Head of Studio
There is a significant opportunity to drive the operational backbone of the UK’s largest performance creative department as the new Head of Studio. This is a senior leadership hire, focusing on people and operations, designed to turn a high-performing department into an exceptional one.
The Opportunity
We are looking for an experienced leader to join our senior management team. Our department is the biggest revenue driver, producing high-production video, UGC, and static design for high value DTC and e-commerce brands.
Your mission is to create the environment where our Creative Strategy team thrives and grows.
What You’ll Own
Department Leadership & Team Development (50% of your time)
- Line Management: Direct management of 3-4 Creative Leads (and wider team)
- People Strategy: Owning performance management, progression frameworks, capacity planning, and succession.
- Coaching: Mentoring leads into autonomous, confident leaders capable of handling difficult conversations and strategic thinking.
- Culture: Building a department culture rooted in ownership, curiosity, and relentless improvement.
Operational Excellence & Process (30% of your time)
- Systems & Workflows: Identifying and solving bottlenecks in briefing, reporting, and production handoffs.
- Scalability: Developing an organizational structure ready for exponential growth over the next 12-24 months.
- Accountability: Driving results through clear KPIs and a consistent rhythm of performance conversations.
Strategic & Commercial Impact (20% of your time)
- P&L Ownership: Responsibility for department EBITDA, utilization, and FTE strategy.
- SMT Contribution: Bringing strategic rigour to senior-level discussions regarding group strategy and service evolution.
- Engagement: Maintaining a high Department Engagement Score with a focus on talent density.
What You’ll Bring
- Proven Scale Leadership: Experience leading or building large teams, ideally in an agency or marketing services environment.
- Leadership Mentorship: A track record of coaching senior individual contributors into leaders.
- Commercial Acumen: Confidence in owning a P&L, budget modelling, and capacity planning.
- Operational Mindset: The ability to design and protect complex operating systems.
- Tech-Forward Approach: Comfort using AI tools and leading teams through AI-augmented workflow adoption.
Preferred Experience
- DTC brand-side leadership (Head of Creative/Marketing/Growth).
- High-growth agency leadership (performance, creative, or marketing services).
- Experience in adjacent complex industries such as gaming or management consultancy.
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