Head of Creative & Design

The role leads the Creative function as an integrated business and delivery unit, ensuring that creative ambition is converted into high-quality, technically viable and timely outputs. The role owns the team, project portfolio, resource plan, workflow, performance standards, stakeholder communication and coordination across Creative Direction, 2D, 3D and Production. It creates the conditions for strong creative work while remaining fully accountable to management for priorities, people, governance and end-to-end delivery.

The role manages the people and the system through which creative work is delivered. It gives the Creative Direction Lead appropriate specialist authority over concept and aesthetics, while retaining final accountability for business alignment, resources, project decisions, performance and delivery.

Job Description

Setting the strategy and operating direction for the Creative function

1. Translate the company's business priorities, client commitments and growth plans into an annual creative-function plan.
2. Establish the operating model, role boundaries and decision rights across creative direction, 2D, 3D, freelancers and production-facing design work.
3. Advise management on creative capability, structure, succession, recruitment and investment requirements.
4. Own functional policies, workflows and standards and review them as the team and project portfolio evolve.

Lead, organise and develop the 2D and 3D design team

1. Identify, evaluate, and engage potential 1. Provide formal line management for designers and approved creative resources, including goal setting, one-to-ones, leave, attendance, conduct and performance management.
2. Allocate work based on skill, complexity, capacity, development needs and project priority.
3. Set role-specific deliverables and review performance using evidence of quality, timeliness, collaboration and completion.
4. Develop succession and capability plans for 2D, 3D, creative-direction and project-leadership requirements.
5. Create a productive culture of accountability, constructive critique, knowledge sharing and mutual respect.

Plan and control the design project portfolio

1. Maintain a consolidated portfolio plan covering project scope, priority, owner, stage, complexity, milestones, dependencies and target completion.
2. Convert approved briefs into practical workplans across concept, 2D, 3D, prototyping and production handover stages.
3. Chair regular design-progress reviews, resolve conflicts and re-prioritise resources when business needs change.
4. Escalate material risks, slippage, scope changes or resource shortfalls with options and recommended actions.
5. Close projects formally by confirming completion, outstanding items, file integrity, lessons learned and handover status.

Integrate creative direction with commercial and technical execution

1. Translate management or client objectives into an agreed brief with scope, purpose, constraints, decision-makers and acceptance criteria.
2. Partner with the Creative Direction Lead to align concept ambition, design language and review checkpoints with delivery realities.
3. Coordinate early engagement with Production, procurement, costing and technical specialists.
4. Make or escalate trade-off decisions where aesthetic, technical, cost or timeline requirements conflict.

Govern quality, approvals and design information

1. Implement stage gates and approval criteria for concept, 2D, 3D, render, prototype and production-ready deliverables.
2. Ensure design files, versions, comments, approvals and handover documents are organised and traceable.
3. Verify that completed work meets the agreed scope and complexity before sign-off, payment or performance credit is granted.
4. Monitor recurring quality issues and commission corrective actions, process changes or capability interventions.
5. Ensure confidentiality, intellectual-property and client-data controls are applied across employees, freelancers and external parties.

Manage freelancers, vendors and external creative capacity

1. Determine when external capability is required and prepare clear scopes, deliverables, timelines, rates and acceptance criteria.
2. Select, brief and coordinate approved freelancers or vendors while maintaining one accountable internal project owner.
3. Review progress, quality, confidentiality compliance and completion evidence before recommending payment.
4. Maintain an evaluated pool of external specialists by capability, reliability, cost and availability.

Manage stakeholders, decisions and communication

1. Serve as the principal management contact for the Creative function and provide concise updates on progress, decisions, risks and resource needs.
2. Coordinate internal and client-facing reviews, ensuring the right decision-makers, materials and recommendations are available.
3. Consolidate stakeholder feedback and protect the team from unstructured or contradictory instructions.
4. Manage expectations professionally where requested scope, quality and timing cannot all be achieved simultaneously.

Control resources, budget and continuous improvement

1. Prepare and manage the function's approved manpower, freelance, software, equipment, training and project-related budgets.
2. Maintain capacity and productivity data to support recruitment, outsourcing and scheduling decisions.
3. Standardise templates, trackers, review cadences and handover practices across 2D and 3D workflows.
4. Evaluate new design technologies, digital workflows and appropriate AI-enabled tools with IT, security and relevant stakeholders.
5. Track agreed functional KPIs and lead corrective actions when performance falls below standard.

Job Requirements

• Degree in Design or relevant field
• Typically 10–15 years in creative, design, luxury product, jewellery, industrial design or a related environment, including significant formal leadership of multidisciplinary 2D/3D teams and complex project portfolios
• Demonstrated success in building teams, allocating resources, setting performance standards, managing underperformance and delivering multiple concurrent projects through defined stages.