Copy Director

DEPT®•Toronto, ON

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

This role is part of our Global Studios team. We create emotive yet conversion-focused ideas, products and campaigns at scale and speed. Our specialty is hyper-personalised, digital communications that change perceptions, shape new behaviours, and shift market share for our clients. Your primary focus will be getting the very best work possible out the door. You will nurture and develop our Toronto-based copywriters, ensuring their main focus is delivering top-quality copy working with AI-generated content across multiple platforms for one of the world’s largest telecommunications companies. You will have the full support of our UK offices and our global Copy Team (70+ members), as we work efficiently and effectively across different regions and time zones. The Copy Director is a client-facing role, and must confidently and effectively represent DEPT® in pitches, reviews, and kickoffs. You will be the primary go-to for our clients when they have content and messaging concerns. As a People Manager, you are required to understand, organise, and motivate people to achieve extraordinary things. You will guide thinking and behaviour in others to ensure the most successful outcomes are achieved. Our People Managers are masters of their craft, demonstrate good judgment and emotional intelligence, and encourage self-development. Additionally, you will bring your strategic thinking and creativity to the forefront. You will help inspire, shape, and create campaign concepts and oversee brand guidelines and usage manual development. You will also evaluate and improve team processes, ensuring efficiency at every step. This role reports to the Global Copy Director.

Requirements

At least 7+ years experience in a creative leadership role, experience with AI tools a must.
Inspirational creativity.
Good team leadership, mentorship, and persuasion skills.
A clear communicator with the gravitas to attain respect from the copy and creative teams, wider agency, and clients.
Ability to build rapport quickly and maintain relationship networks.
Deep and proven understanding of marketing, branding, communications, and business objective application.
Clear understanding of when to apply different messaging skills, ideation, brand storytelling, direct communications, emotive concepts, etc.
Strong copy portfolio with examples of brand messaging.
Original thinker who provides high-level client service; develops and implements new and innovative resolutions.
Advanced knowledge of marketing copy/brand storytelling techniques, and tools.
Knows and effectively uses fundamental concepts, practices, and procedures to complete work efficiently and effectively.

Responsibilities

Ensures that our creative work fully meets and exceeds the brief, taking AI-generated copy to a new level of quality and on-brand consistency.
Sets the conceptual creative direction for projects on which they work by means of conceiving and expressing robust messaging strategies.
Demonstrates advanced knowledge of the client’s brand-positioning guidelines and practices.
Aware of all work on brands moving through the region.
Demonstrates advanced knowledge DEPT® and/or clients’ technologies and processes.
Assertively troubleshoots and resolves complex problems.
Is an experienced contributor with project leadership responsibility.
Presents to and guides clients through creative conceptualizing, production, and delivery.
Ensues local messaging articulation.
Work effectively with others to deliver high-quality work—creative does not happen in a vacuum, and the Copy Director appreciates this fully.
Demonstrates leadership qualities—stands as a rallying point for messaging excellence.
Conducts self and communicates professionally with clients and colleagues.
Confidently represents and acts as a proxy for Global Copy Director; speaks as a member of the of the wider DEPT® leadership team
Acts as an ambassador for DEPT®, attending creative and client events as required.
Assumes responsibility for an office approach/methodology, and develops an approach in line with industry standards; evangelises the use of approach/methodology to colleagues.
Shares ideas and industry trends on particular subject matter with colleagues through informal communication, formal presentations, and training sessions.
Seeks to learn about other disciplines and work collaboratively on projects and internal initiatives.
Makes use of appropriate research materials (Internet, publications, etc.) to ensure skills and knowledge remain current.
Conceive and develop initiatives that develop standards and skill sets.
Manages the team in an exemplary manner.
Challenges substandard work and motivates the team to deliver excellence.
Partners with senior leadership in the Toronto and UK offices to effectively execute company initiatives.
Ensures that Toronto-based Copy Team members are developed and nurtured.
On an ad hoc basis, you will be asked to contribute to new business opportunity development, pitches, and investment in existing account opportunities.
You may be asked to attend events, workshops, conferences, etc., and exemplify our values externally.

Benefits

A flexible hybrid working policy to enjoy the best of both worlds.
Early Finish Fridays, kickstart your weekend early with alternating early-finish Fridays.
Full dental and healthcare cover
15 days paid holiday annually, increasing with length of service (plus Public Holidays).
Birthday Leave, a paid day-off each year.
Access to dedicated mental health resources including enhanced sick pay scheme, employee assistance programme and trained Mental Health First Aiders.
Dept Allowance, a dedicated company contribution to spend on either your professional development or personal wellbeing.
Refreshments are provided in the office all week.
Enhanced family friendly policies to support parents.
Learning and Development, continuous growth opportunities through internal training, and "inspirational talks” guest speakers.
Buddy Program, you will be paired with a ‘Buddy’ to help you navigate your first weeks’ at DEPT®.
A Certified BCorp Agency and is multi-award winning “Agency of the Year”.
Awesome clients. Whether big or small, local or global — at DEPT® you’ll get the opportunity to work with clients of all sizes and across all industries. And we celebrate all of our successes together!
Global DEPT® Cares Month, an annual initiative where our teams donate their professional skills and time to support local charities and pr-bono projects.