strategically highlight your most impactful work, ensuring your resume not only showcases your creativity but also aligns with industry expectations.
- Find different senior art director resume examples to serve as inspiration to your professional presentation.
- How to use the summary or objective to highlight your career achievements.
- How to create the experience section to tell your story.
- Must have certificates and what to include in the education section of your resume.
If the senior art director resume isn't the right one for you, take a look at other related guides we have:
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Creating the best senior art director resume format: four simple steps
The most appropriate senior art director resume format is defined by precision and a systematic approach. What is more, it should reflect upon how your application will be assessed by recruiters. That is why we've gathered four of the most vital elements to keep in mind when designing your resume:
- It's all about presenting how your experience or skills align with the job. Use the reverse-chronological resume format , if your expertise is relevant to the senior art director role. Otherwise, select the functional skill-based resume format or the hybrid resume format to shift the focus to your skill set.
- Resume header - make sure you've filled out all relevant (and correct) information, like your contact details and link to your portfolio.
- Resume length - unless you've over a decade of applicable expertise in the field, stick with a one-page resume format. If you'd like to present more of your professional experience, go up to two pages.
- Resume file - submit your senior art director resume in a PDF format to ensure all information stays in the same place.
Remember, resume layouts can vary by country – for example, a Canadian resume format could look different.
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PRO TIP
Mention specific courses or projects that are pertinent to the job you're applying for.
Recruiters' preferred senior art director resume sections:
- A header with relevant contact information and headline, listing your current job title
- A resume summary or objective pinpointing what is most impressive about your expertise (that aligns with the role)
- An experience section highlighting the specifics of your responsibilities and achievements
- A skills sidebar to intertwine job advert keywords with your unique talents
- An education and certifications sections to serve as further accreditation to your professional experience
What recruiters want to see on your resume:
- Proven track record of successful creative campaigns and projects.
- Extensive portfolio showcasing a wide range of design and conceptual work across various media.
- Leadership experience in managing and mentoring creative teams.
- Strong understanding of brand development and multichannel marketing strategies.
- Ability to drive creativity while ensuring alignment with business objectives and client needs.
Experts' advice on writing your senior art director resume experience
While the excitement and motivation for writing your senior art director resume was present in the first hour (or so), you now find yourself staring at the blank page.
The resume experience section is the one that allows you to make a memorable impression by matching job requirement with your past jobs and accomplishments.
To help you write this resume section, here are four mistakes you need to avoid:
- Listing every job you have had so far, including the irrelevant ones. Before that, consider each of your past roles based on relevancy to the role. It may be the case that the job you had 15 years ago may have taught you invaluable skills that are appropriate for the role;
- Including irrelevant work experience items. Those are past jobs that aren't linked with the role you're applying for (or so they seem). Consider how your past jobs will serve your professional presentation: will they be filling in a gap in your work history, or just taking up space?
- Focusing on responsibilities instead of accomplishments. Your senior art director resume shouldn't just be telling recruiters what you did in the past - as it's most often the case that candidates have had similar responsibilities. But, rather, the experience section should showcase the success you've attained in each past role, thanks to your unique skill set;
- Consider listing just your professional experience. Any role you've had in the past - e.g. volunteering, internships, etc. - can make it into your senior art director resume experience section. Make sure to include it alongside numbers and results.
Two more things you need to remember about your resume experience section.
The first are keywords. Or those specific job requirements that are crucial for the role . Ensure you've integrated them across your experience section to get sorted closer to the ideal candidate profile by the Applicant Tracker System (ATS).
The second are action verbs. Each of your experience bullets should start with a strong action verb, followed by your specific skill and your on the job achievements. Follow this formula to hint to recruiters what your unique value as a professional is.
Still with us? In the next section, we will show you how industry-leading professionals have avoided the four most common mistakes, while integrating keywords and action verbs in their experience section.
- Directed the conceptualization and execution of integrated marketing campaigns for global brands, increasing client retention by 30%.
- Led a team of 15 designers and junior art directors, overseeing the visual direction of projects and driving team performance.
- Managed the art department's annual budget of $2 million, strategically allocating resources to maximize creative output and efficiency.
- Spearheaded the rebranding initiative for a major tech company, enhancing brand visibility across digital platforms by 40%.
- Implemented design processes that reduced project turnaround time by 25%, fostering a more agile work environment.
- Collaborated closely with the marketing department to align visual communication with business strategy, significantly lifting user engagement metrics.
- Championed the use of virtual reality in campaign presentations, securing a 20% increase in client investment for cutting-edge projects.
- Orchestrated a digital transformation in the creative department, implementing new software that increased design efficiency by 35%.
- Developed and launched a multimedia campaign for a Fortune 500 company, achieving a record-breaking 2 million impressions in the first week.
- Negotiated and acquired high-value contracts with key industry players, diversifying the agency's clientele and boosting revenue by 22%.
- Mentored emerging talent within the agency, contributing to a 50% increase in staff promotions to senior creative roles over three years.
- Piloted an eco-friendly design initiative, reducing the agency’s carbon footprint and gaining recognition in industry publications.
- Orchestrated the visual design for an award-winning advertising campaign, which became a case study at major design conferences.
- Elevated brand consistency across multiple media channels for a national retail chain, boosting brand recognition by 45%.
- Initiated a cross-departmental collaboration to streamline creative workflows, shortening project delivery timelines by 30%.
- Revitalized underperforming brand portfolios by leading innovative cross-platform advertising campaigns, improving market share by 18% in competitive sectors.
- Operationalized customer feedback mechanisms to refine creative output, resulting in a 25% increase in consumer satisfaction ratings.
- Cultivated strategic partnerships with leading digital platforms to enhance campaign reach, driving a 20% growth in target demographics.
- Devised a disruptive social media strategy for a luxury brand, yielding a surge in online engagement by 320% year-over-year.
- Implemented storyboarding techniques that improved the narrative flow of multimodal advertising campaigns, enhancing viewer retention by 40%.
- Supervised the visual consistency of branding materials during mergers, ensuring seamless transitions and maintaining brand equity.
- Pioneered the integration of AI-aided design tools into the creative process, accelerating project completion rates by 50%.
- Directed the visual component of international product launches, amplifying reach and driving a 60% uptick in global sales post-launch.
- Fostered a culture of innovation in the design team, leading to the development of an award-winning mobile app interface that improved customer experience.
Quantifying impact on your resume
- Include the number of design projects managed and the size of the teams you led to demonstrate leadership and project management capabilities.
- Highlight the percentage increase in social media engagement or website traffic from campaigns you directed to showcase your digital impact.
- Detail the budget you've managed for projects or departments to illustrate financial acumen and resource management.
- Quantify the number of awards or industry recognitions received to underscore the quality and excellence of your work.
- Mention the number of successful pitches to clients or stakeholders to reflect persuasive skills and market understanding.
- List the reduction in project turnaround times due to your process improvements to showcase efficiency.
- Include the growth in sales or market share as a result of your branding or marketing campaigns to demonstrate direct business impact.
- Measure the increase in customer satisfaction or NPS scores linked to the initiatives you have implemented to show client-centered design.
Action verbs for your senior art director resume
Senior art director resume without experience: a walk-through guide
If you don't happen to have any relevant experience yet, you can substitute this with:
- Short-term gigs and stunts - like month-long internships, that you have done during your university days
- Contract work - be specific about the relevance and outcomes of each role you include
- Resume format that prioritizes your skills - the functional-skill-based format or hybrid format could work
- Research roles - feature those especially prominently if you've participated in a noteworthy project or your role was of utmost importance to the project's success.
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PRO TIP
If you're in the process of obtaining your certificate or degree, list the expected date you're supposed to graduate or be certified.
Bringing your senior art director hard skills and soft skills to the forefront of recruiters' attention
Hard skills are used to define the technological (and software) capacities you have in the industry. Technical skills are easily defined via your certification and expertise.
Soft skills have more to do with your at-work personality and how you prosper within new environments. People skills can be obtained thanks to your whole life experience and are thus a bit more difficult to define.
Why do recruiters care about both types of skills?
Hard skills have more to do with job alignment and the time your new potential employers would have to invest in training you.
Soft skills hint at how well you'd adapt to your new environment, company culture, and task organization.
Fine-tune your resume to reflect on your skills capacities and talents:
- Avoid listing basic requirements (e.g. "Excel"), instead substitute with the specifics of the technology (e.g. "Excel Macros").
- Feature your workplace values and ethics as soft skills to hint at what matters most to you in a new environment.
- Build a separate skills section for your language capabilities, only if it makes sense to the role you're applying for.
- The best way to balance senior art director hard and soft skills is by building a strengths or achievements section, where you define your outcomes via both types of skills.
There are plenty of skills that could make the cut on your resume.
That's why we've compiled for you some of the most wanted skills by recruiters, so make sure to include the technologies and soft skills that make the most sense to you (and the company you're applying for):
Top skills for your senior art director resume:
Adobe Creative Suite
Sketch
Figma
InVision
3D Modeling Software
HTML/CSS
Animation Software
Photography
Branding Tools
Project Management Software
Creative Thinking
Leadership
Communication
Collaboration
Time Management
Problem Solving
Attention to Detail
Adaptability
Critical Thinking
Conflict Resolution
PRO TIP
Showcase any ongoing or recent educational efforts to stay updated in your field.
Education section and most popular senior art director certifications for your resume
Your resume education section is crucial. It can indicate a range of skills and experiences pertinent to the position.
- Mention only post-secondary qualifications, noting the institution and duration.
- If you're still studying, highlight your anticipated graduation date.
- Omit qualifications not pertinent to the role or sector.
- If it provides a chance to emphasize your accomplishments, describe your educational background, especially in a research-intensive setting.
Recruiters value senior art director candidates who have invested their personal time into their professional growth. That's why you should include both your relevant education and certification . Not only will this help you stand out amongst candidates, but showcase your dedication to the field. On your senior art director resume, ensure you've:
- Curated degrees and certificates that are relevant to the role
- Shown the institution you've obtained them from - for credibility
- Include the start and end dates (or if your education/certification is pending) to potentially fill in your experience gaps
- If applicable, include a couple of job advert keywords (skills or technologies) as part of the certification or degree description
If you decide to list miscellaneous certificates (that are irrelevant to the role), do so closer to the bottom of your resume. In that way, they'd come across as part of your personal interests, instead of experience. The team at Enhancv has created for you a list of the most popular senior art director certificates - to help you update your resume quicker:
The top 5 certifications for your senior art director resume:
- Adobe Certified Expert (ACE) - Adobe
- Professional Certified Marketer (PCM) - American Marketing Association
- Certified Brand Manager (CBM) - Association of International Product Marketing and Management
- User Experience (UX) Certification - Nielsen Norman Group
- Project Management Professional (PMP) - Project Management Institute
PRO TIP
If you happen to have some basic certificates, don't invest too much of your senior art director resume real estate in them. Instead, list them within the skills section or as part of your relevant experience. This way you'd ensure you meet all job requirements while dedicating your certificates to only the most in-demand certification across the industry.
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The summary or objective: focusing on the top one-third of your resume
It's a well-known fact that the top one-third of your senior art director resume is the make-it-or-break-it moment of your application. The resume summary and objective could help you further build up your professional profile.
- If you have plenty of career highlights behind your back, use the resume summary . The senior art director summary immediately focuses recruiters' attention on what matters most within your experience.
- The resume objective is the perfect choice for balancing your career achievements with your vision. Use it to state precisely how you see yourself in a couple of years' time - as part of the company you're applying for.
Both the resume summary and resume objective can be your value pitch to potential employers: answering what makes your application unique and the top choice for the senior art director role. They both have to be specific and tailored - as there's no one-size-fits-all approach to writing your senior art director summary or objective. Use the senior art director examples below as a starting point:
Resume summaries for a senior art director job
- With over 15 years spearheading visual design teams at global agencies, including a successful campaign launch that increased client revenue by 20%, my extensive experience marries innovative art direction with strategic brand development. Proficient in Adobe Creative Suite, I have led projects that earned two Cannes Lions.
- Seasoned graphic designer with a decade of experience looking to transition into art direction. Adept in visual storytelling and brand identity creation, I have propelled a small startup's branding to compete alongside industry giants, doubling its market presence. My proficiency in Photoshop and Illustrator will be an asset in crafting compelling visual narratives.
- Distinguished as a former museum curator with an M.A. in Art History, my expertise in visual aesthetics is primed for a career change into art direction. Managed over 30 exhibits, significantly increasing visitor engagement. My curatorial skills blend with a keen eye for design, ready to contribute to high-impact creative projects.
- Accomplished professional photographer with 8 years of experience, with a portfolio featuring covers on major lifestyle magazines, ready to leverage my compositional finesse to embark on a new journey as an art director. My knowledge of visual trends and digital editing software stands to enrich creative team dynamics and visual strategy.
- As a recent graduate with a B.F.A in Visual Communication, I am eager to apply my academic knowledge and fresh perspective to the world of art direction. My objective is to integrate cutting-edge design techniques and my passion for visual storytelling into dynamic advertising campaigns.
- Aspiring to pivot into the realm of art direction, I bring a fresh B.A. in Marketing perspective with robust analytical skills and a creative mindset honed through internships at leading marketing firms. My objective is to deliver engaging visual solutions that resonate with audiences and align with strategic marketing goals.
What else can you add to your senior art director resume
What most candidates don't realize is that their senior art director resumes should be tailored both for the job and their own skillset and personality.
To achieve this balance between professional and personal traits, you can add various other sections across your resume.
Your potential employers may be impressed by your:
- Awards - spotlight any industry-specific achievements and recognitions that have paved your path to success;
- Languages - dedicate some space on your senior art director resume to list your multilingual capabilities, alongside your proficiency level;
- Publications - with links and descriptions to both professional and academic ones, relevant to the role;
- Your prioritization framework - include a "My Time" pie chart, that shows how you spend your at-work and free time, would serve to further backup your organization skill set.
Key takeaways
- The logic of your resume presentation should follow your career highlights and alignment with the role;
- Curate information within different sections (e.g. summary, experience, etc.) that helps highlight your strengths;
- Exclude from your resume irrelevant experience items - that way you'd ensure it stays no longer than two pages and is easy to read;
- Dedicate space within the summary, experience, and/or achievements to highlight precisely why you're the best candidate for the role via your previous success;
- Both your technical and people capabilities should also play a crucial role in building up your senior art director application. Prove your skill set in various resume sections.
