Senior Art Director

About Synergistic

At Synergistic, we believe growth is orchestrated, not accidental. We are a strategic growth partner and agency that brings strategy, creative, media, and development together to create marketing ecosystems built for compounding growth. By connecting insights, ideas, technology, and execution, we help brands eliminate friction, unlock opportunities, and drive measurable business results.

About the role

We are seeking a talented, conceptually strong, and highly skilled Senior Art Director to develop compelling creative that builds brands, engages audiences, and drives business growth.

At Synergistic, creativity is more than great design. It is a critical part of an orchestrated growth strategy, connecting audience insights, brand storytelling, media, and technology to deliver meaningful results.

This is a senior, hands-on creative role requiring both big-picture conceptual thinking and exceptional design execution. The Senior Art Director will collaborate closely with creative directors, copywriters, strategists, media teams, and developers to bring integrated campaigns and brand experiences to life across digital, social, video, traditional, and emerging channels.

We are looking for someone who can think conceptually, design exceptionally, and execute efficiently, creating work that is visually distinctive, strategically grounded, and built to perform.

Responsibilities

Concept Development

• Develop original, strategically grounded creative concepts that bring brands and campaigns to life.
• Translate client objectives, consumer insights, and creative briefs into compelling visual ideas and integrated campaigns.
• Partner with copywriters and strategists to develop cohesive creative concepts across multiple channels.
• Contribute fresh perspectives, innovative thinking, and creative solutions that elevate the quality of agency work.

Art Direction & Design Excellence

• Lead the visual direction and execution of creative projects from initial concept through final production.
• Create sophisticated, high-quality designs across digital, social, video, print, experiential, and other marketing channels.
• Establish and maintain strong visual systems, brand consistency, typography, composition, and design standards.
• Ensure creative work is visually distinctive, strategically relevant, and aligned with client objectives.

Integrated Campaign Development

• Develop creative assets and campaigns across paid media, organic social, websites, landing pages, email, video, display, out-of-home, and traditional advertising.
• Adapt big creative ideas into channel-specific executions while maintaining brand integrity.
• Collaborate with media and strategy teams to ensure creative is optimized for audience, platform, placement, and performance.
• Understand how creative influences engagement, conversion, brand perception, and business outcomes.

Brand Development & Storytelling

• Contribute to brand identity development, visual systems, campaign platforms, and brand evolution.
• Translate brand positioning and messaging into distinctive visual storytelling.
• Ensure creative executions reinforce brand differentiation and connect with target audiences.

Hands-On Creative Development

• Personally design and execute high-quality creative deliverables while providing art direction on larger initiatives.
• Take projects from concept through design, refinement, production, and final delivery.
• Balance multiple projects and deadlines while maintaining attention to detail and creative quality.
• Demonstrate versatility across a range of clients, industries, creative styles, and deliverable types.

Digital & Performance Creative

• Develop compelling creative for paid social, digital display, video, connected TV, websites, and other performance-driven channels.
• Partner with media and analytics teams to understand creative performance and identify opportunities for optimization.
• Develop creative variations, testing concepts, and platform-specific assets that support campaign effectiveness.
• Balance brand-building creativity with performance marketing objectives.

Video & Content Production

• Partner with video production, motion designers, and content teams to develop storyboards, visual treatments, and creative direction.
• Provide art direction for photography, video shoots, motion graphics, and other content production.
• Ensure visual consistency and creative quality across static, motion, and multimedia executions.

Creative Technology & Innovation

• Leverage emerging design technologies, AI-enabled creative tools, and automation to enhance ideation, production, and efficiency.
• Explore new creative formats, techniques, and technologies that improve storytelling and campaign effectiveness.
• Apply sound creative judgment and quality control when using AI-generated assets and emerging technologies.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Work closely with creative directors, copywriters, strategists, media teams, developers, and client leadership.
• Participate in brainstorming sessions, creative reviews, campaign planning, and integrated marketing discussions.
• Collaborate with project management to align creative expectations, timelines, resources, and deliverables.
• Help connect creative strategy with media execution and measurable client outcomes.

Client Engagement & Presentations

• Participate in client presentations and confidently communicate creative concepts, design decisions, and strategic rationale.
• Translate client feedback into thoughtful creative refinements without compromising the integrity of the work.
• Build credibility with clients through strong creative thinking, professionalism, and responsiveness.
• Support new business pitches, creative proposals, and client growth opportunities.

Creative Mentorship & Quality Control

• Provide constructive feedback, guidance, and mentorship to designers and junior creative team members.
• Help establish and maintain high creative standards across the agency.
• Review creative work for quality, consistency, accuracy, and alignment with project objectives.
• Foster a collaborative environment that encourages creativity, accountability, and continuous improvement.

Operational Excellence

• Work efficiently within established creative workflows, project management systems, and approval processes.
• Maintain organized design files, production assets, and documentation to support collaboration and scalability.
• Identify opportunities to improve creative processes, production efficiency, and resource utilization.
• Balance creative ambition with project scope, budgets, timelines, and client expectations.

Experience requirements

Professional Experience

• 7–10+ years of experience in art direction, graphic design, advertising, or integrated creative development.
• Agency experience strongly preferred, ideally within a full-service, integrated, digital, or performance marketing agency.
• Demonstrated ability to develop and execute creative concepts across multiple brands and industries.
• Strong portfolio showcasing exceptional design craftsmanship, conceptual thinking, and integrated campaign work.

Creative & Conceptual Expertise

• Strong conceptual thinker with the ability to develop original ideas and translate them into compelling visual executions.
• Exceptional understanding of typography, layout, composition, color, visual hierarchy, and brand identity.
• Proven ability to create both brand-building campaigns and performance-driven marketing assets.
• Ability to balance creative exploration with practical execution and business objectives.

Design & Technology Proficiency

• Expert proficiency in Adobe Creative Cloud, including Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign.
• Strong proficiency in Figma and digital design workflows.
• Familiarity with After Effects, Premiere Pro, motion design, or video production is highly desirable.
• Experience with AI-assisted creative tools such as Adobe Firefly, Midjourney, or similar platforms is a plus.
• Understanding of digital advertising specifications, responsive design, social platforms, and production requirements.

Integrated Marketing Experience

• Experience developing creative across paid social, digital media, websites, video, print, and traditional advertising.
• Understanding of how creative strategy and execution support brand awareness, engagement, and conversion.
• Familiarity with creative testing, performance insights, and iterative optimization.
• Ability to adapt creative ideas across platforms while maintaining a cohesive brand experience.

Communication & Collaboration

• Strong presentation skills with the ability to articulate creative thinking and design rationale.
• Experience collaborating with copywriters, strategists, developers, media teams, and client stakeholders.
• Ability to receive, interpret, and apply feedback effectively.
• Comfortable managing multiple priorities and delivering high-quality work in a deadline-driven environment.

Compensation

• Competitive salary commensurate with experience and qualifications.
• Performance-based incentive opportunities.
• Professional growth and advancement opportunities within a rapidly expanding agency.

Benefits & perks

• Employer-paid medical insurance for employees and dependents.
• Employer 401(k) match.
• Generous paid time off.
• Professional development and training opportunities.
• Flexible, collaborative, growth-oriented culture.

Our core values

At Synergistic, our values shape how we think, collaborate, and deliver results. They reflect our commitment to each other, our clients, and the growth we create together.

• OWN IT | Accountability: Take full responsibility for your work and outcomes. Deliver with pride, precision, and reliability.
• ALL FOR ONE | Connection: Collaborate deeply across teams, break down silos, and work as one integrated system.
• PLAY TO WIN | Strategy: Approach every opportunity with intent. Let insight guide decisions and measure what matters.
• THINK BIG, BE BOLD | Innovation: Push boundaries, challenge conventional thinking, and blend creativity with logic to find better ways forward.
• MAKE YOUR MOVE | Momentum: Turn strategy into action. Move with focus, clarity, and urgency to create meaningful progress.
• NEVER SURRENDER | Grit: Stay resilient and tenacious when challenges arise. Remain committed, overcome obstacles, and finish strong.

Disclaimer

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by people assigned to this classification. They are not to be construed as an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, and skills required of personnel so classified. All personnel may be required to perform duties outside of their normal responsibilities from time to time, as needed.

Synergistic provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, marital status, veteran status, or any other status protected by applicable federal, state, and local laws.