Resume template · Updated October 2026
Creative director resume template
Short answer
Leslie suits a creative director: a centred header and blue accent lines give a refined look without competing with your portfolio, and experience comes first. The fictional sample leads a team of 18 at an advertising agency, won new clients and led campaigns with measured results. Show campaigns, team size, pitches won, client results and awards, and link a portfolio.
Download the creative director sample
Samantha is a fictional creative director. Replace every detail with your own before you send it.
The files are made in your browser by Resumity's own exporters, from this sample. The builder opens it as your own resume: click any line to replace it. Free plan, no watermark.
Why Leslie suits a creative director resume
Leslie prints a centred name and contact line, then summary and experience under blue accent rules. Creative leaders are judged on their portfolio, so a quiet, polished resume that puts leadership and results first works better than a busy design.
Second choice: Henrietta. Henrietta is plainer and more traditional, a fit for in-house roles at large corporations.
What goes in each section, in Leslie's order
Leslie prints its sections in a fixed order, the same in the PDF and the Word file. Here is that order for this sample, and what to put in each section.
- Professional Summary. Agency or in-house, sectors, team size, years in creative leadership and one notable result or award.
- Work Experience. Bullets on campaigns led, team size, pitches won, client results, awards and process changes.
- Skills. Creative direction, brand strategy, team leadership, presentation and production.
- Education. Degree with the year.
The sample resume as text
The same content as the files above, so you can copy a line or compare it with your own.
Samantha Ortiz
Creative Director, Brand and Integrated Campaigns
Minneapolis, MN | samantha.ortiz@example.com | (612) 555-0136 | sample-samantha-ortiz.example.com/work
Creative director with 14 years in advertising, six leading teams. Lead a team of 18 across copy, design, motion and social for retail, food and banking clients.
Experience
Creative Director, North Loop Advertising, Minneapolis, MN (02/2020 to Present)
- Lead a creative team of 18 across copy, design, motion and social.
- Led eight new business pitches and won five, adding about $6 million in annual fees.
- Led a regional grocery campaign that the client reported raised store visits about 9% during the flight.
- Work won two regional advertising awards and one national craft award.
- Introduced a two-stage concept review that cut late rework on major campaigns.
Associate Creative Director, Art, Lakeside Creative, Minneapolis, MN (03/2014 to 01/2020)
- Led art direction for a regional bank and a sporting goods brand.
- Managed a team of six designers.
- Presented campaigns to client marketing teams.
Education
Bachelor of Fine Arts, Graphic Design, University of Minnesota (05/2010)
Skills
Creative direction, Concept development, Art direction, Brand campaigns, Pitch leadership, Adobe Creative Cloud, Figma, Team leadership, Client presentations
How to make the sample yours
Show results, not only ideas
Sales lift, awareness or engagement for campaigns you led, if the client shares them. Results win the role.
Describe the team
Team size and disciplines, such as copy, design, motion and production.
Count pitches
New business pitches led and won.
Include awards
Industry awards with the year and the work.
Link the portfolio
One link in the header. Keep the resume clean so the work stands out.
Keywords to keep where they are true
Terms this kind of resume is usually searched for. Use the posting's exact wording, and only for work you have done.
- creative director
- creative leadership
- brand campaigns
- advertising
- concept development
- team leadership
- new business pitches
- art direction
- copywriting
- integrated campaigns
- brand strategy
- client presentations
Mistakes to avoid
- Confidential client results.
- Awards for work you did not lead.
- A heavily designed resume that is hard to read.
- No team or result details.
How the sample PDF reads in text extractors
We exported this sample with Resumity's PDF exporter in Chrome on 2026-10-29 and read the file back with three open-source text extractors. This shows whether software that turns a PDF into text can recover it; it is not a test of any commercial applicant tracking system. How we test templates.
| Extractor | Name, email, phone | Headings | Bullets intact |
|---|---|---|---|
| pdf.js 4.10.38 | All found | 4 of 4 | 8 of 8 |
| pdftotext (Xpdf) 4.00 | All found | 4 of 4 | 8 of 8 |
| pypdf 6.13.0 | All found | 4 of 4 | 8 of 8 |
Frequently asked questions
What should a creative director resume focus on?
Campaigns led, team size, pitches won, client results and awards. Hiring leaders want to see that your work moves business and that you can lead people.
Should a creative director resume be designed?
Lightly. The portfolio shows your design skill. A clean resume that reads fast tells reviewers you can edit, which matters in a leadership role.
How do I show results if clients do not share data?
Use public results, awards and the business you won. Describe the brief and how the work answered it. Clients will often agree to share a general result once a campaign is public, so ask.
How do I move from associate to creative director?
Show teams you led, pitches you ran and campaigns where you owned the idea. Leadership is the main step up.
Is this template right for in-house creative directors?
Yes. Replace clients with brands or business units and describe how you work with marketing and product teams.
How long should the resume be?
One to two pages. Keep the most recent leadership role and results on the first page.
Will applicant tracking systems read this Leslie PDF?
The sample PDF read back with its contact details, all 4 section headings and all 8 bullets intact in three open-source text extractors (pdf.js, pdftotext and pypdf). Commercial systems such as Workday, Greenhouse or Taleo were not tested, and each employer configures its own.
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