Associate Creative Director

McCann; Toronto; On-site; CAD 110,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

McCann Canada in Toronto is seeking an Associate Creative Director to lead art directors and writers, guiding projects from concept to execution across national and global brands.

You will mentor teams, collaborate with strategy, production and accounts, and present compelling concepts to clients while managing budgets and timelines.

Qualifications

• 8+ years in a fast-paced ad agency
• Strong understanding of how strategy informs brand messaging and creative
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills
• Confidence and clarity as a presenter
• Ability to negotiate while maintaining creative integrity
• Experience leading and managing teams

Responsibilities

• Develop ideas and concepts for integrated advertising campaigns
• Create and direct award-worthy work, ensuring quality of content and execution
• Serve as a creative leader others look to for direction and solutions
• Develop and present creative concepts with passion and clarity
• Play a key role in brand planning, creative development, and on-strategy initiatives
• Bring a fresh approach to day-to-day projects to inspire teams and clients
• Proactively recommend creative strategies to ensure high-quality, accurate work
• Collaborate with strategy, production, and account teams to deliver a compelling, single-minded idea
• Mentor team members and foster award-winning creative excellence
• Stay current with industry trends, emerging technologies, and design innovation
• Support creative leadership in the day-to-day operations of the team

Skills

Creative leadership

Client relationships

Presentation skills

Strategic storytelling

Team management

Job description

Agency

McCann

Job Function

Creative

Job Subfunction

Creative Direction

Job Description

The Role:

We’re hiring an ACD team to make the work better. You’re an ACD Art Director who can run a project, keep things moving, and still find the extra 10% to make the work great. You’re ideas-first but meticulous about craft. You lead art directors, writers and designers with clarity, and you’ve already got the perfect colourist in mind. You’ll be in our Toronto office working across national and global brands.

In partnership with the ACD (Art), the Associate Creative Director works closely with the creative team to produce high-quality work for the agency’s clients. Alongside account service representatives, the Associate Creative Director maintains client contact and presents the team’s creative concepts to client stakeholders. On assigned accounts, they provide leadership to art directors and copywriters in collaboration with the Creative Director. They also work closely with cross-functional teams to deliver and exceed client expectations.

Unafraid to roll up their sleeves, they are a leader who inspires others through action. Someone hellbent on delivering big, famous, and powerful ideas for our brands across multiple platforms. We’re looking for a creative who is forward-thinking and excited about growing business while crafting beautifully integrated work.

What you will do…

• Develop ideas and concepts for integrated advertising campaigns
• Create and direct award-worthy work, ensuring quality of content and execution
• Serve as a creative leader others look to for direction and solutions
• Develop and present creative concepts with passion and clarity
• Play a key role in brand planning, creative development, and on-strategy initiatives
• Bring a fresh approach to day-to-day projects to inspire teams and clients
• Proactively recommend creative strategies to ensure high-quality, accurate work
• Collaborate with strategy, production, and account teams to deliver a compelling, single-minded idea
• Contribute to best practices for creative development
• Partner with clients and stakeholders to understand needs and communicate solutions effectively
• Confidently present and sell creative ideas to clients
• Manage the financial scope of assigned brands, including reviewing scopes, hours, and staffing
• Identify staffing needs and support recruitment efforts
• Mentor team members and foster award-winning creative excellence
• Stay current with industry trends, emerging technologies, and design innovation
• Support creative leadership in the day-to-day operations of the team

You have…

• 8+ years of experience in a fast-paced ad agency
• A strong understanding of how strategy informs brand messaging and creative
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills
• Confidence and clarity as a presenter
• The ability to negotiate effectively while maintaining creative integrity
• Strong client relationships built on trust
• Previous experience leading and managing teams

The salary range for this position is $110,000 - $150,000 per year. Compensation will be determined based on qualifications, relevant experience, and internal equity.

McCann Canada uses artificial intelligence in our recruitment process to enhance job postings and streamline the screening and selection of prospective candidates. Our team will then review top applicants, ensuring that human judgement guides our hiring decision.

This posting represents an active vacancy that we are currently hiring for.

McCann Canada is committed to a diverse workforce as an Employment Equity employer (Women, People with Disabilities, Aboriginal Peoples, and Visible Minorities) and aims to maintain an inclusive and equitable workplace where employees feel valued, respected, and supported. If you require an accommodation, we would be happy to work with you to meet your needs.

Omnicom’s policy requires employees to work in the office for a minimum of three days a week, unless additional in-office days are directed by their agency or manager. Our objective is to increase this requirement over time, and many of our agencies as well as Omnicom’s corporate group already require five days of in-office attendance.

Omnicom is committed to hiring and developing exceptional talent. We agree that talent is uniquely distributed, and we’re focused on developing inclusive teams that can bring the best solutions to everything we do. We strongly believe that celebrating what makes us different makes us better together. Join us—we look forward to getting to know you. We will process your personal data in accordance with our Recruitment Privacy Notice.

Link to Recruitment Privacy Notice: https://www.omc.com/privacy-notice/