Creative Contract Jobs in Washington (NOW HIRING)

Barbaricum is seeking an experienced Content and Creative Director to lead content and creative services under the Military Community and Family Policy (MC&FP) Outreach and Digital Enterprise Services (MODES) contract. You will ensure creative strategy, content production, and engagement products align with MC&FP brand, messaging, outreach, and mission objectives, enhancing the DoD's ability to inform and support the global military community.

Responsibilities:

• Lead content and creative services for MC&FP outreach, engagement, strategic communications, and digital enterprise initiatives.
• Develop and execute creative strategies that align with MC&FP brand, messaging, engagement objectives, and audience needs.
• Direct the production of visual, multimedia, interactive, digital, print, and social media content across multiple platforms.
• Lead and manage creative personnel, including graphic design, copywriting, multimedia, web, and content production professionals.
• Oversee creative concepts, campaign development, content calendars, brand campaigns, and production workflows from planning through delivery.
• Collaborate with program leadership, executives, government stakeholders, and cross-functional teams to define deadlines, deliverables, risks, and content goals.
• Review and approve creative concepts, designs, copy, multimedia products, and campaign materials for quality, consistency, effectiveness, and compliance with brand standards.
• Manage creative project timelines, workload priorities, production risks, and creative budgets to ensure timely delivery of high-quality products.
• Use data, analytics, audience insights, and campaign performance metrics to assess content effectiveness and inform future creative decisions.
• Recruit, mentor, train, and develop team leads and creative staff while fostering a collaborative, accountable, and mission-focused work environment.

Required Skills:

• Expert knowledge of creative direction, brand development, content strategy, campaign execution, and multichannel marketing concepts.
• Strong understanding of strategic communications, outreach, community engagement, and audience-centered content development.
• Demonstrated ability to lead creative teams and supervise high-quality work across digital, print, social, multimedia, and interactive platforms.
• Ability to translate executive direction, client requirements, mission objectives, and audience needs into creative strategies and actionable production plans.
• Excellent communication, briefing, presentation, and stakeholder management skills, including the ability to present timelines, budgets, risks, and recommendations to executives and clients.
• Proficiency with creative tools and production environments such as Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, and comparable content development platforms.
• Strong project management skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities, deadlines, deliverables, and production workflows simultaneously.
• Ability to maintain brand consistency, quality control, accessibility, and compliance across all creative products and communication channels.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to interpret data and performance metrics to optimize creative campaigns and content products.
• Ability to think creatively, solve complex content and engagement challenges, and provide innovative recommendations in a federal mission environment.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Fine Arts, Graphic Design, Marketing, Communications, Digital Media, or a related field.
• Master's degree in a relevant field is preferred.
• 10+ years of experience in creative services, content strategy, strategic communications, marketing, digital media, or related roles.
• 5+ years of experience in management, supervisory, creative director, or senior creative leadership position.
• Strong portfolio demonstrating creative strategy, visual design, multimedia content, campaign development, and cross-platform content execution.
• Proven record of developing and executing successful creative strategies, brand campaigns, and content products for complex organizations or mission-driven environments.
• Experience supporting federal, defense, military community, public sector, or large-scale enterprise communications environments is preferred.
• Experience managing creative budgets, production schedules, staff development, vendor coordination, and executive-level client communications.
• DoD Secret Security Clearance.