Associate Creative Director or Creative Director

Job description

Job Description We’re growing our JDO New York team – and we’re looking for exceptional talent to join us. Our Brand Design studio sits on sunny Madison Avenue, home to a tight-knit, high-performing team that combines boutique energy with global impact. JDO may feel intimate day-to-day – collaborative, hands-on, creatively ambitious – but we’re also part of one of the world’s most respected independent creative networks. That means big thinking, global reach, and serious opportunity, without the constraints of shareholder-led decision making. We work with some of the world’s best-loved and most trusted brands, from billion-dollar global icons to ambitious craft start-ups. Our portfolio spans household names in spirits, beauty, and personal care, alongside emerging challengers shaping the future of their categories. It’s the kind of client mix that demands world-class thinking and gives you the chance to make work that genuinely lands in culture. We're small but mighty! Our North America business has strong foundations and real momentum. We’re not starting from scratch; we’re building from strength. And as we grow, we’re being incredibly selective about who joins us. We’re looking for the very best US talent: people who want to do outstanding work in a team where every individual truly matters. This is an ideal opportunity for someone who thrives in a close, ambitious environment – someone excited by the idea of being a big fish in a small pond. You’ll have visibility, influence, and the chance to shape what comes next. As the agency grows, so will your career. A genuine opportunity to be part of a team on the ascent: ambitious, restless, and uncompromising about the talent we bring in. You could be an emerging ACD or an established CD (hence the wide salary band) – if you’re driven, creatively sharp, and ready to build something special, we’d love to talk. WHO YOU ARE We’re looking for a branding and packaging creative powerhouse to lead our New York studio through bold thinking and crafted excellence. As confident on the tools as you are directing work across time zones and geographies, you’ll thrive in a small, ambitious team and enjoy working with innovative clients on projects across CPG, beauty, regulated industries and alcohol. You’ll play a key role in shaping our culture, defining brand futures and strengthening JDO’s creative reputation in the industry. You’re a magnetic creative leader: bold in your thinking, generous in your leadership and trusted across the board. You drive creative excellence by holding the vision and lifting others to reach it with you. You see further – beyond the brief, beyond the project – and you bring people with you through clarity, care and conviction. You’re as emotionally intelligent as you are creatively astute, and you lead by inspiring belief in what’s possible. RESPONSIBILITIES Creative thinking & crafting excellence You lead from the centre, setting the tone for creative output across key projects and accounts. You guide teams toward big ideas, brave executions and design that leaves a mark. You uphold the creative bar while creating space for others to contribute and grow. You lead by example in AI integration, guiding teams in its use for speed, scale and distinction, while protecting the soul of the work. Strategic & brand alignment You connect brand ambition to creative expression. You hold the client’s broader goals in view and steer creative thinking to meet them with impact and imagination. You bring perspective, challenge constructively and help clarify the real opportunity behind the brief. Studio process & project delivery You help shape how work moves: setting up teams for flow, reviewing with purpose, and stepping in where leadership is needed most. You work closely with Studio Management, Strategy and Client Partnership to ensure the creative process is structured to deliver clarity, energy and excellence. Team collaboration & contribution You set the tone, creating an environment where creativity, respect and energy thrive. You are visible, approachable and generous with your time. You help the team feel proud of the work and proud of how we work together. Leadership & mentoring You support and develop your team by offering clarity, coaching and belief. You empower others to take ownership, while staying present and supportive. You make space for growth and bring people with you. Commercial acumen You guide the commercial shape of creative delivery, from fee structure and resourcing to scoping and growth planning. You balance creative ambition with viability, and help your teams understand the value they’re creating. You protect space for great work by managing scope smartly and advocating for creative integrity with commercial understanding. EXPERIENCE You’re likely operating at Associate Creative Director level, with a standout portfolio of branding and packaging work, and the ambition to grow your impact, motivated by the opportunity to help grow a studio and its reputation. You’ve led projects end to end, set creative direction and earned trust from both clients and teams. We're of course very happy to receive applications from established Creative Directors too, although regrettably we cannot consider candidates who aren't able to demonstrate significant packaging experience. LOCATION AND FLEXIBILITY Full-time (40 hours per week), with 3 days per week in the office SOUNDS LIKE A FIT? LETS TALK. Please note: No recruiters please. Regretfully, we can't always respond to every applicant, but we do try. JDO USA A chance to shape and grow something new From our studio in midtown Manhattan, just steps from the Empire State Building, we partner with clients across North America. As part of this small but ambitious team, you’ll help shape the culture of the studio, building smart ways of working, setting a high creative bar and bringing our values of bravery, generosity and clarity into everything we do. We’re part of JDO’s international network of designers, strategists and client partnership experts, working with some of the world’s most loved and influential brands. Our work spans brand and creative strategy, packaging and product design, innovation and sustainability, and experiential and campaign activation. Whatever the brief, we create brand worlds that connect, inspire and stay relevant in an ever-changing landscape.