Senior Designer (Brand)

At this time, we’re not considering candidates who are unable to work and reside in the continental U.S.

The Role

ITHAKA is looking for a future-forward, multidisciplinary Senior Designer who understands the power of  human centered design in making brands memorable, trustworthy, authentic, and mission-aligned. In this role, you will develop market-oriented solutions that cultivate and grow awareness of our brands and services by conceptualizing and executing  visually compelling digital, print, event, and video design assets that resonate with our target audiences.

Reporting to the Principal Creative Director, this role will collaborate closely with team members and leaders across the organization to influence and operationalize brand strategy for ITHAKA and its portfolio of nonprofit brands and services. This individual will also offer consultation and governance for brand design to guide the work of our Product and User Experience partners. The Senior Designer honors both creativity and utility, continuously improving how we translate strategy and design concepts into systems that enable efficient and consistent production of assets that drive awareness and influence engagement.

Responsibilities    

• Collaborate in the development of, and oversee execution of the creative vision of the ITHAKA family of brands, ensuring connection with external and internal audiences.
• Contribute to the evolution of ITHAKA’s brand guidelines, ensuring consistency across all design touchpoints.
• Develop and manage design and brand standards, guidelines, asset libraries, and create and evolve brand design systems; serve ongoing as the subject matter expert, providing consultation and approval to content creators across the organization.
• Produce designs for use across a range of integrated communication channels to ensure cohesive look and feel of our brands across digital, motion, print, and physical spaces.
• Collaborate across the organization to produce impactful multicultural and inclusive market oriented design solutions that work across all channels, marketing sites, social media, emails, presentations and webinars, videos, and events.
• Execute design projects from concept to final product while organizing project timelines; collaborate with campaign owners and stakeholders on prioritization.
• Work collaboratively with product designers, writers, user researchers, developers, outreach, and marketing leads, stakeholders, and external partners to receive feedback while identifying opportunities for improvement of design, voice, and total direction of the work.
• Manage project timelines for multiple concurrent projects. 
• Lead design reviews and the sharing of constructive feedback to unify our services and leverage the insights from your colleagues.
• Contribute to our collaborative culture and to the evolution of our internal processes.
• Identify and create opportunities for design and brand development improvements.

Experience and Skills

• Bachelor’s Degree or higher in a related field or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• 7+ years experience working at a brand or agency designing toward a multiplatform approach: digital, print, editorial, physical goods, and events.
• Extensive knowledge of current design styles, technologies, web standards, and programs such as Adobe Creative Suite, Figma, and Canva.
• Expert sense of typography, color, layout, and working knowledge of web design principles and best practices.
• Experience in illustration and animation and/or creative direction of freelance illustration and animation artists a plus.
• Proven experience to clearly articulate goals and objectives and influence the design direction of any project.
• An ability to think strategically and seek long-term integrated solutions across a portfolio of brands.
• Superb written and verbal communications skills with the ability to express ideas visually and verbally.
• Familiarity with human centered design principles and accessibility standards (this includes empathy for people and involvement in iterative design processes to create inclusive experiences).

• An eye for design and evolving trends, evidenced in a strong visual portfolio showcasing creative brand design solutions for both static and motion and/or video. 
• Proficiency in Adobe Creative Cloud, Figma, Asana, Microsoft Office applications, Google Workspace, Slack, and more

Work Authorization and Sponsorship

ITHAKA is not currently considering candidates who require any type of immigration sponsorship (additional work authorization or permanent work authorization) now or in the future to work in the United States.

Compensation and Benefits

At ITHAKA we believe in openness and equity. Part of living those values is our commitment to clarity about salary ranges, so candidates know what to expect. The starting salary for this position ranges from $80,000.00 - $99,000.00 per year. Starting pay may vary with job-related knowledge, skills, and experience. At present, our total compensation package for benefits-eligible employees includes medical, dental, and vision plans, an employer-paid 10% retirement contribution, paid parental and caregiver leave, 22 days of paid time off, 11 paid holidays, up to 12 sick days, wellness benefits, and more. Please note that ITHAKA, at its discretion, may make changes to its benefits programs from time to time.