My capabilities
Brainstorms
I am a designer that have good brainstorming skills.
Have mastered a number of successful brainstorming techniques and able to lead and inspire fellow colleagues during a brainstorm.
Can prepared and get done research prior to the brainstorm to use the allocated time most efficiently.
Can be relentless in the pursuit of finding the best possible solution to the brief.
Can be able to brainstorm successfully with a copywriter to produce well thought out complete campaigns with role out elements and legs to the campaign investigated to the full.
Able to push the creative bounds of themselves and fellow team mates to the maximum and keep the energy and flow of ideas at an optimum speed.
Able to distinguish brilliant ideas from just good and know when to change direction.
Able to create a compelling creative rational to sell the final concepts.
The passion for my ideas is be contagious and can also go to all lengths to communicate the concept successfully.
Can be confident to brainstorm directly with a client --- on the spot or pre-prepared.
Have excellent reasoning skills and be able to successfully talk through my ideas from start to finish.
Can be able to take constructive criticism, know when to push the boundaries and know when to stand down.
Concepts
I can have a brilliant conceptual mind, be able to think out the box and push all creative boundaries.
Abreast of current market trends to establish relevant, modern and up to date concepts.
I use all possible tools and resources available to push boundaries to excellence.
Able to grasp the essence of the brand and the correct messaging quickly and know how to stay within the brief as well as offer further creative solutions.
Able to understand a brand BREAKDOWN, and be able to create your own.
Have good marketing skills, have a good understanding of the correct usage of tone of voice, good communication of USP (unique selling points) and relevant target markets.
Able to successfully isolate what will sell the product, what will make it stand out above its competitors.
Able to explore all avenues and able to present a number of successful answers to the brief as clients often want to see options.
All options must be of the highest standard.
Look and feel
I am able to transfer the concept successfully into a relevant visual look and feel that promotes and sells the conceptual idea.
The look and feel should be totally considered design with a substantiating creative rational to back all choices i.e. colour typeface choice of visuals.
Able to communicate these decisions convincingly to client service or client as well as fellow designers with regards to being a brand custodian.
Design is visual communication and can do all in my power to make sure that the correct and best communication of the brand message is reached.
I have a brilliant understanding and implementation of colour, typography and design elements.
Execution
I have knowledge of what is available in the industry and market place that could be used to further extend the role out of campaigns.
Able to successfully move across all media and successfully adapt designs, look and feels, brand messaging and communication to the relevant medium. I can work with the big picture as well as being able to break overall project into individual pieces.
The big picture means fully understanding and successfully implementing the concept and messaging on all elements, being aware of the overall timing and possible cost of the campaign and individual items.
To successfully communicate what is needed to meet the brief keeping in mind the client and companies needs.
To manage and motivate fellow designers who may have to assist on the projects.
To assume team lead successfully and see that the role of campaigns or completion of projects is done adhering to deadlines and expectations.
Communication
I have excellent communications skills, audibly and visually.
Carry my self well and express correct business etiquette at all times.
Able to listen and understand well and asking questions for better understanding.
Confident to express creative ideas, creative rationales, design choices and marketing strategy.
To communicate well internally, with fellow designers as well as client service, as well as externally, with clients and suppliers.
Can encourage communication from more junior staff whether it be design queries, job related queries or deadline problems.
Able to communicate any job concerns or points of improvement well and through the correct channels.
Time and job management
I have a complete understanding of the importance of adhering to deadlines is expected.
Meeting deadlines is what the industry is about and all effort at all times should be made to never miss a deadline.
All avenues needed to be explored and a positive can do attitude needs to be expressed when trying to solve timing difficulties.
My responsibility is to not just put out fires as they may appear but to have the foresight to prevent them from ever happening.
This is required within my own work as well as managing more junior staffs work as well.
I have experience in the industry to be able to gauge the correct amount of time needed to complete jobs.
Client service will ask for estimated timings on jobs to build cost estimates from us and we must be able to provide accurate timings based on job specs and briefs and then be able to implement what they have indicated.
It is also a required that I encourage more junior staff to be able to learn this skill.
Presentations
I am confident to do presentations, internally and externally.
Able to present informally one on one with client or to a group in formal presentation style.
To express my self well and confidently sell the concept and/or artwork.
Having infectious passion for what you are presenting.
Able to read your audiences and adapt your style and approach accordingly.
To present on my own as well as tag team with client service.
Always prepared fully for all presentations.
Able to motivate and coach any junior staff that may be included in the presentation.
I must take the time to make sure that they fully understand what was required and know how to present back to client in such a way that the client knows that the brief has been answered.
I use whatever props (mock ups etc) and technology to ensure that the presentation best sells the concept.
Able to explain the creative rational (which sometimes they will be required to write myself) in a logical and thought out manner to ensure that the client fully understands our strategy and creative concepts.
To totally explain all design choices and visual communication elements whether actually derived by themselves or by fellow staff.
Mentoring
I am be able to mentor more junior staff.
I must be a leader and follow leaders.
Encourage and motivate fellow staff.
Teach fellow staff good work ethic and always be willing to share their experience.
Patient and encouraging as well as diplomatic and able to make junior staff responsible for their work.
I am at all times aware of what is happening within studio, whether it be busy time with very tight deadlines or whether a junior staff member is going through a difficult time personally.
I encourage junior staff to push their boundaries creatively.
Having an open door policy for mentoring as well as be able to complete their own work.
Encourage within the culture of the studio; a proactive can do attitude, positivity in all that you do, finding a solution rather than defining the problem.
Can help build a happy motivated studio where staff want to come to work.
Able to discern when things aren't working, whether it be job related or person related.
I then communicate this back to the creative director.
Teach very junior staff members basic design skills and work ethic and work etiquette as well as help improve and grow medium weight staff in areas that they may be having difficulty with.
Design and DTP:
Create impactful creative concepts in answer to briefs and client requirements.
Design of all jobs from initial briefs to print.
Ability to take a design brief and implement it.
Communicate challenges upfront as well as give accurate time estimates.
Changes to jobs with extreme accuracy.
Repro-ready of artwork as well as oversee more junior staffs repro.
Always checking copy and design before sending to client service to insure the highest accuracy at all times.
Checking print proofs.
Research and development of conceptual work.
Art direction.
Retouching, photo manipulation, illustration and photography.
Brand Custodian of certain brands.
Creation of, management of and continual updating of CI's.
Mock up, paste, and assemble final layouts to prepare layouts for printer.
Review final layouts and suggest improvements as needed.
Prepare illustrations or rough sketches (scamps) of material, discussing them with client service and making necessary changes.
Prepare notes and instructions for fellow design team members or suppliers.
Put together notes for brainstorms and research prior to brainstorms.
Meet clients to discuss their needs.
Interpret the client's business needs.
Develop design briefs by gathering information and data to clarify design issues.
Think creatively to produce new ideas.
Use innovation to redefine a design brief and meet the constraints of cost, time and client multitasking, i.e. work on more than one design brief at a time.
Use a wide range of media, including photography and computer aided design.
Exceptional ability to save artwork on system in required format.
Produce extremely accurate and highest quality work at all times.
Contribute ideas and design artwork to the overall brief.
Keep abreast of developments in IT, particularly design programs.
Working to meet tight deadlines always.
Client relations
Attend client meetings when needed.
Create a good rapour with client.
Take notes and give feed back to creative director directly after meeting.
Can be required to present creative work to clients in informal meetings as well as formal presentations.
Can be required to present artwork and campaigns of other staff members.
What I can require
My designs are able to communicate the core message 100% successfully, using the correct message hierarchy.
Extreme attention to detail is a given.
Designs must be pushed to the maximum of what is visually pleasing, considered and crafted.
Having a brilliant understanding of space, negative and positive, a good eye for spacial relations and easy eye movement across the page, always perusing the best communication possible.
Basic design skills such as alignment, weighting and consistency should be second nature. Once a look and feel has been established, I must be fastidious in the correct implementation of the look and feel across all elements that are rolled out there after.
Believe to the fullest extent in brand integrity and do all possible to make sure that it is upheld.
Advantageous
As a designer I am be able to handle a job from start to finish successfully without the need to be micro managed.
From taking a brief direct from client, asking relevant questions to fully understand what is required to answer the brief, probing and confirming to make sure that all parties concerned are always on the same page with regards to specific job requirements, communications and timing.
Able to do a concept synopsis to confirm communication and then come up with and implement a plan of action.
Making use of all resources as well as source new ones to produce the highest quality of work.
As a designer am able to confidently team lead.
At all times have full bigger picture as well as be able to delegate and manage smaller parts of the job to relevant parties whether fellow design team mates, copy writers and external suppliers.
At any time during the job as a designer must be able to communicate the job status to client service or creative director. What has been done, what still needs to be done, any problems etc.
Most times the a designer will be working with the creative director on project as a tag team until the concept has been finalised.
It is then that the designer will often have to take charge of or perform the role out of the campaign, ensuring always that communications are kept open with the creative director.
Designers are not islands and should never work isolated from the design team or creative director.
It is my responsibility as a designer to ensure that the Creative Director is kept up to date.
Personal Skills/Attributes
Working well in a team, with printers, copywriters, photographers, other designers, account executives, website designers and marketing specialists.
Excellent computer skills and knowledge.
Exceptional working knowledge of and abilities on Adobe, Indesign, Photoshop and Illustrator as well as Freehand.
Able to prioritize a varied workload.
Work well under pressure and to strict deadlines.
Flexible.
Adapt quickly to new creative briefs.
Work methodically and pay attention to detail.
Able to work independently or as a group.
Able to follow design brief accurately and closely.
Ability to communicate needs to do job more efficiently.
In-depth knowledge of repro and print.
Excellent type-setting and repro abilities.
Understanding and ability to work to CI guidelines.
Enthusiastic and can-do attitude.
Be proactive, positive attitude and a can do approach.
Responsible and able to work unsupervised.
Be able to supervise more junior staff.
Conduct yourself in a professional manner.
Excellent Presentation skills.
Experience in design and point of sale materials.
Continually strive to update your creative abilities and skills.
Do independent research and reading-up to stay abreast.
