Creative Manager

Manulife Insurance Malaysia; Manila; Hybrid; PHP 1,200,000 - 1,600,000; Full time

Job summary

Manulife, in Manila, seeks a Creative Manager to lead UI/UX, visual design, and multimedia production across campaigns and cross‑market initiatives.

You will guide teams, ensure brand alignment, and partner with product, tech, and business units to translate strategy into actionable creative plans. You’ll mentor designers and artists, manage workflows with the PM team, and champion design systems and accessibility.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Design, Multimedia Arts, Visual Communication, HCI, or related field (or equivalent).
• 7+ years in creative roles across UI/UX, visual design, and multimedia, with leadership experience.
• Proven end‑to‑end creative direction across multiple disciplines.
• Strong UI/UX lifecycle, usability, and accessibility knowledge.
• Experience building or scaling design systems and style guides.
• Proficient in industry tools like Figma and Adobe CC.

Responsibilities

• Provide end‑to‑end creative direction for UI/UX, visual design, assets, and video content.
• Lead ideation and strategy for campaigns and cross‑market initiatives.
• Mentor designers and multimedia artists; manage performance and development.
• Collaborate with operations to balance workload and timely delivery.
• Advise clients, manage expectations, and uphold brand integrity.
• Develop and improve design systems, style guides, and frameworks.
• Stay updated on trends and drive AI/automation for efficiency.

Skills

Creative leadership

UI/UX

Graphic design

Multimedia production

Stakeholder management

Team mentoring

Design systems

Figma

Adobe Creative Cloud

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Design/Multimedia

Tools

Figma

Adobe Creative Cloud

Job description

The Creative Manager manages and guides creative teams in UI/UX, graphic design, and multimedia production. The role ensures strategic, cohesive, and high‑quality creative direction while overseeing project execution, team performance, and stakeholder engagement. The Creative Manager also supports Creative Services by improving processes and ensuring efficient workflow management. This role offers the opportunity to shape creative standards, elevate design maturity, and partner closely with business and operational leaders across the organization.

Key Accountabilities

Creative Leadership & Direction

Provides end‑to‑end creative direction for the following but not limited to UI/UX, visual design, graphic assets, and video content, among other. Ensures all deliverables align with brand guidelines, user‑centered design principles, and organizational objectives. Leads ideation, conceptualization, and creative strategy for campaigns, major projects, or cross‑market initiatives. Collaborates closely with the Head of Creative Operations on complex creative initiatives, high‑impact programs, and global campaigns to ensure strategic alignment and excellence in execution. Works closely with the team’s SMEs to review, refine, and approve creative work, ensuring quality, accuracy, and consistency across all outputs. Guides the development and enhancement of design systems, style guides, and creative frameworks.

UI/UX Management

Oversees UX research, user flows, information architecture, wireframes, prototypes, and high‑fidelity UI designs. Ensures digital experiences are intuitive, accessible, and optimized for usability. Works with Product, Tech, and Business teams to ensure smooth implementation.

Team Leadership

Leads, mentors, and manages designers, UI/UX practitioners, and multimedia artists. Provides coaching, skills development, and performance management to elevate team capability. Collaborates with the Production Lead and Coordinators to ensure workload balancing, effective project delegation, and the timely delivery of all creative tasks. Fosters a positive, collaborative, and high‑performing team culture.

Client & Stakeholder Management

Builds strong working relationships with business units, key partners, and clients. Understands business goals and translates them into clear creative strategies and execution plans. Facilitates alignment meetings, clarifies requirements, and manages expectations. Proactively advises clients when requests fall outside brand standards, offering alternative solutions that uphold brand integrity. Presents creative recommendations and rationale effectively.

Project & Operations Management

Works in close collaboration with the Project Management team on project timelines, capacity planning, and resource allocation. Supports the Project Management team in ensuring accurate effort estimates and cost‑related discussions. Collaborates with Project Coordinators, Account Managers, and internal teams to maintain smooth project flow. Partners with the Head of Creative Operations on operational alignment, scaling initiatives, and major cross‑department programs. Ensures compliance with internal processes, documentation standards, and reporting practices.

Research & Innovation

Stays updated on design, UI/UX, and multimedia trends, tools, and best practices. Advocates for continuous improvement in creative processes and workflows. Identifies and champions opportunities to enhance production efficiency through innovation, automation, and the strategic use of AI tools. Evaluates and adopts AI‑powered design, UX, and multimedia solutions to support faster turnaround times, improve output quality, and streamline repetitive tasks.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Design, Multimedia Arts, Visual Communication, Human‑Computer Interaction, or a related field (or equivalent experience).
• 7+ years of experience in creative roles across UI/UX, visual design, and/or multimedia, with at least 3 years in a leadership or people‑management role.
• Proven experience providing end‑to‑end creative direction across multiple design disciplines.
• Strong understanding of the UI/UX lifecycle, user‑centered design, usability, and accessibility principles.
• Experience developing, maintaining, or scaling design systems, style guides, or creative frameworks.
• Proficiency with industry‑standard design tools (e.g., Figma, Adobe Creative Cloud).
• Demonstrated ability to lead, mentor, and performance‑manage multi‑disciplinary creative teams.
• Strong stakeholder management and communication skills, including presenting and defending creative decisions.
• Experience working closely with project management, production, or delivery teams in a structured environment.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience working in a Creative Services, Creative Operations, or agency‑style environment.
• Exposure to workflow optimization, capacity planning, or creative production models at scale.
• Working knowledge of motion design, video, or multimedia production workflows.
• Experience using AI‑powered or automation tools to improve creative or UX workflows.
• Experience facilitating creative reviews, critiques, or alignment sessions with cross‑functional teams.
• Background supporting global, cross‑market, or enterprise‑level initiatives.

When you join our team:

We’ll empower you to learn and grow the career you want. We’ll recognize and support you in a flexible environment where well‑being and inclusion are more than just words. As part of our global team, we’ll support you in shaping the future you want to see.

About Manulife and John Hancock

Manulife Financial Corporation is a leading international financial services provider, helping people make their decisions easier and lives better. To learn more about us, visit https://www.manulife.com/en/about/our-story.html.

Manulife is an Equal Opportunity Employer. At Manulife/John Hancock, we embrace our diversity. We strive to attract, develop and retain a workforce that is as diverse as the customers we serve and to foster an inclusive work environment that embraces the strength of cultures and individuals. We are committed to fair recruitment, retention, advancement and compensation, and we administer all of our practices and programs without discrimination on the basis of race, ancestry, place of origin, colour, ethnic origin, citizenship, religion or religious beliefs, creed, sex (including pregnancy and pregnancy‑related conditions), sexual orientation, genetic characteristics, veteran status, gender identity, gender expression, age, marital status, family status, disability, or any other ground protected by applicable law. It is our priority to remove barriers to provide equal access to employment. A Human Resources representative will work with applicants who request a reasonable accommodation during the application process. All information shared during the accommodation request process will be stored and used in a manner that is consistent with applicable laws and Manulife/John Hancock policies. To request a reasonable accommodation in the application process, contact [e-mail].

Working Arrangement Hybrid

We’re Manulife. And we’re on a mission to make decisions easier and lives better. Better is what drives us. It’s what inspires us to find new ways to support customers and colleagues in living longer and healthier lives. It’s the reason we’re dedicated to investing in digital innovation and accelerating a sustainable and economically inclusive future. Joining us means you’ll be empowered to learn and grow your career. We’ll recognize and support you in a flexible environment where well‑being and inclusion are more than just words. And as part of our global team, you’ll help shape the future you want to see – and discover that better can take you anywhere you want to go. We’re proud of our accomplishments and recognitions.

Recent awards include:

• 2024 Gallup Exceptional Workplace Award Winner
• Manulife Named one of Forbes World’s Best Employers
• 2023 Best Companies to Work for in Asia
• 2023 We’ve been recognized as one of Canada’s Top 100 Employers (2024)
• Manulife included in Bloomberg’s 2023 Gender‑Equality Index

To receive our latest job opportunities directly to your inbox, create an account or sign in and navigate to the ‘Job Alerts’ section located in the top right corner of the page. From there, you can sign up to receive job alerts. Our ambition is to be the most digital, customer‑centric global company in our industry. Learn more at https://www.manulife.com/.