// Leadership
Creative Director · 20 years
Creative leadership built inside complex organizations.
My experience spans brand transformation, integrated campaigns, creative operations, digital experiences, team leadership, stakeholder alignment, and AI-enabled workflow improvement.
// Leadership experience
Where the experience comes from.
- ↳Creative Manager, Elevance Health Studio Production — all lines of business (current)
- ↳Creative Director, Beacon Health Options — held through the 2023 Carelon transition
- ↳Manager of Creative Services, Beacon Health Options — team, budget, vendors, standards
- ↳Co-manager of a ten-person studio production team
- ↳Led a five-person design team as Creative Director
- ↳Executive and cross-functional stakeholder collaboration
- ↳Agency and vendor direction — Sway (design) and WebbMason (production, ten years)
- ↳High-volume production operations
- ↳Led the creative transition through the Beacon → Carelon rebrand
- ↳Creative review and quality control
- ↳Campaign and brand-system development
// What John can lead
What I can take ownership of.
// Featured leadership work
Programs led start to finish.
Beacon Health Options → Carelon
Led the creative transition through an enterprise acquisition and rebrand.
Read case study
Creative Operations & Marketing Bench
Rebuilt Marketing Bench as a self-serve print-on-demand platform.
Read case study
Stamp Out Stigma
Led a national mental-health awareness campaign into Times Square.
Read case study// Leadership proof
The record behind it.
- ↳Led creative through an enterprise acquisition and rebrand — Beacon Health Options → Carelon / Elevance Health (2022–2023)
- ↳Migrated ~1,500 brand assets across an ~85,000-employee organization
- ↳Built the Marketing Bench creative-support model — ~60% faster turnaround and ~30% higher engagement (2020)
- ↳Part of the team that rebuilt Workfront intake, review, and approval across ~75 projects a month
- ↳Owned creative review and quality control across high-volume output
- ↳Built templates, systems, and governance so quality scaled with the team
// References
“I’ve partnered with John on projects for many years, and he consistently brings smart thinking, strong creative direction, and a deep understanding of how design and development work together. He’s thoughtful in his approach, clear in his communication, and always focused on building solutions that are both beautiful and functional. John is the kind of creative partner you trust on complex projects.”
“John’s work is always fresh and engaging. He designs thoughtful brand work and continually refines it—and he’s also a great videographer. If you want to work with a true professional, give him a call.”
// Leadership philosophy
How I think about leading.
Strong creative leadership isn't only about producing good ideas. It's about setting a clear standard, helping people improve, aligning stakeholders, protecting the work from unnecessary complexity, and building systems that make quality repeatable.
Give clear direction
Translate business goals into focused creative briefs, useful feedback, and decisions teams can act on.
Protect the idea
Keep creative work strategically focused while navigating executive feedback, compliance, timelines, and competing priorities.
Build stronger teams
Create an environment where designers understand expectations, receive meaningful critique, and gain confidence and ownership.
Improve the system
Identify the operational friction that slows teams down and build workflows, templates, governance, and tools that improve quality and speed.
// Contact