Creative Manager

Southland Industries; Virginia (MN); On-site; USD 118,000 - 144,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

401(k) match

Health insurance

Annual bonus

Life insurance

Disability insurance

FSAs

Parental leave

Paid holidays

Training & licenses

Wellness benefits

Job summary

Southland Industries is seeking a Creative Leader to drive strategic brand opportunities, lead a design team, and partner with Marketing to deliver high‑impact campaigns. You will balance hands‑on execution with people leadership, guiding Senior Designers and Designers toward excellent craft and consistent brand experiences.

You will mentor the team, shape creative strategy, manage workloads with the PM team, and ensure messaging and visuals stay on brand across channels.

Qualifications

• BA in Visual Communication, Design or related field.
• 9+ years work/design experience.
• 2+ years management experience.
• Advanced working knowledge of Microsoft suite.
• Advanced working knowledge of Adobe Creative Suite.
• Agency experience is desirable.
• Experience working with brand standards is desirable.
• Experience working across various mediums (i.e. social, print, digital, video) is desirable.
• Experience working with project management software is desirable (i.e. Workfront, Asana, Monday).

Responsibilities

• Provide creative oversight across projects and campaign initiatives by shaping creative strategy, translating business objectives into compelling solutions, and directing the development of high-quality work that aligns with brand standards, audience needs, and organizational goals.
• Lead, coach, and develop a team of Senior Designers and Designers, fostering high performance, professional growth, accountability, and engagement while building a collaborative and inclusive team culture.
• Serve as a player‑coach by personally executing high-priority creative initiatives while providing creative direction, mentorship, and constructive feedback that elevates the strategic thinking, craftsmanship, and effectiveness of team deliverables.
• Build and maintain strategic partnerships with Marketing and business leaders, developing a deep understanding of business priorities and proactively identifying creative opportunities that support organizational goals and strengthen brand reputation.
• Manage team workload, priorities, and resource allocation in coordination with Project Management team, overseeing project intake, planning, and assignment of work to ensure efficient operations, effective utilization of team resources, and successful delivery of priorities.
• Champion the integrity of marketing and brand, ensuring consistency of messaging, visual identity, and customer experience across channels and touchpoints.
• Evaluate the effectiveness of creative deliverables using campaign performance, audience insights, and stakeholder feedback, applying learnings to strengthen future work.
• Monitor industry trends, audience expectations, and emerging creative practices, applying relevant insights to strengthen the organization's brand presence and creative output.

Skills

Creative leadership

Team leadership

Brand guidelines

Adobe Creative Suite

Microsoft Office

Agency experience

Multimedia design

Project management

Education

BA in Visual Communication, Design or related field

Tools

Adobe Creative Suite

Workfront

Asana

Monday

Job description

Position Summary

The Creative Leader builds strategic partnerships in key areas across the firm to proactively identify creative marketing and brand opportunities, translating focused business knowledge into creative direction and leadership for the design team. Working closely with the Creative Director and Marketing leaders, this role balances hands‑on execution with team leadership, resource management, and creative oversight to ensure the delivery of high-impact campaigns and creative that strengthen our brand, fuels business growth, and supports associateoperations.

• Provide creative oversight across projects and campaign initiatives by shaping creative strategy, translating business objectives into compelling solutions, and directing the development of high-quality work that aligns with brand standards, audience needs, and organizational goals.
• Lead, coach, and develop a team of Senior Designers and Designers, fostering high performance, professional growth, accountability, and engagement while building a collaborative and inclusive team culture.
• Serve as a player‑coach by personally executing high-priority creative initiatives while providing creative direction, mentorship, and constructive feedback that elevates the strategic thinking, craftsmanship, and effectiveness of team deliverables.
• Build and maintain strategic partnerships with Marketing and business leaders, developing a deep understanding of business priorities and proactively identifying creative opportunities that support organizational goals and strengthen brand reputation.
• Manage team workload, priorities, and resource allocation in coordination with Project Management team, overseeing project intake, planning, and assignment of work to ensure efficient operations, effective utilization of team resources, and successful delivery of priorities.
• Champion the integrity of marketing and brand, ensuring consistency of messaging, visual identity, and customer experience across channels and touchpoints.
• Evaluate the effectiveness of creative deliverables using campaign performance, audience insights, and stakeholder feedback, applying learnings to strengthen future work.
• Monitor industry trends, audience expectations, and emerging creative practices, applying relevant insights to strengthen the organization's brand presence and creative output.

Position Details

• Provide creative oversight across projects and campaign initiatives by shaping creative strategy, translating business objectives into compelling solutions, and directing the development of high-quality work that aligns with brand standards, audience needs, and organizational goals.
• Lead, coach, and develop a team of Senior Designers and Designers, fostering high performance, professional growth, accountability, and engagement while building a collaborative and inclusive team culture.
• Serve as a player‑coach by personally executing high-priority creative initiatives while providing creative direction, mentorship, and constructive feedback that elevates the strategic thinking, craftsmanship, and effectiveness of team deliverables.
• Build and maintain strategic partnerships with Marketing and business leaders, developing a deep understanding of business priorities and proactively identifying creative opportunities that support organizational goals and strengthen brand reputation.
• Manage team workload, priorities, and resource allocation in coordination with Project Management team, overseeing project intake, planning, and assignment of work to ensure efficient operations, effective utilization of team resources, and successful delivery of priorities.
• Champion the integrity of marketing and brand, ensuring consistency of messaging, visual identity, and customer experience across channels and touchpoints.
• Evaluate the effectiveness of creative deliverables using campaign performance, audience insights, and stakeholder feedback, applying learnings to strengthen future work.
• Monitor industry trends, audience expectations, and emerging creative practices, applying relevant insights to strengthen the organization's brand presence and creative output.

Qualifications

• BA in Visual Communication, Design or related field
• 9+ years work/design experience
• 2+ years management experience
• Advanced working knowledge of Microsoft suite
• Advanced working knowledge of Adobe Creative Suite
• Agency experience is desirable
• Experience working with brand standards is desirable
• Experience working across various mediums (i.e. social, print, digital, video) is desirable
• Experience working with project management software is desirable (i.e. Workfront, Asana, Monday)

Benefits

As a 100% employee-owned company, we offer a comprehensive benefits package for you and your family:

• 401(k) plan with 50% company match (no cap) and immediate 100% vesting
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance (100% paid for employee)
• Annual bonus program based upon performance, achievement, and company profitability
• Term life, AD&D insurance, and voluntary life insurance
• Disability income protection insurance
• Pre-tax flexible spending plans (health and dependent care)
• Paid parental leave
• Paid holidays, vacation, and personal time
• Training/professional development opportunities and company-paid memberships for professional associations and licenses
• Wellness benefits

About Southland Industries

As one of the nation’s largest MEP companies, Southland Industries is built on the foundation of great people. Since 1949, we have put our people first, enabling growth, professional achievement, and innovation. If you want to join a fast-paced environment where you’re engaged, challenged, and valued,

Southland Industries and all its subsidiaries are an Equal Opportunity Employer and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any kind. We are committed to the principle of equal employment opportunity for all employees and to providing our employees with a safe work environment free of discrimination and harassment. All employment decisions at Southland Industries are based on business needs, job requirements and individual qualifications, without regard to race, color, religion or belief, gender, national origin, ancestry, age, disability, medical condition, marital status, family care or medical leave status, veteran status, or any other status protected by the laws or regulations in the locations where we operate. Southland Industries will not tolerate discrimination or harassment based on any of these characteristics.

Pay

Final pay is determined by the education, experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities of the applicant, internal equity, and alignment with market data. For Virginia this ranges from $118,119.00 - $144,368.00 plus annual incentive, benefits, and retirement program as outlined above.

Contingent Employment

All employment offers are contingent upon successful drug tests, background checks, and professional reference checks. Roles that include driving as an essential job duty will be required to have a successful Motor Vehicle Record check (MVR). We are not able to offer sponsorship of employment at this time.

External Agency Announcement

Its Southland Industries' policy not to accept candidate submissions from recruiting agencies without an active and authorized work order. Candidate ownership can only be established after a bona fide work order is issued by a member of the Southland Industries Talent Acquisition team and the candidate is appropriately submitted through our Applicant Tracking System (ATS).