VP Creative

Most software brands look and sound the same. Sage has the opportunity to be different.

Sage is a global technology company trusted by millions of small and mid-sized businesses, accountants, and finance professionals every day. As AI transforms how businesses operate, customer expectations are changing rapidly. This moment demands more than great marketing. It demands bold creative leadership that can redefine how a category communicates, connects, and grows.

In this role, you'll have the rare opportunity to build something from the ground up.

You'll create and lead Sage's global in-house Creative Studio, shaping a function that sits at the intersection of brand, technology, creativity, and commercial impact. You'll define the creative vision for a global business, establish the standards that guide every expression of the brand, and help transform how millions of customers experience Sage.

This is a true builder role. In the early stages, you'll design the operating model, hire and develop a world-class creative team, and lead the transition from agency-led execution to a modern, in-house capability. You'll have the freedom to challenge conventional approaches, introduce new ways of working, and embed AI-enabled creative production to increase both quality and speed.

Over time, you'll shape far more than a studio. You'll influence how Sage shows up across every market, channel, and customer touchpoint globally. You'll partner with senior leaders across marketing, product, and commercial functions, bringing creativity into strategic business conversations and demonstrating how exceptional creative work can drive brand growth, customer engagement, and commercial outcomes.

You'll lead all aspects of creative output across the business, including brand design, campaigns, copy, content, and production. Most importantly, you'll set the bar for creative excellence across Sage, building a culture where creative ambition, innovation, and business impact go hand in hand.

For the right leader, this is a chance to leave a lasting mark on a global brand at a pivotal moment in its evolution.

• Build and lead the in-house Creative Studio across North America and UKIA, scaling to approximately 10-15 people including brand designers, campaign designers, copywriters, and production specialists embedded in key regional markets.
• Manage the transition from external agency dependency to in-house capability, including phased reduction of agency scope.
• Own the creative quality bar for all externally facing brand output globally
• Execute creative briefs from regional directors of campaign strategy and other brand functions.
• Establish a hub-and-spoke creative model: central standards with regional designers embedded in key markets.
• Build an AI-enabled production capability.
• Work in close partnership with other brand, performance marketing, product marketing and people teams to ensure all creative output meets brand governance standards.
• Own the relationship with retained external agencies and specialist production partners.
• Define and implement the creative operating model: intake process, briefing standards, turnaround commitments, and quality review cadence across all teams that brief into the studio.
• Establish ways of working between the Creative Studio and its key partners (Brand Strategy, Performance Marketing, Events, Sponsor ships) including service standards and escalation paths.

• 15+ years in creative leadership, with at least 5 years in B2B or technology in-house
• Experience building or scaling an in-house creative studio, ideally replacing external agency dependency
• Demonstrated fluency with AI creative tools and a clear point of view on where AI adds value and where it does not
• Strong portfolio across brand identity, campaign creative, and digital/social execution
• Commercially oriented: can speak to pipeline, conversion, and business outcomes, not just creative craft
• Experience managing a mixed team of brand designers, campaign designers, copywriters, and production specialists
• Ability to operate in a matrix: this role serves the whole organization, not one function
• Track record of earning credibility with commercial leadership and regional MDs, not just marketing peers
• Proven ability to influence senior stakeholders on creative direction, including non-marketing leaders who are not naturally fluent in creative evaluation
• Inspiring leader with a track record of building and developing high-performance creative teams, including…