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Job outlook for creative managers in the United States
Creative manager job growth summary. After extensive research, interviews, and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:
The projected creative manager job growth rate is 10% from 2018-2028.
About 33,700 new jobs for creative managers are projected over the next decade.
Creative manager salaries have increased 8% for creative managers in the last 5 years.
There are over 11,759 creative managers currently employed in the United States.
There are 108,270 active creative manager job openings in the US.
The average creative manager salary is $87,130.
Are creative manager jobs in demand?
Creative manager job and salary trends over time
Creative manager jobs over time
Creative manager job growth rate over time
| Year | # of jobs | % of population |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 11,759 | 0.00% |
| 2020 | 11,439 | 0.00% |
| 2019 | 11,836 | 0.00% |
| 2018 | 11,048 | 0.00% |
| 2017 | 10,419 | 0.00% |
Average creative manager salary over time
Creative manager salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $87,130 | $41.89 | +3.9% |
| 2024 | $83,870 | $40.32 | +1.9% |
| 2023 | $82,301 | $39.57 | +1.6% |
| 2022 | $81,039 | $38.96 | +0.8% |
| 2021 | $80,395 | $38.65 | +1.9% |
Creative manager jobs by state
Most common states for creative managers
| Rank | State | Population | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | District of Columbia | 693,972 | 371 | 53% |
| 2 | Massachusetts | 6,859,819 | 1,825 | 27% |
| 3 | Washington | 7,405,743 | 1,721 | 23% |
| 4 | Oregon | 4,142,776 | 846 | 20% |
| 5 | Utah | 3,101,833 | 570 | 18% |
| 6 | California | 39,536,653 | 6,841 | 17% |
| 7 | Illinois | 12,802,023 | 2,240 | 17% |
| 8 | New Jersey | 9,005,644 | 1,407 | 16% |
| 9 | Minnesota | 5,576,606 | 909 | 16% |
| 10 | Vermont | 623,657 | 98 | 16% |
| 11 | New York | 19,849,399 | 2,987 | 15% |
| 12 | Colorado | 5,607,154 | 830 | 15% |
| 13 | Rhode Island | 1,059,639 | 156 | 15% |
| 14 | Delaware | 961,939 | 135 | 14% |
| 15 | Georgia | 10,429,379 | 1,346 | 13% |
| 16 | Virginia | 8,470,020 | 1,140 | 13% |
| 17 | Connecticut | 3,588,184 | 476 | 13% |
| 18 | New Hampshire | 1,342,795 | 180 | 13% |
| 19 | North Carolina | 10,273,419 | 1,215 | 12% |
| 20 | Maryland | 6,052,177 | 698 | 12% |
Most common cities for creative managers
| Rank | City | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl | Avg. salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Annapolis | 2 | 5% | $95,667 |
| 2 | Frankfort | 1 | 4% | $73,664 |
| 3 | Culver City | 1 | 3% | $107,801 |
| 4 | Dover | 1 | 3% | $80,445 |
| 5 | Juneau | 1 | 3% | $80,017 |
| 6 | Burbank | 1 | 1% | $108,234 |
| 7 | Lansing | 1 | 1% | $79,986 |
| 8 | Lewisville | 1 | 1% | $82,403 |
| 9 | Atlanta | 2 | 0% | $76,680 |
| 10 | Phoenix | 2 | 0% | $86,659 |
| 11 | Washington | 2 | 0% | $89,197 |
| 12 | Baton Rouge | 1 | 0% | $73,732 |
| 13 | Boston | 1 | 0% | $85,997 |
| 14 | Dallas | 1 | 0% | $82,640 |
| 15 | Des Moines | 1 | 0% | $69,090 |
| 16 | Glendale | 1 | 0% | $108,059 |
| 17 | Indianapolis | 1 | 0% | $90,085 |
Creative Manager job outlook: Expert opinions
Our panel of creative manager experts
University of Hawaii at Manoa
Indiana University Bloomington
Bethel University
Moravian College
Troy University
Siena College
University of Northern Iowa
SUNY Empire State College
SUNY Empire State College
University of Scranton
University of Houston - Downtown
Marywood University
Towson University
University of West Georgia
Berea College
Prairie View A&M University
Villanova University
Texas Tech University
Los Angeles County Museum of Art
The One Club
What general advice would you give to a Creative Manager?
Frances Zhu: Get competing offers and negotiate a higher salary. Foster skills that lend to higher salaries. For example, even though marine biology may not pay the highest, if you have some coding experience, you will be one of the higher paid marine biologists in the field.
What Creative Manager skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Frances Zhu: Do not feel locked into a career trajectory. Find some great mentors. So much information is conveyed through word of mouth. Put yourself in the way of luck (as assert yourself in situations of opportunities). Advocate for yourself as if your friend were advocating on your behalf.
What will help Creative Managers increase their earning potential?
Frances Zhu: With the rise of AI, we're seeing a lot of skills become irrelevant. Just 5 years ago, a software engineering job seemed ludicrous. Now those are the fastest jobs being replaced by AI. A skill that will never be irrelevant is creativity, which is a skill you can cultivate. Create content and think in new ways that no one (even AI) has ever thought of.
What general advice would you give to a Creative Manager?
George Logothetis Jr: Create work that is undeniably great. Work that turns heads, shows daring and provocative thinking, and is attention-getting and impossible to ignore.
What Creative Manager skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
George Logothetis Jr: Being able to flex between the various media channels and show competence and imagination in them all. Young creatives have to be versatile and fluent on all communication platforms. It’s also important to maximize your craft and continually hone it. Whether you are art or copy, having a heightened sense of design and writing will not only make the job easier, but you will be more productive. The better your skills are the more work you can create. If you bring lots of work to every meeting, you will always be appreciated.
What will help Creative Managers increase their earning potential?
George Logothetis Jr: Be focused on the strategic approaches that inform the creative process. Don’t think that being a creative person in advertising is solely about being creative. Show insight and appreciation for business initiatives and how strategies define them.
What general advice would you give to a Creative Manager?
Becki Graves M.A.: I often refer to the 'swiss army knife' in my field. These students can sing, write songs, set up a stage, chart a song, lead a team, lead a room in worship, run worship software, and lead their peers. Don't just keep to one lane, try to learn the most about all of them.
What Creative Manager skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Becki Graves M.A.: It is already vital in the field of creative arts and creative ministry but being a researcher. Research the current products on the market, trends in attendance, etc. This is a vital tool in being able to build the programs or ministry teams you envision.
What will help Creative Managers increase their earning potential?
Becki Graves M.A.: Try anything and everything—no work or job is beneath you. All your experiences will culminate into who you are as a person and employee and leader. Be ready to work several jobs. Most creative types end up being bi-vocational at some point in their career. Try to see this a gift—creative inspiration flows from having multiple lids open at once.
Dr. MaryJo Rosania-Harvie
Assistant Professor of Practice | Art Education Coordinator | Interim Art Department ChairMoravian College
Fine And Studio Arts
What will help Creative Managers increase their earning potential?
Dr. MaryJo Rosania-Harvie: For someone beginning their career, I would advise them to consider the problem-solving and critical thinking skills they developed in school, and highlight those skills when meeting with potential employers and clients. They can consider themselves entrepreneurs, and should try to be flexible and open-minded.
What general advice would you give to a Creative Manager?
Christopher Stagl MFA: This industry is all about connections with people. You have to network and market yourself. This will lead to opportunities for you creatively - which may start small but you build upon success, grow your clients, and progressively begin to charge more and more as you grow in to your field. Never stop learning, never stop making (even if it's mistakes), and never stop networking.
What will help Creative Managers increase their earning potential?
Christopher Stagl MFA: a. Remain curious about creative problem solving with diverse and unique approaches. b. Seek feedback. Just because your classroom projects are over doesn't mean you still shouldn't be reaching out your peers and mentors to get feedback. c. Do your research, always. Never just assume you know the market or the demographic - do your due diligence and ask all the right questions to learn about your client. d. Tell a good story. The creative industry is really about people - figure out who the people are you're speaking for and speaking to and find the story that lives in those thrulines. e. Be Hungry and Hustle. Nobody is going to do this for you - creative work isn't going to come to you - you have to go get it.
What Creative Manager skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Christopher Stagl MFA: Definitely video, motion, animation, and effects will continue to grow as some of the most needed skills - but if you can't think creatively, if you can't be unique and different in your problem solving and design thinking approach - then it doesn't matter how much technology you know or how good you are at Ai - you won't have a place in the industry. This industry is based on ideas - not technology. Skills can be learned, the most successful creatives think different.
Allison Lauenstein
Teaching Instructor of MarketingSiena College
Marketing Department
What skills stand out on Creative Manager resumes?
Allison Lauenstein: Skills that stand out show that the candidate has had some experience leading projects and project teams. Marketing is a collaborative effort, and it is critically important for upcoming managers to understand how to manage and motivate a team to achieve its objectives.
Elizabeth Sutton
Department Head, Professor of Art HistoryUniversity of Northern Iowa
Department of Art
What soft skills should all Creative Managers possess?
Elizabeth Sutton: There are many--the ability to collaborate and communicate effectively is absolutely necessary. The ability to ask for feedback and be able to take that feedback and incorporate it into a process is very important. Of course, meeting deadlines is also very important.
Cindy Bates
Associate Professor, MentorSUNY Empire State College
School for Undergraduate Studies
What skills will help Creative Managers earn the most?
Cindy Bates: Arts Managers who have a higher earning potential can demonstrate a proven track record of prior success in moving arts organizations forward in both mission and finances. The ability to set goals for an organization and then achieve those goals is paramount, whether it be a goal of increasing programming to achieve a specific part of the organization's mission or a goal of increasing revenue x% without sacrificing the mission or people of the organization. Arts organizations are situated within communities and need to be part of those communities. Arts Managers who earn the most also know about and understand their communities so they can best serve the people around them.
Tom Mackey Ph.D.
ProfessorSUNY Empire State College
Department of Arts and Media, School of Arts and Humanities, School for Undergraduate Studies
What soft skills should all Creative Managers possess?
Tom Mackey Ph.D.: Today's ever-changing work environment requires graduates to be flexible and open to new learning situations in collaborative settings. Art Managers must be team players who work well with others in person and remotely. This requires effective communication and the ability to listen carefully to members of a creative team. Considering the dynamic nature of digital media, graduates must be able to convey their ideas visually with digital presentation tools and to share those ideas with a wider audience using reliable social technologies. Everyone likes a good story, and today's graduates should be able to write, plan, and produce an engaging digital narrative based on accurate and reliable information.
For instance, in my Digital Storytelling course at SUNY Empire State College, students learn to produce individual and collaborative narratives about their life and in support of a social cause (https://digital-stories.org/). They gain confidence in evaluating and applying digital resources to tell a good story based on their experience and research into a contemporary social issue. As digital storytellers, they write scripts, develop visual storyboards, and create digital media content on their own and in partnership with their classmates. These abilities are transferrable to today's workplace because they become well-versed in writing, planning, and producing content that is reliable and meaningful to external audiences.
Based on my research into metaliteracy, which is an approach to reflective and social learning, individuals need to take charge of their lifelong learning strategies (https://metaliteracy.org/). This means that today's graduates need to be aware of how they learn and strive toward new areas of continued development. They need to be informed producers of digital content by carefully evaluating all forms of information while creating and sharing it responsibly in a connected world. According to the metaliteracy model, we all play a wide range of active roles such as producer, communicator, researcher, and even teacher. Individuals must be mindful of these roles and aspire to new ones based on any given social situation, either online, in the workplace, or local community. By striving toward a metaliteracy mindset, individuals gain new insights about themselves and how they learn while better understanding their colleagues as collaborative producers of meaningful digital content.
What hard/technical skills are most important for Creative Managers?
Tom Mackey Ph.D.: The most important technical abilities today involve working with social and digital technologies while adapting to new platforms and apps. Starting a new job with prior experience applying digital tools is incredibly valuable, but so is the ability to learn new technologies and to be open to new learning situations. Graduates should have a good understanding of how to write effectively based on their research and evaluation of credible information. They also need to analyze, interpret, and combine these materials in meaningful ways as producers of original content.
Art Managers understand how to interpret, curate, and create visual art. They need to apply this visual knowledge to the production of original digital materials as well. Doing so requires the application of digital tools for creating and sharing digital images and dynamic new media content. They need to identify freely available resources for producing digital media while making informed decisions about commercial platforms they may need to learn for specific projects as well. This is an ongoing process of evaluating digital resources and identifying the best tools for achieving clearly defined outcomes. Today's graduates will need to constantly adapt to new technologies and share their knowledge with creative colleagues and external audiences. They also need to differentiate truthful visual information from misleading or untruthful content that may have been digitally altered. As active participants online, graduates must be aware of their individual responsibilities in these settings and protect data privacy.
Abhijit Roy
Professor of MarketingUniversity of Scranton
School of Management
What soft skills should all Creative Managers possess?
Abhijit Roy: These are very important, yet harder to quantify skills, not only for marketing professionals but for business graduates in general. They include the ability to make sound decisions under pressure, having a high emotional intelligence quotient (EQ) as embodied by having empathy towards coworkers and subordinates, delegating appropriately, mentoring, communicating, time management, maintaining positivity despite setbacks and adapting to unforeseen challenges, being flexible, being persuasive and assertive at appropriate moments, yet being collaborative, seeking feedback, and the ability to negotiate and resolve conflicts when needed, amongst others.
Soft skills are typically more instrumental in enabling candidates to fit into an organization's culture and be strong candidates for promotion. Most marketing jobs involve candidates representing their brand initiatives and building strong client relationships, so interpersonal, and other soft skills are often valued more than hard skills. The strongest case for having excellent soft skills is that they are more easily transferable across various jobs and industries.
Dr. Richard Conde Ph.D.
Assistant ProfessorUniversity of Houston - Downtown
Marilyn Davies College of Business
What soft skills should all Creative Managers possess?
Dr. Richard Conde Ph.D.: The need for soft skills are consistent through time. With our societal focus on social media, texting, emojis, etc. It appears to me companies are looking for the following:
- Active listening skills
- Willingness to be self-reflective and accept feedback
- Accept different perspectives. The collision of ideas creates knowledge
- Communicate to the listener (at their level). Flex communicators
- Cultural intelligence. Demographics changes will require better understanding of team member's, boss', customer's, etc. cultural context
Sue Jenkins
Associate ProfessorMarywood University
Art Department
What skills will help Creative Managers earn the most?
Sue Jenkins: This question presumes that one goal for artists is to earn the most money, regardless of whether we're living in the middle of a pandemic. While wanting to earn is certainly true for some artists, it will likely not be as true for others. People go into the Arts for many reasons. For Art Therapy majors, the goal is to earn a master's degree, so they may begin helping others to reduce stress, resolve conflict, improve cognitive and sensory function, self-esteem, self-awareness, and emotional resilience. For Arts Administration and Art History majors, the goal is to work in the arts and academia. For applied arts like graphic design, illustration, and photography, the goal is often to create meaningful and visually compelling work, to engage, inspire, connect, and delight. Similarly, for the studio arts like painting, ceramics, jewelry, fiber arts, printmaking, and sculpture, the goal is often to connect with others through the visual realm. In short, rather than focusing on money, a more grounded approach to one's career would be to develop greater integrity, honesty, responsibility, acceptance, curiosity, and kindness. That will create a far richer life throughout the pandemic and beyond.
What soft skills should all Creative Managers possess?
Sue Jenkins: At Marywood University, we seek to develop transferable soft skills in our Art students through various classroom experiences. We do this by focusing on key aptitudes like strong verbal and written communication skills, teamwork and collegiality, problem-solving and creative thinking, design thinking, flexibility, and adaptability, giving and receiving feedback, and basics like time management, punctuality, and personal responsibility. In light of the global Covid pandemic, now more than ever, employers are seeking candidates with strong empathy skills, folks who strive to build Accessibility accommodations in all that they do, and people who are sensitive to and supportive of issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion.
What skills stand out on Creative Manager resumes?
Sue Jenkins: Arts Management covers a wide breadth of creative careers in visual and applied art, music, and the performing arts. In all these areas, the most important skills will demonstrate competence and evidence of leadership, time management, responsibility, and effective communication. Extracurricular experiences in college can readily provide those tangible skills that employers are seeking from future employees and like to see on resumes, such as club membership and service, volunteering, mentorship, and leadership roles like club President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, and Social Media Manager. In addition, employers are also looking at resumes for evidence of key accomplishments such as publications, solo and group exhibitions, honors, awards, and other types of noteworthy achievements. The more evidence of responsibility, ownership, and creativity a candidate can demonstrate, the better.
What hard/technical skills are most important for Creative Managers?
Sue Jenkins: The types of hard skills employers find most important in our Covid world are mostly unchanged by the pandemic. Tangible hard/technical skills take time, patience, and persistence. These are skills that are developed over time through practice. Competent artists will have a variety of skills, including a strong grasp of the Principles & Elements of Art; be able to render drawings from life, images, memory, and imagination; have good composition skills and understand the rules of perspective; will grasp and demonstrate understanding color theory; can use the tools of their discipline with skill, and are knowledgeable about how to use a variety of artistic materials and tools with fine craftsmanship.
Erin Steffes Ph.D.
Department Chair and ProfessorTowson University
Marketing Department
What hard/technical skills are most important for Creative Managers?
Erin Steffes Ph.D.: As a science and an art, marketing utilizes both soft skills and technical skills on a daily basis. While some technologies are industry-specific, having an understanding and basic mastery of data analysis, statistics, data visualization, digital marketing, marketing research, and customer relationship management will position a candidate well.
Dr. Sooho Lee
Director, Master of Public Administration (MPA) Program, Professor of Public Administration and PolicyUniversity of West Georgia
Department of Civic Engagement & Public Service
What soft skills should all Creative Managers possess?
Dr. Sooho Lee: Communication, networking, and interpersonal skills.
J. Ian Norris Ph.D.
Professor of Marketing and Fellow, American Council on EducationBerea College
Economics and Business Department
What certifications/licenses/courses can have the biggest impact for Creative Managers?
J. Ian Norris Ph.D.: Digital marketing skills are essential for any area of marketing. Luckily there are many online certifications available for this purpose. On the research side, Google Analytics offers a certification. It will also be valuable to know the analytics platforms on social media sites such as facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. Conversely, all of these sites also offer training on digital advertising and promotion, such as Google AdWords. Any coursework in digital marketing that provides instruction in Search Engine Marketing (SEM) will also be highly valuable. Finally, digital video and editing skills are also quite valuable, as all kinds of companies and organizations are using the short video format for storytelling and brand advertising.
Dr Rick Baldwin
Associate Professor of PracticePrairie View A&M University
Management and Marketing Department
What general advice would you give to a Creative Manager?
Dr Rick Baldwin: To begin their career, I suggest that the graduate pursue their career as an entrepreneur. Based on the career interest, actually develop a business plan to launch this career as a business. I would use this as a platform in beginning the career as entrepreneur, consultant, or as an employee of a marketing organization.
Edward Sobel
Associate Professor, Resident DirectorVillanova University
Department of Theatre
What general advice would you give to a Creative Manager?
Edward Sobel: It's important to know that theater is a relationship-based career. Look to build relationships with those with whom you share a common aesthetic and a sense of purpose. Building relationships takes time and care, and only sometimes pays immediate dividends. Remember this is a marathon, not a sprint. Be persistent. You may not ever be able to make a living in the theater. But if you quit, you definitely won't.
I'll add, many but not all who obtain a degree in theater wish to work in the profession. A theater degree, particularly within a liberal arts context, offers highly marketable and desirable skills. The theater is a collaborative art form, making those with a theater degree experience working as part of a team. The theater is storytelling. Those with a theater degree have learned how to construct a compelling narrative and to communicate it clearly. They have practiced analytical and presentational skills. They have embodied empathy. All of this position a graduate well in many other occupations, including law, teaching, advertising/marketing, social work, etc.
What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for Creative Managers in the next 3-5 years?
Mark Charney Ph.D.: The arts will be rightfully concerned with preservation, so while the zoom platform will continue to be necessary, we will continue to find ways to express art in various media. We will still treasure the stage, but we can bring what we have learned from sharing performances over the computer to the stage, using technology to advance narratives and create opportunities.
How do you envision technology impacting Creative Managers in the next 5 years?
Cynthia Tovar: There very well may be an enduring impact from the coronavirus pandemic on museum collection operations, such as reconsidering the need for couriers and how installation crews work together, but how long this will last remains to be seen. So far, the most immediate impact would be having a new hire join on in a remote work scenario and conducting training and integration to museum culture in a virtual manner.
What general advice would you give to a Creative Manager?
Yash Egami: A recent Forrester report says that the ad industry will lose 50,000 jobs through 2021, with 35,000 of them already lost since the pandemic. The traditional ad agency model was already in trouble, with many brands hiring away talent and creating their own in-house agencies. Add to that the recent reckoning with the Black Lives Matter movement, and what we're seeing is an industry that is being forced to go through monumental change in order to survive.
While traditional roles like art director or copywriter are on the decline, the good news is that, in an effort to reinvent themselves, agencies are seeking creatives with digital skills like UX design and programming. The rise of in-house creative departments has also meant more opportunities for job seekers within brands rather than agencies. And because of the demand for more diversity from clients and those within advertising, recruiters are making more of an effort to hire multicultural talent.
At The One Club for Creativity, we've been at the forefront of change in the industry through our diversity and inclusion, professional development and gender equality programs. We recently hosted our annual multicultural career fair, "Where Are All the Black People?" that brought together thousands of diverse talent with 40 agencies and companies looking to hire. We launched One School, a free online program for Black creatives who want to get into the industry but don't have a portfolio or the economic means to afford to go to ad school. And we're working on upskilling courses for professionals who want to reinvent themselves or keep up with the changing demands of our industry.
So if you're a recent graduate who specializes in art direction, our advice would be to keep an open mind about what kind of company you want to work for and think about expanding your skillset to include digital skills so that you can future-proof your career. Where you are isn't as important because, since the pandemic, agencies have become more comfortable with working remotely and they are more open to having a workforce not centered on the traditional agency hubs, like New York or Los Angeles.