Senior Art Director - Events and Experiential

Date Posted: 22/10/2024

Location: London • Full Time

Verve is a European agency with offices in London, Amsterdam and Dublin. Founded over 30 years ago, today we work with some of the world’s biggest brands like Diageo, Google, Coca-Cola, Linkedin and BMW across Europe and around the world. We’re a highly multi-disciplinary team so B2B events, consumer brand experiences, sponsorship activation, product sampling, exhibition design, creative tech and brand content are all in our wheelhouse. Verve is part of the Opus Group and regularly collaborate with our US based sister agencies MAS and Opus Agency.

We’re serious about making a positive impact in the world. In 2024, we proudly became B Corp certified, and we’ve been championing sustainability with our ISO 20121 certification for a solid decade. We’re a fun loving, tight knit team in London and our office on buzzy Bermondsey Street is very dog friendly – furry friends welcome.

The Role

We’re on the lookout for an inspiring and forward-thinking Senior Creative with events and experiential experience to join our team and help shape some truly unforgettable events and experiential projects. Our ideal candidate is a Senior Art Director with the ambition & experience to become Creative Director in the next 6-12 months.  If you’re someone who thrives on turning a brief into something extraordinary, loves leading the creative charge, and can guide a team of designers and creatives to flawless execution, then we’d love to hear from you.In this role, you’ll be at the heart of our pitch process, working closely with our team (in London and Dublin) to craft winning proposals and bring ideas to life. Your background in events, experiential design and creative strategy, along with your passion for staying ahead of trends, will be key to ensuring our work stays fresh and exciting. You’ll thrive in Verve if you are the kind of hands-on creatives who enjoys variety – you can find yourself working on a festival activation as well as a business conference in the same week. You’ll oversee everything from the big-picture concept to the finer details of design and production, working alongside a talented crew of designers, freelancers, and collaborators to deliver work we can all be proud of. You’ll be reporting to and working closely with Verve’s London MD and Executive Creative Director, making sure everything we do aligns with our agency’s vision. If you’re ready to bring your ideas, experience, and enthusiasm to a team that loves what they do, we’d love to chat.

Responsibilities

Leading the creative charge on event pitches & experience concepts

  • Spearhead the creative brainstorming process, turning client briefs into imaginative and powerful experiential concepts.
  • Utilise strategic insights to shape creative development, aligning with client goals and staying ahead of market trends.
  • Craft dynamic presentations and decks that showcase creative ideas, designs, and strategies with clarity and impact. Creating moodboards, providing sources of inspiration, taking a collaborative, hands-on approach to shaping the content in pitch decks.
  • Present and pitch to clients with energy and confidence, communicating the vision and strategic direction of each project effectively.

Growing our creative team in London

  • We are in the process of building out our London creative team and together with our ECD and GCD,  you’ll be instrumental in shaping what that looks like (We already have a good sized creative team in Dublin)
  • You’ll oversee the London creative team once in place, including both full-time staff and freelance talent, ensuring their output aligns with project goals and brand standards.
  • You’ll provide day-to-day leadership, mentorship, and feedback.
  • Working closely with our ECD & studio manager, you’ll help manage design staffing needs, sourcing and onboarding both full-time and freelance designers as required by project demands.

Client Engagement

  • You’ll be a highly visible creative flag bearer within the team building strong, collaborative relationships with clients, making sure their needs are always met while still pushing creative boundaries.
  • You’ll work alongside the team to proactively share trends, inspiration and innovations.

Qualifications

  • A proven track record (6-8+ years) as a Senior Art Director within an events, brand experience, or creative agency. Events/experiential experience is essential
  • A natural born communicator and people person who knows how to inspire and motivate
  • A deep passion for brands, culture, creativity & design and innovation
  • Strong portfolio showcasing impactful events and experiential campaigns
  • Adept at creating original experience concepts that seamlessly translate into engaging earned-first content
  • Knowledge of the latest trends in design, technology, and culture, with a sharp eye for detail
  • Excellent leadership and team management skills, with the ability to inspire creativity and collaboration
  • Strong communication and presentation skills, with experience leading client pitches and presenting creative ideas
  • Ability to work in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment, managing multiple projects simultaneously
  • A third level qualification in a relevant creative discipline and the usual Creative Suite hard skills

What we offer

  • Competitive salary and performance based annual increases
  • Hybrid working (WFH Monday and Friday)
  • Lots of opportunities to work with some incredible brands and also for professional development
  • A warm, friendly and fun loving work environment with inventive socials!
  • Year round CSR programmes and opportunity, DEI programmes, Volunteering projects
  • Sustainability Mandate (Verve is BCORP,  IS02012 & ISO14001 certified)
  • Private Healthcare (once employed with Verve for 1 year)
  • Royal London Employer Contributory pension
  • TOIL (Paid Time Off in Lieu for working weekends / bank holidays)
  • Loyalty month’ (4 weeks of additional holidays after 3 years of service)
  • Bike To Work Scheme
  • Access to Employee Assistance Programme

Sustainability

Verve is proudly B Corp, ISO 20121 and ISO 14001 certified, and is one of the only agencies to hold this certification. We work hard to retain this certification and are always looking for new ways to be more sustainable in our workplace and in our events.

Diversity

Verve is an equal opportunities employer. We are committed to an active Inclusion, Diversity and Equal Opportunities Policy. Celebrating our inclusive and diverse culture is integral to Verve. We know that for our business to thrive and to realize its ambition, we depend on having diverse talent with a range of backgrounds, skills and capabilities. Together, we continue to build a culture that encourages, supports and empowers our employees.

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