Creative Director Discussions
Interviews

Hello! I’m interviewing for a CD role at a tech co and I’m down to the final stage. Last interviews are with the CMO and SVP of Product. Any tips on possible topics and questions I should prepare for?

Been in advertising for 12 yrs and at my agency for 4 in LA. I've been able to add to my book at current job. My chat with a big agency regarding a CD gig will likely result in an offer. The acct I'm interviewing for is more challenging, they have done a couple of award-winning work, but no long track record of it. Book pieces aren’t guaranteed.

It's a promotion and a 40% salary jump. Isn't it time to start chasing a bit more money? My book is good, but no major awards. Am I making a mistake?

Is it good to let CD/MD/HRs of an agency you’re interviewing with know you’re talking to other agencies too?

If it’s good, how to tell them appropriately?

I had a really weird interview for Creative Director today.

It’s a small startup. HR interviewed me and asked all the hard hitting questions (how do you get design inspiration, how do you deal with design roadblocks, what sets you apart for this role?) which I thought was odd for a screening interview.

They made some affirmative noises then said the next step would be a design test (one pager) which I would present to a panel of interviewers including the CMO.
Anyone else think this is odd?

I had a really weird interview for Creative Director today.

It’s a small startup. HR interviewed me and asked all the hard hitting questions (how do you get design inspiration, how do you deal with design roadblocks, what sets you apart for this role?) which I thought was odd for a screening interview.

They made some affirmative noises then said the next step would be a design test (one pager) which I would present to a panel of interviewers including the CMO.
Anyone else think this is odd?

How do promotions work in your company? (Include your industry if you want).
Are there regular title bumps based on tenure and work quality? Can you only be promoted by applying for open roles? Is your big on creative hierarchy and reporting structure by letting people become managers and mentors to more junior people? (Jr. reporting to sr. reporting to ACD reporting to CD etc?)

My agency just opened a CD position. A position that I think I actually should be promoted to. So I’m thinking of applying.

Stayed at my old agency for almost 5 years, where I went from mid-level to ACD, got an offer as CD at another place that turned out to be a less than ideal. Interviewed at another shop, got an offer and jumped ship less than a month into the job. This new place seems good, but I feel out of place. Idk if my previous experiences have made weary/reactive and I’ve been fierce about setting boundaries, but I also wonder if I’ve outgrown the industry. Does anyone relate?

Need some advice - Currently a Manager in Big4 Valuations and want to move to Corp Dev. No prior IB experience. I have an offer for Corporate Strategy Manager position at a large Multinational and a few CD interviews lined up. Have to get back to the Strategy offer. Is it possible to move from CS to CD later?

ACD interviewing with agencies for CD/ACD role. Then some brand recruiter emailed me about an Art Director position. Huh? 🤔 Do they even look at your resume or portfolio before reaching out?

“I’m not going to get mad at you if you need to log off to put your kids to bed, then log back on later.”
-the CD in my job interview today explaining culture and work/life balance at his agency. The reason I don’t leave my current agency is because all the others seem so much worse. It’s not cuz I love it.

Can someone please enlighten me on why someone higher up, ie: group CD, CEO, etc. would want to interview with someone like me, a mid-level copywriter? Just wondering what they're looking for, especially if I've already interviewed with the CD. Are they just trying to see if my personality would match the environment and culture?

Is there such thing as too much ass kissing in a job interview? Or everyone likes for the interviewee to do their research and act like they would really like to work for the company and the creative director they are interviewing with?

HCL interview questions
YOE 7
Handle exceptions thrown by a thread?
Can JVM (through class loaders) load same class twice ?
Why only in synchronised block we can have wait and notify method ?
Which one will you choose : Soap or Rest ?
What is CI/CD ?
Row Mapper v/s ResultSetMapper
describe Oauth flow

I have a second round interview tomorrow for a mid level copywriting position. I’m meeting with the Group CD to discuss the position and review my book. Any advice? I do not have much interviewing experience so anything helps!

I have a second round interview tomorrow for a mid level copywriting position. I’m meeting with the Group CD to discuss me portfolio and the position. Any advice? I do not have much interviewing experience so anything helps!!

Just had my 3rd interview last Thursday, with my potential AD partner. Haven’t heard anything back since. Should I assume they’ve moved on or is this pretty normal? They rushed me through all the interviews and the first CD gave my book more compliments than Ive had in an interview, so part of me thought it’d be quicker. Dying to find FT now as freelancing for the last year has been rough.

Going through interview process at large agency. Met with talent recruiter last Wednesday who said next interview would be with CD and SD. Sent follow up after call to schedule and it’s been silent since. Is this the pace of larger groups? Is it tough for CDs to free up for interviews? Just curious. Thanks for insight.

Yo. Fellow ECD/CDs chill. Every ECD/CD job I interview for there’s like a hundred others interviewing for the same position. Let a brother have a chance…getting real tired of cup ramen. 😭

Any thoughts/ tips on following up with a CD after applying for a role? Company is fairly small, I haven’t heard back but thinking about reaching out to the CD via linked in? Any tips on what to say to get their attention? Really hoping to get a response 😬

Ad copywriter who’s freelancing outside of agency world, who do I ask for a reference/review from when finishing up a project? Project leader (who I had minimal interaction with) or day-to-day contact who is lower ranking but actually worked with me beyond the initial interview? At an agency I’d go straight to the CD, but this is a consultancy that doesn’t have that sort of structure.

Need advice: If you were asked to complete an assignment as part of an interview process (for a high level CD position client-side), how would you politely decline this request?

Had a final round interview with a CD earlier this week. At the end of it, they told me that the recruiter would follow up later this week, and the recruiter said the same thing after replying to my thank you note.

After radio silence today, should I chalk it up to the team needing more time after a weird work week or assume they moved forward with another candidate?

Had a great initial chat with a recruiter who then scheduled a chat with the CD’s. I’m super excited except the salary the recruiter gave was lower than what I’m aiming for. Do I go through the interview and negotiate again after or is that number set in stone?

Had a great initial chat with a recruiter who then scheduled a chat with the CD’s. I’m super excited except the salary the recruiter gave was lower than what I’m aiming for. Do I go through the interview and negotiate again after or is that number set in stone?

I was interviewing for a freelance job and asked about the creative director (small, new company). The CEO said they haven’t hired one yet and it took everything in my power to ask to be considered for that role. He wants to continue the convo tomorrow. I have 15 years of experience and have done the job of people and project manager and directed large content before. Without the title or salary! How can I prove to him that I can bring value and expertise to this role (besides from my portfolio)

After interviewing with ACD and CD a month ago (felt it went really well but who knows) I haven’t heard anything... They said there was no immediate timeline, and I was definitely reaching in terms of experience but definitely felt like I could step up to the challenge and do a great job- is it hopeless yet? ALSO, just had a recruiter for a ~dream job~ reach out to me for a position but haven’t heard anything further on that yet, is it bad? This comes after a year of totally brutal rejections.

What should you expect in a Creative Director interview? Do you still show your work or is it more about management style and speaking skills?

How long after an interview with a CD do you typically hear back? It went really great (i think) a lot of “well definitely get back to you”, responded to my thank you note, etc. What happens next? Reference checking?

During my job interview, I was very chatty and excited. But I am actually not a very jolly person. I am the one who barely speaks and works in silence.

Would you call that manipulative?
Not sure why, but I become hyper during one-on-one.

I was just wondering how my CD must be thinking of me now that I've been here for a while.

I’ve got an interview with a CD this afternoon! What are the most common (or toughest) interview questions you’ve been asked?

Anyone experience this during the interview process.. I’ve met with the ACD and CD, so far so good, got the impression that they thought I’d fit right into the role (which would be a title bump). Now I’ve been asked to have a follow up call with the ACD. Any thoughts on what they would want to discuss? Not sure what I should be prepped for.

A tech firm reached out, and I had a 30-min call with a CD. Went well and I agreed to more interviews. Turns out the next round is a “4-hour panel WebEx interview”. Their creative dept isn’t well established, so is it wrong for me to politely say “4 hours is a big investment, can we briefly chat about salary range, title, etc”? I kinda don’t want to go down this road for a lateral title and who-knows-what salary. If it was a better-known in-house shop, I’d go with the flow.

I had an interview last week for a Jr CW job. All went well it seemed. The CCO’s exact closing words were “You’re gonna have a great career. Your ideas are good”. Additionally, a CD there I contacted on LinkedIn said the CCO liked my book. But he ended by telling me they’re still getting things sorted out and to follow up this week. Don’t know if this is a bad sign I won’t get it or if I’m just being insanely impatient and unrealistic.

I had an interview a couple of weeks ago with an agency's CD. The interview didn't go well tbh. He seemed bored throughout.

Anyway, I got a call from the HR today saying that CD's feedback was good but I don't have the relevant experience.

The same HR had initially reached out to me on Linkedin. Is it that they didn't notice my inexperience or was that just an excuse?

I had an interview with a CD today who sounded bored and unimpressed throughout the call. The slot was for 45 mins but it was over in 20.

How worried should I be?