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Creative Director – Art (Full Time | LDN)

THE ROLE

Hey you! Come and change the world with us.


Shape History works with partners – charities, brands, NGOs, and more – to tackle some of the biggest issues facing humanity today. From Climate Change to Gender Equality to Digital Health to Human Rights and beyond.

These are some big, tough, hairy challenges. To meet them, we’re looking for an experienced and visionary Creative Director with a background as a senior Art Director to lead and set the creative vision and steer the design team to deliver exceptional work that drives measurable impact.

If you’re that rare someone who can develop and articulate a creative vision, align it with business growth objectives, and inspire teams to create award-winning work, we want to talk to you. This role is full-time, with at least two days in our London office, reporting to our Co-Managing Directors.

WHO WE ARE

We’re a full-service, social impact communications agency based in London. We work with partners all over the world – think charities, businesses, UN groups, academic brains, and big-hearted folks – to literally ‘Shape History’. 

WHAT WE WANT

  • Take full ownership of the agency’s creative vision, working closely with our Creative Director (Copy) to align it with business growth objectives and marketing strategies. Drive the ideation, development, and execution of standout creative work across new business pitches, live client projects, marketing initiatives, and agency branding exercises. Ensure every concept is not only innovative but also strategically aligned with partner needs, industry trends, and the agency’s long-term goals. Stay deeply connected to the work of each creative team member, fostering a culture of collaboration and excellence that pushes boundaries while empowering teams to consistently deliver their best.
  • Ideate, craft, and pitch compelling concepts and proposals to prospective partners, showcasing original thinking and a creative vision that drives new business opportunities. While our existing portfolio primarily includes charities, NGOs, and institutions, this role is key to expanding our reach into purpose-driven consumer brands and solidifying our reputation as a leading global agency through impactful and innovative pitch campaigns.
  • Oversee and mentor a talented creative team across design, video, digital, print, social and more. Foster a collaborative and inclusive environment that encourages innovation while providing constructive feedback and direction during brainstorming sessions and creative reviews.
  • Ensure Executional Excellence by managing the creative team’s workload, timelines, and resources effectively to meet business and project objectives. Oversee the quality of major creative projects from ideation to execution, ensuring exceptional output at every stage.
  • Partner with the New Business team to craft compelling pitches that win partners and showcase the agency’s strengths. Build relationships with existing and prospective partners, leveraging your own networks, speaking engagements, and thought leadership to enhance the agency’s presence and reputation in the market.
  • Spearhead the exploration of emerging technologies (e.g., AR/VR, AI-driven design, motion graphics) and integrate them into the agency’s creative work. Ensure the team is up-to-date with industry trends and cutting-edge tools.
  • Develop Creative Processes by working closely with the Operations Team and Associate Directors to refine and implement creative processes, training programs, and best practices across disciplines and workstreams.

YOU’RE EXCEPTIONAL AT (ROLE REQUIREMENTS)…

  • Leadership:  Proven track record of leading high-performing creative teams and delivering award-winning work
  • Creativity (well, of course): You’re a master of creative excellence: sparking ideas that win everything – capturing partners, captivating audiences, and earning all the awards. 
  • Communication: Exhibiting strong written and verbal communication skills, as well as presentation skills for outstanding pitches. 
  • Understanding creative agencies: understanding how the creative teams in agencies integrate with and complement other departments, such as strategy, project management, PR, finance and data management
  • Empathy: helping to foster inclusive and diverse creative teams. 
  • Resilience: Maintaining resilience under pressure and against deadlines
  • Technical skill: Advanced proficiency in design tools like Adobe Creative Suite and a preferred familiarity with 3D design tools, video editing software and motion graphics.

EXTRA BIT OF AWESOME 

  • What’s that, you say?  You have a bank of relationships and contacts across brands and NGOs you can introduce Shape History? 
  • You have experience working in UX and UI design?
  • Or sector-specific knowledge in the social impact/sustainability/charity/political sector?
  • Oh, you speak another language? 

Any and all of these things would be the icing on the cake. 

INCLUSIVITY

We are committed to having an inclusive culture in which everyone feels safe and supported to achieve their potential. We recognise that there is a long way to go in implementing race equity in the sector and we have a robust strategy in place for delivering this at Shape History. We actively encourage applications from underrepresented and minority groups, including those with lived experience of social issues we are working to address. 

Equally, we are committed to creating an environment that both celebrates and supports neurodiversity. We’ve put measures in place to support you throughout this recruitment but actively encourage you to ask us for any additional support.

SALARY

Salary range: Up to 70,000 + yearly discretionary personal and company bonus

PROCESS

  • Applications open on Wednesday 8th January 
  • Applications close on Sunday 9th February at 9pm GMT
  • A short task will be shared in advance of interviews, in which there will be two, with the first held in person w/c 17th February 
  • We aim to make a decision on the chosen candidate by Friday 21st February

Please note that we may review applications on a rolling basis 

Apply here

careers more about us

JOIN THE TEAM

Our team are full of campaigners who genuinely want to create an impact in society. We see the agency as a place for individual and collective evolution. We therefore put an emphasis on training for the team and ensure that everyone can be their full self when coming into the office.
Shape history

WHY JOIN OUR TEAM?

We put the individuals in the Shape History team at the heart of every decision that is made. Here are just *some* of the reasons we think you should join the team.

We run our own internal campaigns to build passion projects with no restrictions. We also have the History Shaper Fund, a public fund that offers grants to young people.

We commit time and financial resources into the two strands of the programme - History Shaper Campaigns and the History Shaper Fund.

We understand that people work best at different times in the day, and either at home or in the office so we're super flexible!

4x per year, the full team comes together to take part in workshops, activities and socials. Previous team days have included axe throwing (not at each other), graffiti spraying and team challenges around London. We also celebrate our values by hosting a Culture afternoon once per quarter.

Each team member is entitled to 24 days of holiday plus a Christmas shutdown period and bank holidays. During Summer months, you finish early on Fridays.

We think that the team has a vitamin C deficiency because the amount of fruit they devour during Monday huddles is ridiculous. Enjoy that, as well as prosecco Thursdays!

Our main priority is our team and the culture that runs throughout the agency. We put emphasis on working with team members to unfold their individual and unique potential.

We value our mental health and think it’s healthy to talk about it at work. That’s why we've partnered with Sanctus, so you can book a 50-minute coaching session each month.

We don’t shy away from talking about money at SH - we actively encourage it! We ask each team member to conduct a self reflective assessment involving writing a salary proposal for the year ahead. We also offer both company and personal bonuses!

For those who menstruate, it’s shitty enough to have to deal with the pain, not to mention the cost. That’s why we offer paid sick days to curl up in bed. We also offer sustainable, zero chemical period products whilst you’re in the office.

We have signed up to the UK government’s cycle to work scheme. We've also partnered with loveelectric - a B Corp with a focus on solely electric cars.

Available opportunities

Creative Director – Art (Full Time | LDN)