Sr. Design Manager

About Learning Resources

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We are on a mission to bring learning to life! We are Learning Resources, and learning is where we play. Voted one of the Chicago Tribune’s Top Workplaces every year for the last four years, we’re a 150-person strong, family-owned company who make award-winning educational toys, including top sellers Pretend & Play Calculator Cash Register, Farmer’s Market Color Sorting Set and Toy of the Year winners Botley the Coding Robot and Coding Critters.

We share that dedication to learning across our family of companies. Learning Resources team members work closely with the curriculum experts at hand2mind, as well as Educational Insights, makers of hit viral products including Kanoodle, GeoSafari Jr.

and Playfoam. We even help pets learn and grow through our pet brands Brightkins and Hunger for Words. We pride ourselves on being committed to our employee’s personal and professional development, a thriving culture and a diverse, creative atmosphere.

Along with our competitive benefits package, we offer opportunities for training and development by top university professors as well as in-demand, motivating external speakers.

We are looking for professionals who are truly just kids at heart! Come join our award-winning team today!

Team & Position Description

This role assists the Director of Design in leading the design teams’ creative direction and manages the team of 5 graphic designers, fostering a collaborative environment that encourages creativity and professional growth.

The Sr. Design Manager is responsible for overseeing the quality execution of consumer packaging, trade show signage, marketing pieces, catalog files, visual assets, and eCommerce design files for our Learning Resources, Brightkins, and Hunger for Words brands.

Working closely with the Director of Design and internal clients, the Sr. Design Manager helps to set the standards of design and brings organization, prioritization, and order to the fast-paced flow of projects.

This role sets and maintains consistent visual branding standards across all visual touch points.

Responsibilities

Creative Leadership for Marketing Campaigns : Work closely with cross-functional teams, including designers, copywriters, and marketing, to collaboratively define design themes and ensure the cohesive execution of campaign assets.

Guide the team through the creative process, from concept development to final production, including directing photoshoots and video creation.

• Concept Development : Lead the conceptual phase of projects, guiding the team in brainstorming sessions and ensuring the development of compelling and visually engaging creative solutions.
• Amazon Product Page Design Expertise : Leverage a strong understanding of Amazon content and product page layouts to optimize the presentation of the brand’s products, ensuring they meet platform requirements and effectively drive conversions.

Collaborate with eCommerce teams to create visually appealing and conversion-focused product listings, including A+ content, images, and enhanced brand content.

Team Leadership & Development : Build a cohesive and high-performing team, both direct and cross-functional, by selecting, coaching, developing, motivating, and empowering staff.

Ensure alignment of goals, provide continuous feedback, and conduct periodic performance appraisals.

• Design Implementation & Standards Compliance : Work collaboratively to assess project needs and implement effective layout techniques using industry-standard software, ensuring adherence to established branding, design standards, and file output procedures.
• Multi-brand Collaboration : Collaborate with creative teams at Hand2Mind and Educational Insights to produce and deliver multi-brand assets, including sales presentations, reseller catalogs, trade show materials, and retailer-specific online assets.

What We’re Looking For (Key Performance Objectives)

• Foster team collaboration to deliver 100% of campaign assets on time, with less than 2% requiring major rework.
• Lead a number of new, innovative ideas generated during the conceptual phase that are incorporated into final designs or future projects (target : 2+ innovative concepts per quarter).
• Track and measure the conversion rate of product pages designed or optimized for Amazon (target : 10%+ increase in conversion rate within 6 months of optimization).
• Achieve 90% or higher team engagement and satisfaction scores in annual surveys. Ensure 100% completion of individual development plans and performance reviews.
• Achieve a 90% or higher satisfaction rating from cross-functional teams and stakeholders on design quality and adherence to branding standards in post-project reviews.
• Deliver all multi-brand assets by the specified deadlines, ensuring 95% or higher stakeholder satisfaction with the final assets.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree
• 10+ years of graphic design / creative experience
• 2+ years of experience leading teams and mentoring others, with a passion for developing talent
• An above average level of organization and attention to detail
• Expert knowledge of Adobe Create Suite
• Superb art direction skills of traditional and digital illustrators
• Strong portfolio showcasing expertise in packaging design, online content creation, and / or marketing assets
• Proven track record of cross-functional collaboration, team building and persuasive leadership.

Ideal Attributes

• Motivational communication skills : excellent presentation and interpersonal skills
• Ability to think strategically and creatively, with a keen eye for detail
• Drives change for the better : offers ideas to increase efficiencies and adds to bottom-line results.
• Connects inside and outside the team : shares information, transfers knowledge and seeks diverse input from others within the team and across the organization.
• Takes Action : proactive and resourceful in solving problems, making solid decisions, and executing on goals.
• Owns Results : follows through on commitments, takes responsibility for actions and produces quality results.

We are a drug-free workplace and an EEO employer.

Please note : This role will be filled by our internal recruitment team, so no assistance is needed from any outside staffing agency at this time.

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