"Most CDs don't have any management training"

"Most CDs don't have any management training. As creatives work their way up through the ranks, the focus is on honing your skill. Your eye for finding and making brilliant work. Even as a design director, you're very rarely the person the team reports to. For most people, the first time they truly experience leading a team is once they're sat in that seat."

"Finding junior talent that you can spend time with. Join a mentorship program, start to hone your ability to listen. Learn how to build a professional relationship with someone. Introduce a placement programme into the business. They don't need to be design grads, local schools are always looking to give students a taste of the working world. Make sure they report to you."

Most creative directors receive no formal management training, so career progression focuses on honing creative skills and visual judgement rather than people management. There is a common assumption that strong creatives will naturally become strong managers, but management skills are learned and poor early leadership can have lasting team impacts. Leadership skills can be developed proactively through mentoring junior talent, running placement programmes, studying books, talks, and podcasts, and practicing leadership in community settings. Practical exercises build listening, expectation-setting, task clarity, and professional relationships. Early development of leadership habits provides a headstart before formally leading a design team.

Read at Itsnicethat