Design Director - HARGROVE

Position Overview

The Design Director will be responsible for leading a creative team in conceiving environment design solutions that fulfill strategic business objectives as outlined by existing and potential clients.  This includes leading conceptual development, articulating physical and environmental graphic design methodologies, developing client relations, and ensuring successful execution of creative deliverables. This includes exhibit design and trade show design specifically. This position will report to the Group Creative Director.

Key Job Responsibilities

Creative Development

• Lead experience and environmental design strategy across multiple channels with a strong understanding of how components work together as part of the integrated customer journey. 

• Develop concepts and strategies to translate business priorities into creative output.

• Oversee the conception and development of experiential concepts and strategies designed to solve problems for clients and add value to their brand experiences and events. 

• Act as an interpreter for client needs – strategizing appropriate delivery methods that convey the client’s message.

• Participate in creative presentations to internal and external stakeholders, effectively representing concepts and solutions to influence sell-through to clients.

• Uphold the highest creative standards, always striving to ensure the highest quality. 

• Coordinate with all appropriate SME’s (subject matter experts) within creative team to acquire appropriate resources for specific needs which may include strategists, copywriters, creative directors, producers, graphic designers, video editors, digital media artists and producers.

Relationship Management

• Strengthen and build relationships between internal and external clients, and other stakeholders.  

• Identify key stakeholders and influencers and develop support strategies for all business development activities.  

• Demonstrate a high standard of integrity and navigate through political dynamics with insight and patience.  

• Support and assist internal Encore and Hargrove clients to respond to new opportunities, increase win rate and help set appropriate customer expectations to ensure a high level of quality and service is being met for all opportunities.

Organizational Leadership

• Provide leadership and guidance for revenue growth, cost management, and other financial areas.

• Develop programs and cost control strategies that improve efficiency and effectiveness through shared labor and resources between Company divisions and departments.  

• Identify, evaluate, and develop creative solutions to key client problems in the product line which demonstrates Encore and Hargrove capabilities to client.  

•Identify and resolve chain-wide customer needs and maintain client brand standards while maintaining Encore and Hargrove brand consistency.

• Institute design processes and cross-functional collaboration models.

People Development

• Lead and develop Associate Design Directors and their teams, ensuring Associate Design Directors are working with internal teams to assign resources appropriately.

• Guide the team to develop best practices for ensuring a high bar of quality.

• Lead and mentor team, facilitating individual and team development and performance management. 

• Recruit new creatives and actively participate in the hiring process.

• Provide regular feedback and address team member concerns as appropriate.  

• Foster and maintain a positive work environment.

• Implement and champion Company training and development initiatives as appropriate.

Job Qualifications

• BA/BS degree in environmental design, architecture, graphic design or related field

• 7+ years of production and creative experience with in-depth knowledge of some creative and strategic disciplines

• 3+ years of people management experience with a design/creative team 

• Hands on proficiency with 3D Studio Max, V-Ray, Adobe Creative Cloud and others

• Solid knowledge of creative and strategic disciplines

• Demonstrated experience managing the creative development process through external agencies, internal teams and freelancers in a fast-paced, agile environment

• Excellent communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills and the ability to gracefully defend design decisions to executive management

• Effective communicator and storyteller with the ability to find the best approach to verbally and visually communicate an idea and articulately present it to other team members, clients, and other stakeholders

• Exceptional organization, time management and multitasking skills.  Ability to manage multiple projects across a variety of stakeholders

Competencies

Deliver World Class Service

• Hospitality

Do The Right Thing

• Courage

Drive Results

• Optimizes & Aligns Work

See The Big Picture

• Strategic Mindset

Value People

• Organizational Savvy

• Values Diversity

• Develops Talent

For more information on our Competency Group, refer to the Competency Based Talent Management page on Encore Connect by searching for the title or copy & pasting this URL Link (https://psav.sharepoint.com/sites/HR/SitePages/Competency-Supported-Talent-Management.aspx). 

Work Environment

Office

Work is performed primarily in an office environment. Working times may include irregular hours and on-call status including days, evenings, weekends, and holidays. Team members must adhere to appearance guidelines as defined by Encore based in an office environment and when traveling, on an individual venue or a representation of venues in that city or area.

The above information on this description is not necessarily an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, skills, efforts, requirements or working conditions associated with the job.  While this is intended to be an accurate reflection of the current job, management reserves the right to revise the job or to require that other or different tasks be performed as assigned.

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