How many of the CDs on this bowl were ACDs at one point? I spoke to a couple of CDs at an advertising event last night and almost all of them never spent a single year as an ACD. Is the ACD role just not prevalent in every agency or do some people just get to skip the rungs on the ladder and get to where they want? I thought it was pretty intriguing.

Did they just skip over ACD entirely (like they went from Senior to CD) or did they enter the ad business at CD level from a different industry?

I personally was an ACD before CD.

Yep, was an ACD for 4 years

Skipping the ACD role is not normal. What agencies were they at? Not saying it’s not possible but it’s very rare.

I’m old enough to remember when ACD was a new title that everyone made fun of. Back then, we went from a Senior Creative (an individual contributor who does concepting with a partner) to a Creative Director (a managerial role, that does not do any concepting). ACD was invented to mean a senior-Senior Creative. But in a way that the agency could bill the client more.

Nowadays I am seeing “Creative Director” teams being individual contributors by doing campaigns and presenting them to a GCD (🙄) or an ECD.

So skipping ACD sorta makes sense now, as title inflation has now made “Creative Director” the same exact same thing as what an “ACD” was 25 years ago.

(Signed, a “CD” who would be a VP/ECD somewhere else.)

I was an ACD for a long time, and managed more work and more people than I do as a CD now. And I did work, too. But at many other agencies, a CD doesn’t do any of the creative, they manage and I’d miss that so I’m good to go back to an ACD in my next role.

I was an ACD for a long while, myself. At times it was a very bizarre, in-between type of position. Expected to be a "leader" but not always given the leeway to do so.

Then again it's not like you magically have no bosses once you become a CD either!

I went from Senior to CD. Was senior at two agencies, with the second not having the ACD title. Did the role, though.

Was an ACD for two years.

For me, having that time as an ACD really helped me learn what a CD does and how to manage, mentor, and do the work. For me, it was a some of the most exciting/rewarding times and the most stressful times.

Skipping experience is the norm of late. Not sure why this is surprising.

Was an ACD for about 4 years across 3 agencies before CD. What a terrible in between role it is.

O was an ACD for 4-5 years

I’ve heard of skipping Senior AD/CW but not ACD. I was an ACD for 3.

Welcome to the more cowbell, less pay structure. I know people are going to hate to hear it, but folks are over-titled to make up for being underpaid. There are a lot of CDs out there that don't know how to budget, manage people and have never done the basics, much less act as an ACD, which should be when you first manage another breathing human person... Don't even get me started on ECDs as those people would have normally had multiple huge accounts and a couple of GCDs under them...