Sharon Murff
Los Angeles,CA
Summary
I'm the creative compass behind the curtain. Equal parts intuitive matchmaker and strategic operator, I help to build teams that thrive by connecting strengths with opportunity, always mindful of time, budget, and balance. I listen deeply, advocate fiercely, and plan wisely — making sure every project is aligned, every voice is heard, and every deliverable shines. I don’t create the work, but make the work work — for the client, the agency, and the people doing it.
Overview
21
21
years of professional experience
Work History
Creative Recruiter (freelance)
McCann Worldwide
02.2022 - 06.2022
- Selected creative talent and production for agencies under the McCann Worldwide network LA / NY
- Managed talent budgets
Director, Creative Recruiting & Resources (freelance)
180LA
01.2021 - 01.2022
- Hired creative talent and production, both staff and freelance
- Managed talent budgets and ensured alignment with project scope, optimizing resource allocation.
Director, Creative Resources & Services
Giant Spoon LA
10.2017 - 12.2020
- Vetted and hired creative and production talent across all levels - from Executive Creative Directors to juniors including specialists for experiential projects.
- Developed creative departments from ground up.
- Managed creative talent and recruitment team in NY and LA. Sourced and engaged freelancers for new business pitches and out-of-scope projects.
- Leveraged deep understanding of each team members strengths, experience, and passions to effectively align talent with projects for optimal performance.
- Collaborated with department leadership to audit, recommend, and implement workflow improvements; managed team hours to ensure alignment with scope and work.
- Supported Implementation of time-tracking tools such as Harvest and Forecast to monitor project hours and optimize workload management.
- Helped drive and sustain a positive, collaborative agency culture through leadership and support initiatives.
- Fostered a daily environment where creativity thrived by building rapport across all levels, nurturing collaboration, and solving complex challenges under tight deadlines.
- Skilled at reading people and situations to proactively remove obstacles, enabling teams to deliver their best work seamlessly.
- Accounts: Z by HP, OMEN by HP, Facebook Portal, Absolut Elyx
Director, Creative Resources
180LA
11.2014 - 06.2017
- Managed a creative department of 40-50 team members, including an in-house creative recruiter, external recruiters, and freelancers; assigned projects and tracked time against staffing plans to ensure efficient resource allocation.
- Provided structure and leadership to the creative department, partnering with CCO and Head of Production to align resources, prioritize deliverables and assign projects across teams.
- Led and quickly sourced all aspects of top tier creative recruiting, including resource allocation, talent sourcing, freelancer hiring and managing to ensure high-quality execution under tight timelines.
- Built a full time multidisciplinary team recruiting ECD’s, Art Directors, Designers, Copywriters and junior talent across both national and international markets.
SR Print Producer & SR Project Manager
180LA
05.2011 - 11.2014
- Led hiring and management of the print production department and studio staff
- Developed and implemented internal and external production workflow systems in partnership with vendors to streamline and improve efficiency.
- Estimated, managed and actualized a wide range of print projects.
- Oversaw the internal creative workflow and production for a wide range of materials, including collateral, OOH campaigns, car brochures, print and bound books ensuring on time, high-quality delivery.
- Supervised retouching and color management to ensure accuracy and quality, meeting brand and production standards across all deliverables.
Freelance Print Producer
180LA
06.2010 - 06.2011
- Managed the full creative development and print production process for 5 car books, collaborating with cross-functional teams to ensure brand consistency, quality and on time delivery
- Tailored car brochure production process to meet the unique needs of the agency’s first automotive client, establishing a scalable workflow for future vehicle campaigns.
- Implemented internal and external workflow systems; organized and monitored the flow of work across the agency and with vendors to ensure efficiency and resulting in improved turnaround times.
Freelance Production Director
SILTANEN & PARTNERS
09.2007 - 11.2008
- Provided structure and oversight for studio and production teams on a project basis managing print, OOH, collateral deliverables ensuring quality and consistency.
- Accounts: Suzuki, Panda Express
Production Director
Media Arts Lab/TBWA
01.2006 - 06.2007
- Hired and managed the print production department and studio staff for the newly established agency, Media Arts Lab, built foundational and scalable team structures and workflows to support high-profile Apple campaigns across all print media.
- Tailored and implemented production processes, integrating internal and vendor workflow systems to streamline budgets, expedite ship dates and elevate quality standards.
- Reduced turnaround times by 20%, elevated quality standards and maximized creative timelines as a result of new streamlined production process.
- Estimated, managed and actualized Apple print production budgets totalling $20 million annually, negotiated with vendors to reduce costs and ensured alignment with project scope and financial goals.
- Managed production of OOH campaigns including bulletins, street media, station domination, collateral, national print ads and books utilizing both traditional and digital print methods as needed.
- Supervised the building and retouching of final composed artwork for global deployment enduring regional accuracy and quality standards across Europe, Australia, Japan and China.
- Account: Apple Inc.
Production Director
J Walter Thompson
08.2001 - 01.2006
- Hired, managed and mentored a team of 10 print producers, studio staff, art buyers and photo producers including oversight of all freelance talent.
- Led and collaborated with vendors and internal teams to build a global ad production process, enabling efficient delivery of creative assets to 2,000+ publications quarterly while optimizing costs and tracking performance.
- Partnered with account and finance leads to structure production costs and manage global budgets of $10M annually, ensuring accuracy and maximizing resources.
- Implemented a streamlined studio workflow with traffic and creative teams; launched a time tracking system that improved budget control, sped up delivery, and upheld high standards in creative execution.
- Established and maintained rigorous quality control from art prep to on press supervision for collateral, OOH and ensuring excellence in print ads for both national and international publications
- Developed and implemented an agency-wide Filemaker database linking work orders, time sheets, publication specs and ad material receipt confirmations. Enhanced operational efficiency and establishment of a profitable studio cost center.
- Negotiated photography usage rights and talent fees; managed and reconciled photoshoot budgets.
- Accounts: Symantec, Bandai, Surebeam, Children’s Hospital, Bolthouse Farms
Skills
- Team collaboration
- Recruiting and sourcing
- Time management
- Relationship building
- Team management
- Project coordination
- Budget management
- Verbal and written communication
- Decision-making
Timeline
Creative Recruiter (freelance)
McCann Worldwide
02.2022 - 06.2022
Director, Creative Recruiting & Resources (freelance)
180LA
01.2021 - 01.2022
Director, Creative Resources & Services
Giant Spoon LA
10.2017 - 12.2020
Director, Creative Resources
180LA
11.2014 - 06.2017
SR Print Producer & SR Project Manager
180LA
05.2011 - 11.2014
Freelance Print Producer
180LA
06.2010 - 06.2011
Freelance Production Director
SILTANEN & PARTNERS
09.2007 - 11.2008
Production Director
Media Arts Lab/TBWA
01.2006 - 06.2007
Production Director
J Walter Thompson
08.2001 - 01.2006
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