Summary Report for:
27-1011.00 - Art Directors
Formulate design concepts and presentation approaches, and direct workers engaged in art work, layout design, and copy writing for visual communications media, such as magazines, books, newspapers, and packaging.
Sample of reported job titles:
Art Director, Creative Director, Production Manager
Tasks | Knowledge | Skills | Abilities | Work Activities | Work Context | Job Zone | Interests | Work Styles | Work Values | Related Occupations | Wages & Employment
Tasks
- Formulate basic layout design or presentation approach, and specify material details, such as style and size of type, photographs, graphics, animation, video and sound.
- Review and approve proofs of printed copy and art and copy materials developed by staff members.
- Manage own accounts and projects, working within budget and scheduling requirements.
- Confer with creative, art, copy-writing, or production department heads to discuss client requirements and presentation concepts, and to coordinate creative activities.
- Present final layouts to clients for approval.
- Confer with clients to determine objectives, budget, background information, and presentation approaches, styles, and techniques.
- Hire, train and direct staff members who develop design concepts into art layouts or who prepare layouts for printing.
- Work with creative directors to develop design solutions.
- Review illustrative material to determine if it conforms to standards and specifications.
- Attend photo shoots and printing sessions to ensure that the products needed are obtained.
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Knowledge
| Design — Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models. |
| Administration and Management — Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources. |
| Computers and Electronics — Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming. |
| Customer and Personal Service — Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction. |
| Production and Processing — Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods. |
| Communications and Media — Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media. |
| Fine Arts — Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture. |
| English Language — Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar. |
| Sales and Marketing — Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems. |
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Skills
| Active Listening — Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times. |
| Time Management — Managing one's own time and the time of others. |
| Reading Comprehension — Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents. |
| Critical Thinking — Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems. |
| Coordination — Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions. |
| Speaking — Talking to others to convey information effectively. |
| Judgment and Decision Making — Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one. |
| Active Learning — Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making. |
| Negotiation — Bringing others together and trying to reconcile differences. |
| Persuasion — Persuading others to change their minds or behavior. |
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Abilities
| Originality — The ability to come up with unusual or clever ideas about a given topic or situation, or to develop creative ways to solve a problem. |
| Fluency of Ideas — The ability to come up with a number of ideas about a topic (the number of ideas is important, not their quality, correctness, or creativity). |
| Oral Comprehension — The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences. |
| Oral Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand. |
| Near Vision — The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer). |
| Problem Sensitivity — The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem. |
| Written Comprehension — The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing. |
| Inductive Reasoning — The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events). |
| Information Ordering — The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations). |
| Speech Clarity — The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you. |
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Work Activities
| Thinking Creatively — Developing, designing, or creating new applications, ideas, relationships, systems, or products, including artistic contributions. |
| Interacting With Computers — Using computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information. |
| Making Decisions and Solving Problems — Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems. |
| Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates — Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person. |
| Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge — Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job. |
| Getting Information — Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources. |
| Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships — Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time. |
| Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work — Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work. |
| Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others — Translating or explaining what information means and how it can be used. |
| Guiding, Directing, and Motivating Subordinates — Providing guidance and direction to subordinates, including setting performance standards and monitoring performance. |
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Work Context
| Electronic Mail — How often do you use electronic mail in this job? |
| Face-to-Face Discussions — How often do you have to have face-to-face discussions with individuals or teams in this job? |
| Telephone — How often do you have telephone conversations in this job? |
| Contact With Others — How much does this job require the worker to be in contact with others (face-to-face, by telephone, or otherwise) in order to perform it? |
| Indoors, Environmentally Controlled — How often does this job require working indoors in environmentally controlled conditions? |
| Work With Work Group or Team — How important is it to work with others in a group or team in this job? |
| Duration of Typical Work Week — Number of hours typically worked in one week. |
| Time Pressure — How often does this job require the worker to meet strict deadlines? |
| Freedom to Make Decisions — How much decision making freedom, without supervision, does the job offer? |
| Importance of Being Exact or Accurate — How important is being very exact or highly accurate in performing this job? |
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Job Zone
| Title |
Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed |
| Overall Experience |
A minimum of two to four years of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified. |
| Job Training |
Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training. |
| Job Zone Examples |
Many of these occupations involve coordinating, supervising, managing, or training others. Examples include accountants, human resource managers, computer programmers, teachers, chemists, and police detectives. |
| SVP Range |
(7.0 to < 8.0) |
| Education |
Most of these occupations require a four - year bachelor's degree, but some do not. |
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Interests
Interest code: AE
| Artistic — Artistic occupations frequently involve working with forms, designs and patterns. They often require self-expression and the work can be done without following a clear set of rules. |
| Enterprising — Enterprising occupations frequently involve starting up and carrying out projects. These occupations can involve leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business. |
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Work Styles
| Dependability — Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations. |
| Attention to Detail — Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks. |
| Adaptability/Flexibility — Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace. |
| Integrity — Job requires being honest and ethical. |
| Achievement/Effort — Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks. |
| Stress Tolerance — Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high stress situations. |
| Cooperation — Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude. |
| Initiative — Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges. |
| Innovation — Job requires creativity and alternative thinking to develop new ideas for and answers to work-related problems. |
| Leadership — Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction. |
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Work Values
| Achievement — Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment. Corresponding needs are Ability Utilization and Achievement. |
| Independence — Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employs to work on their own and make decisions. Corresponding needs are Creativity, Responsibility and Autonomy. |
| Recognition — Occupations that satisfy this work value offer advancement, potential for leadership, and are often considered prestigious. Corresponding needs are Advancement, Authority, Recognition and Social Status. |
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Related Occupations
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Wages & Employment Trends
National
| Median wages (2006) |
$32.74 hourly, $68,100 annual |
| Employment (2006) |
78,000 employees |
| Projected growth (2006-2016) |
Average (7% to 13%)
|
| Projected need (2006-2016) |
25,000 additional employees |
State & National
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics 2006 wage data
and 2006-2016 employment projections
.
"Projected growth" represents the estimated change in total employment over the projections period (2006-2016). "Projected need" represents job openings due to growth and net replacement.
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