Associate Creative Director

*This role can be based in either Melbourne or Sydney*

Bastion is a fully integrated creative, advertising and marketing agency founded in 2009, built with the goal of bringing together world-class independent marketing communication agencies and experts, with complimentary skillsets, to deliver work that truly makes a difference.

This role sits within the Bastion Experience team - a collective of curious storytellers, brand advocates, weird thinkers, and those with the ability to look beyond the physical brief. Our highly collaborative, results-focused approach has seen us build strong, productive, and enduring client partnerships across Australia, New Zealand and beyond.

Our culture is built on integration, collaboration, diversity, curiosity, creativity, and fun. We ask our team to be all in, to relentlessly think, pursue and discover imaginative ways to advance our client’s business, challenge norms, reject mediocrity and dare to be different (because the same is, well, just the same). We are never afraid to go against the grain in order to do work that moves people.

Role Overview

Our creative team are responsible for curating highly integrated, engaging, original and innovative brand experiences. As Associate Creative Director you will be a trusted confidante, passionate problem solver, and inquisitive cultural enthusiast who possesses strategic thinking abilities, enhancing and directing ideation and strategy.

We believe, we’ve created an environment and structure which allows our team to deliver world class work and innovative strategic thinking. As part of this role, we want our Associate Creative Director to be well versed in the ever-changing experiential and brand partnership landscape. You will have a high level of autonomy in this role, empowering you to truly grow, shape and own this part of our service offering with our Creative Director.

What You’ll Do

If you’d been working at Bastion Experience the last 6 weeks, you would have:

• Been a key leader in creative concepting for brand experiences at the Australian Open 2025
• Conceptualised and created the Q2 suite of AU activations for global luxury beauty brand.
• Worked with the Creative Director in starting first phase of AU Grand Prix 2025 planning and experience ideation.
• Worked on the creative for a highly anticipated video game launch event.

Specific responsibilities will include

• You will be responsible for the creative ideation for some of the biggest, most innovative, and exciting brands in the country.
• Working between the experiential and commercial partnerships teams, the role involves finding the upfront creative nugget, and working closely with our creative strategists to shape the [executional] brand narrative. You'll also need the capacity to judge and critique both your own and others work, ensuring its quality.
• In this managerial role, you’ll mentor and inspire team members, guiding experiential creatives, art directors, designers and other contributors to reach their full potential. Your keen eye for detail will ensure that all campaign elements are produced to the highest standards and the ideas are on brief.
• Beyond creation, you'll play a crucial role in building relationships with our key clients, presenting ideas, understanding their business challenges and proactively thinking of creative ways to help our clients and deliver new solutions
• Overseeing multiple projects simultaneously, ensuring they are delivered on time, within budget, and according to the client's expectations. This involves coordinating with different teams and departments to ensure smooth project workflows
• Staying updated on industry trends, emerging technologies, and creative techniques to bring innovative ideas and solutions to projects. You are a key driver in the new business development and client conversations

You will have

• Significant experience in experiential ideation, strategy and brand storytelling
• High level skill with Adobe Creative Suite
• Comfortable and proficient in 3D design eg) SketchUp
• Experience working across multiple clients and concurrent projects
• Experience managing creatives, both internal team and external suppliers
• Presentation and public speaking skills are a must. Our Associate Creative Director needs the ability to lead and be engaging in presentations to ensure buy in from clients

What We Offer

• Work flexibility in a hybrid environment
• A supportive culture focused on collaboration and personal growth
• A truly integrated agency network that includes research, data, insights, creative, digital, experiential, reputation management, content production, performance, earned media, etc.
• The opportunity to lead fully integrated campaigns that expand your experience in the experiential and partnerships environment
• Robust G&D program training throughout the year
• Happy Days (an extra day off of your choice every month!)
• Inclusive parental leave that offers 12 weeks paid to the primary carer
• Culture Club: a calendar of events that connect our team in creative and fun ways
• The Bastion Evolve mentoring program
• CSR leave