Art Director – Brand, Marketing
Oregon, United States
JOB DETAIL
for the first time, give them a good reason to join us on our mission.
The Position
The Art Director guides the day-to-day application of Mercy Corps’ visual branding across channels and platforms, manages and helps prioritize project assignments for a talented creative team of visual and motion designers, and partners with the Creative Director to evaluate, develop and produce consistent and conceptual creative communication products. This position connects our engagement strategies, messaging, and the stories we tell to the impact of the work we do in new and novel ways – ensuring communications center the people who make our mission possible: our team members, partners, and most importantly, the communities and individuals we serve. Ultimately, the Art Director is a brand advisor and creative catalyst who delivers internal and external facing content, communications, and guidance for stakeholders across the organization.
The Art Director is a key leader on the Creative Team, which maintains, develops, and applies the messaging and visual expression of the Mercy Corps brand across communication channels (print, social media, advertising, email, etc) especially as it pertains to key prospective and existing external audiences.
Essential Responsibilities
STRATEGY & VISION
- Translates strategy and creative briefs into cohesive and consistent visual directions for day-to-day content, campaigns and new materials.
- Plays a key role in defining and refining visual design elements for brand activation and marketing initiatives.
- Ensure brand consistency, campaign continuity, and creative quality across platforms and channels.
- Advocates for design, strategic purpose, simplifying the complex, and creative thinking at the core of every project and strategy.
- Participates – and at times facilitates – ideation, critiques, presentations, and competitive research.
INFLUENCE & REPRESENTATION
- Collaborates and partners with strategists, designers, writers, project managers, the asset manager, video editor and other members of the Marketing, Communications and Development Teams to design, develop and produce online and offline projects from concept to execution which meet objectives, ethical creative standards, and timelines.
- Coach an nimble team of creative professionals and influence their individual skill development plans.
- Reviews and recommends visual executions and formats, listens empathetically to stakeholders, and evaluates feedback with curiosity, rationale and strategy in mind.
- Maintain a deep understanding of visual standards, ethical considerations, and messaging to ensure Mercy Corps’ brand comes to life consistently across all digital communications.
- Stays up-to-date and shares best practices and perspective on emerging digital, social design trends, and accessibility.
- Foster a collaborative creative culture of openness, trust and support—and provides and solicits respectful, constructive critique and actionable feedback that elevates outcomes.
PROGRAM MANAGEMENT
- Function with a high level of autonomy and adaptability while working within a flexible and collaborative team setting.
- Accountable for the creative development process from concept to production; oversight of suppliers and final delivery; attend press checks, and technically support jobs.
- Lead, guide, and provide input into project process, execution, and timelines.
Supervisory Responsibility
(2) Visual designers, (1) Video editor/Motion designer, Freelance and external partners and collaborators as needed.
Accountability
Reports Directly To: Managing Director, Creative (Creative Director).
Works Directly With: The Creative Team and Digital Developers, Marketing Team members and other stakeholders involved in mass market communications, including, Development Team, and internal colleagues across our country and program teams.
Accountability to Participants and Stakeholders
Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our program participants, community partners, other stakeholders, and to international standards guiding international relief and development work. We are committed to actively engaging communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.
Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our program participants, community partners, other stakeholders, and to international standards guiding international relief and development work. We are committed to actively engaging communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.
We are committed to ensuring our use and collection of imagery is authentic, ethical and not exploitative across our organization and fundraising communications.
Minimum Qualifications & Transferable Skills
- Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience in strategic graphic design.
- An industry competitive portfolio that demonstrates a strong mastery of developing strategic concepts, brand identity systems, and creative content for diverse media including, print, web, social and video applications (Portfolio as PDF or online links with up to 6 samples must be submitted with application to be considered).
- 6+ years of professional creative development and/or design experience in an agency or similar environment.
- 3+ years of experience managing a team of individual contributors.
- Mastery of industry standard design tools, including Adobe Creative Suite, Canva, and Microsoft Office software.
- Advanced conceptual and technical skills, and acute attention to detail.
- Demonstrated ability to independently advance the creative production process, facilitate collaboration, and provide constructive critique.
- Strong communication and presentation skills and ability to lead with influence with peers and colleagues, as well as all levels of the organization.
- Familiarity with video production and motion design.
Success Factors
The successful Art Director is a working team leader, critical creative thinker, and empathetic coach who creates space for dialog and exploration while prioritizing timelines and strategic goals. They are comfortable with ambiguity and not being the loudest voice in the room, often helping to connect the dots that bring an outcome, process or goal into focus. They tap into their own – and other’s – experience, while cultivating open and clear communication, refinement, and trust to achieve results larger than a single individual or team. The Art Director is organized – and helps organize thoughts and rationale for project presentation to a wide range of stakeholders. They efficiently assess and evaluate multiple inputs and priorities and make confident recommendations. They are accountable for their own actions – as well as the output of their team – leading by example in learning, sharing reflections, and contributing to an inclusive work environment and welcoming team.
Living Conditions / Environmental Conditions
This position requires very limited travel. Some evenings/weekends required during emergency responses.
Ongoing Learning
In support of our belief that learning organizations are more effective, efficient and relevant to the communities we serve, we empower all team members to dedicate 5% of their time to learning activities that further their personal and/or professional growth and development.
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex challenges. We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives.
We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a journey, and we are committed to learning, listening and evolving to become more diverse, equitable and inclusive than we are today.
Equal Employment Opportunity
Mercy Corps is an equal opportunity employer that does not tolerate discrimination on any basis. We actively seek out diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be collectively stronger and have sustained global impact.
We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal employment opportunities are available to all. We do not engage in or tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability (including HIV/AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status or any other protected group in the locations where we work.
Safeguarding & Ethics
Mercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with through our work, whether team members, community members, program participants or others, are treated with respect and dignity. We are committed to the core principles regarding prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary General and IASC and have signed on to the Interagency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, or harassment by or of our team members. As part of our commitment to a safe and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner, respect local laws and customs, and to adhere to Mercy Corps Code of Conduct Policies and values at all times. Team members are required to complete mandatory Code of Conduct elearning courses upon hire and on an annual basis.
As a safeguarding measure, Mercy Corps screens all potential US-Based employees. This is done following the conclusion of recruitment and prior to assuming full employment.
Our screening process is designed to be transparent and completed in partnership with new Team Members. You will have the opportunity to disclose any prior convictions at the conclusion of the recruitment process before the check is initiated. We ask that you do not disclose any prior convictions in your application materials or during the recruitment process.
Covid-19 Vaccine Policy for US-Based Employees
Mercy Corps has determined that, in an effort to protect the health, safety, and well-being of all Mercy Corps employees working in the United States, all U.S.-based employees must be fully vaccinated for COVID-19, regardless of prior COVID-19 infection status. This policy is necessary to ensure not only the safety of our workforce, but the ongoing functionality of the organization.
This policy will be revised as needed to comply with federal, state, and local requirements, and to respond to changing guidance from public health authorities.
For new employees this requirement goes into effect within 10 business days of employment. Team members that travel are expected to comply with host-country requirements, including vaccinations. Failure to comply may impact your employment. Proof of vaccination or exemption must be provided.
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