Creative Project Manager

Mastercard; Johannesburg; On-site; ZAR 900,000 - 1,350,000; Full time

Job summary

Mastercard in Johannesburg seeks a Creative Project Manager to lead day-to-day management of creative projects from brief to delivery, ensuring timelines, scope and quality. You will coordinate across creative, strategy and production teams, manage client communication, briefs, and reporting, and champion effective project management practices in a fast-paced agency environment.

The role requires 8+ years in creative services or project management, with the ability to lead multidisciplinary

Qualifications

• 8+ years of experience in creative services, account or project management.
• Experience leading multidisciplinary teams across creative, strategy and production.
• Strong briefing and direction from kick-off to delivery.
• Excellent client relationship management at day-to-day level.
• Bachelor's degree or equivalent required; travel as needed.

Responsibilities

• Own day-to-day management of creative projects from brief to delivery, ensuring timelines, scope, and quality standards are met.
• Track and manage project budgets, timelines, and resourcing plans, escalating issues to senior leads.
• Lead client communication on project-level matters, maintaining clarity on deliverables and timelines.
• Develop and manage creative project briefs, translating client needs into clear direction for teams.
• Coordinate across creative, strategy, and production teams to drive delivery.
• Work closely with creative leads and senior project managers to stay aligned on priorities.
• Monitor project progress, manage dependencies, and flag risks early.
• Run multiple projects in parallel in a fast-paced agency environment.
• Prepare and deliver regular project status updates and reporting for stakeholders and clients.
• Champion strong organizational practices and use of project management tools.

Skills

Project management

Client communication

Organizational skills

Multitasking

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent

Tools

Project management tools

Job description

Our Purpose

Mastercard powers economies and empowers people in 200+ countries and territories worldwide. Together with our customers, we’re helping build a sustainable economy where everyone can prosper. We support a wide range of digital payments choices, making transactions secure, simple, smart and accessible. Our technology and innovation, partnerships and networks combine to deliver a unique set of products and services that help people, businesses and governments realize their greatest potential.

Title and Summary

Creative Project Manager

Creative Project Manager, Advisors Creative Desk

Overview

The Services team is a key differentiator for Mastercard, providing the cutting-edge services that help our customers grow. Centered on data-driven technologies and innovation, this team provides consulting, marketing, loyalty and analytics to financial institutions and merchants globally. Marketing Services is the team within Services that develops and executes the marketing programs that help our clients achieve their marketing goals. The Advisors Creative Desk sits within Services and is responsible for ideating and creating engaging, forward-thinking, on-brand content solutions that connect our advertising partners, platforms, and our portfolio of brands.

Role

• Own the day-to-day management of creative projects from brief to delivery, ensuring timelines, scope, and quality standards are met.
• Track and manage project budgets, timelines, and resourcing plans, escalating issues proactively to senior leads.
• Lead client communication on project-level matters, responding to requests and maintaining clarity on deliverables and timelines.
• Develop and manage creative project briefs, translating client needs into clear direction for creative teams.
• Coordinate across creative, strategy, and production teams to drive delivery and maintain momentum.
• Work closely with creative leads and senior project managers to stay aligned on priorities.
• Monitor project progress, manage dependencies, and flag risks early to keep work on track.
• Run multiple projects in parallel, operating confidently in a fast-paced agency environment.
• Prepare and deliver regular project status updates and reporting for internal stakeholders and clients.
• Champion strong organizational practices and effective use of project management tools across the team.

All About You

• Minimum 8 years of experience in creative services, account, or project management roles, ideally at Account director level, within advertising or creative agencies.
• Proven ability to manage complex projects end-to-end, with strong organizational and multitasking skills.
• Experience working with multidisciplinary teams across creative, strategy, and production.
• Confident in briefing creative teams and maintaining clear project direction from kick-off through delivery.
• Comfortable managing client relationships at a day-to-day level with professionalism and clarity.
• Able to work independently, problem-solve on the fly, and perform well under pressure.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills in English.
• Bachelor's degree or equivalent.
• Willingness to travel as required.

Corporate Security Responsibility

All activities involving access to Mastercard assets, information, and networks comes with an inherent risk to the organization and, therefore, it is expected that every person working for, or on behalf of, Mastercard is responsible for information security and must:

• Abide by Mastercard’s security policies and practices;
• Ensure the confidentiality and integrity of the information being accessed;
• Report any suspected information security violation or breach, and
• Complete all periodic mandatory security trainings in accordance with Mastercard’s guidelines.