Art Director / Senior Designer

So, what's the opportunity?

spark*advocacy is looking for an experienced Art Director or high level Senior Designer to join our Creative team. Reporting to the Chief Creative Officer, you would develop and oversee creative solutions to address our varied client’s needs. This is a hands-on role not a management role, meaning you will be flexing your creative muscles developing creative concepts for advertising and communications campaigns from idea to final art.

Success in this role involves tapping into your deep knowledge and experience of visual communication and graphic design principles, styles and layout techniques. You should have a strong exposure to advertising and marketing principles, and can understand the difference between creative and advertising, and how to design for both. Writing headlines and a little bit of ad copy should not scare you, and presenting your work in a convincing way so that the client feels like a partner in the process, should be something you embrace and look forward to.

Developing ideas for multi-channel projects (print, web, social, OOH, video/Broadcast) should excite you and being able to develop it from concept to production ready assets should be second nature. 

You have a positive, team-based attitude where no job is too small, and no task too large if we work together as a team — but when it comes down to it, you can focus all your strengths as an individual, and deliver with confidence.

If you have a passion for great creative, clever solutions and can deliver high quality work on tight timelines, this is your next career move.

Responsibilities

• Oversee, participate in, and develop creative from conception to delivery

• Design original pieces, including illustrations and infographics, as well as adapt stock imagery and illustration to suite

• Apply core typography techniques

• Generate ideas to portray concepts and advertise strategic communications

• Develop concepts for digital, social, web and print as well as out-of-home advertising

• Maintain brand consistency throughout all projects

• Liaise with account, client and other design team members to ensure deadlines are met

• Stay up-to-date with industry developments, tools, techniques

• Work under tight timelines, prioritize projects, and shift focus when necessary

• Participate in brainstorms, introducing new ideas, different approaches and treatments

• Be open to constructive feedback

• Possess a positive team-based, solutions oriented attitude

• Tracking and monitor time spent on projects in time tracking software

Required Skills

• Masterful production skills (layout, style sheets, master pages, etc.)

• Strong to masterful skills in design software (Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign)

• Strong overall design skills (typography, composition, grid, etc.)

• Strong advertising and marketing skills as they relate to creative

• Strong campaign creative concept development skills

• Strong presentation skills in both a creative and business environment

• Strong communication skills (internally and externally)

• Strong organizational skills (eg. file naming and organization)

• Strong time management skills

• Strong ability to self critique, refine, attention to detail

• Strong ability to meet deadlines and work under pressure

• Good to strong skills in video concept development (ideation, storyboarding, directing principle photography)

• Good to strong writing skills as they relate to advertising and proposals

• Good to strong skills in business software (Apple Keynote, Word, Powerpoint, etc.)

• Good to strong technical skills (eg. MacOS, software, technical problem solving, etc.)

• Be open to teaching yourself new skills, software, or techniques when necessary and show initiative to find solutions — and be willing to teach others

Qualifications

• College or University diploma in design or be able to demonstrate sufficient experience in lieu of a certificate

• 5+ years of proven work experience as an Art Director/Senior Designer

• Portfolio of work with clear attribution of your role(s) on each piece

Bonus Points

• 2D animation and video experience (eg. Premier, AfterEffects)

• Interest or background in Canadian politics, political causes, or civic engagement