Summary
Experienced designer for digital user interfaces (UI), marketing departments, publishing firms, and advertising agencies. In these careers I have been involved with all aspects of the design process from the conception of ideas to seeing it through to final product.
Work Experience
Contract Designer, Tampa, FL
UI Designer, Visual Communicator
05/2014 - Present
- Work individually as remote designer or in a collaborate team environment on-site
- Create presentations for design direction through mood-boards
- Maintain client’s company brand and corporate standards
- Write and design sales collateral to communicate business objectives
- Create and manage company wide stylesheets and templates created in InDesign and XD
- Create a variety of marketing materials including banners, brochures, packaging, and booth design using Illustrator, InDesign, and Photoshop
- App Design and production using Adobe XD. Project includes interactive design, style sheets for both web and programmers.
- Design 150 page product catalog using InDesign’s XML tagging, references, and indexing
- Currently designing premium magazines (both print and digitally) in the automotive industry. Project utilizes InDesign’s book making features for digital publishing, interactive PDFs, and EPUBs. Also uses Lightroom, Illustrator, and Photoshop
Clients: Sourcetoad, PAR Inc, Creative Circle, Eat Scrumptious, Summit Holdings, Homes Reinvented, and Colvin Media Solutions
Source Interlink Media, Tampa, FL
Art Director
05/2005 - 05/2014
- Lead art director for two monthly magazines
- Responsible for the layout, design, and production of all editorial content using InDesign
- Choosing and editing photography as needed for digital and print using Photoshop
- Design graphics, illustrations, and charts using Illustrator
- Maintain brand design and evolved the look to reflect current design trends
- Re-branding magazines and presenting design concepts to stakeholders
- Collaborating on two to three magazine teams each month
- Organizing time efficiently between the two magazines and special editions without oversight
- Adhering to strict deadlines
Magazine Titles: Vette, Mopar Muscle, Corvette Fever, Stock Car Racing, and Mopar Now
Nuclear Designs LLC, Tampa, FL
Owner and Art Director
11/2003 - 05/2005
As owner and art director, I was an active member of the Brandon Chamber of Commerce. I was responsible for obtaining clients and providing a wide variety of marketing materials for them. Some of the services provided for my clients were:
- Creative brainstorming ideas and designed marketing materials for Boomus Marketing and their clients
- Created a brand identity for Bond Engineering that included a logo package, marketing strategies, advertising campaign, and website UI/UX Development
- Created a brand identity for a Toddletails, a retail shop for babies and pets. Some of the materials produced were a logo package, gift tags, and event invitations
- Designed a brochure detailing products and services for Jacobs Air Water Systems. This project required interviewing and hiring a professional copywriter and photographer
- Production and design services for local advertising agencies
Clients: Bond Engineering, Jacobs Air Water Systems, Toddletails, Boomus Marketing, Trés Trash Boutique, and Bayshore Grooming & Pet Resort
Snell & Wilmer Law Offices, Phoenix, AZ
Graphic Designer
03/2002 - 09/2004
Responsible for designing a wide variety of marketing materials that supported the brand identity of the law offices spanning three states. In addition to designing PowerPoint templates, proposals, and event logos I also:
- Designed a unique brochure for the Retail Services Group illustrating the services they provide
- Designed the company’s newsletter for employees of each of the law offices. I gathered, selected, and arranged all content that included providing copy when needed, creating illustrations, and photography
- Presenting marketing strategies and ideas to stakeholders.
- Interviewing, hiring, and supervising junior designers.
- Managing print production including press-checks.
- Write and manage surveys for the marketing department’s customers (we considered our co-workers as our customers). We used the feedback to improve our services
The Motta Company, Phoenix, AZ
Art Director
03/2000 - 05/2001
Responsible for creating ad campaigns and supervising junior designers, photographers, illustrators and printers. These are some of the major projects I was lead art director for:
- Designed an interior environment for Anthem Welcome Center that displayed all the possible activities available in its’ community (such as swimming and sports). Hired a variety of contractors to build and install display
- Designed The Wilshire Grand Hotel website including the information architecture and content flow. This included managing front-end developers, hiring photographers, and designing animations for the interface
- Presented and created an ad campaign for Cottonwood Ranch Community in Arizona. I was responsible for scouting locations for photo shoot, hiring and supervising photographers.
- Concepted an ad campaign for Rancho Viejo Community in Santa Fe, NM. I was responsible for hiring a writer, illustrator, and on-site visits to gain insight about the community
Clients: AAA of Arizona, Anthem Communities, Cottonwood Ranch Community, Rancho Viejo Community in Santa Fe, NM, and The Wilshire Grand Hotel in Los Angeles, CA.
EB Lane & Associates, Phoenix, AZ
Art Director
08/1997 - 11/1999
I started as a Jr. Art Director and within a year, was the lead Art Director for the Arizona Lottery, which at the time had the largest advertising budget in the state. Many of my responsibilities included:
Maintaining a cohesive visual feel throughout advertising campaigns.
Concepting and designing advertising campaigns for TV, outdoor, and print
Designing logos, bus wraps, point-of-purchase, brochures, annual reports,
Managed junior designers, professional photographers and illustrators
Clients: Arizona Lottery, Grand Canyon Railway, eai Healthcare, and Dairy Queen SW Division
Education
University of North Texas, School of Visual Design
BFA | Communication Arts | Denton, TX | 05/1993
Hillsborough Community College
AS | Computer Programming | Tampa, FL | 12/2017
Certifications
- Online Marketing Foundations, 02/2020
- Designing Infographics, 02/2020
- Grammar Girl’s Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing. 02/2020
- WordPress 4 Essential Training, 08/2019
- Interpersonal Communication, 02/2020
- The Science of Logo Design, 02/2020
- HTML Essential Training, 08/2019
- Bootstrap 4 with Sass, 08/2019
- UX Design Series, 02/2019
- Adobe XD Essential Training, 03/2019
- Responsive Layout 07/2019
StartUp Quest Training Program, Entrepreneurial Studies
- Certificate of Completion by University of Florida, 10/2014
Skills
Computer Platforms
Fluent in both PC and Apple operating systems
Web
HTML5/CSS3, Responsive Design, Bootstrap, WordPress, Digital Design, ePub
Coding
Java SE8, C, C#, JavaScript, React.js, PHP, JQuery
Software
Adobe Creative Suite (InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop, Bridge, Dreamweaver, XD), Visio, Slack, Trello, GitHub, Microsoft Suite (PowerPoint, Word, Excel)
User Interface/User Experience (UI/UX)
User-Centered Design (UCD), Agile Development, Wire-framing, User Flows, Prototyping, Personas, Scenarios
Design
Content Communication, Layout Design, Branding, Style Guides, Typography, Color Theory, Photo editing, Pre-Press Production, Digital Design, Mobile Design
Marketing
Newsletters, Annual Reports, Brochures, Invitations, Marketing Strategies, Writing Surveys, Coordination of Proposals for Business Development, Proofreading, Word Templates, PowerPoint presentations, Company Email-Blasts, Event Planning
Managerial
Project Management, Interviewing/Supervising Designers, Budgeting, Managing Vendors, and Press-Checks
Personal Traits
Positive Attitude, Passion for Learning and Personal Development, Strong Work Ethics, Trustworthy, Thrive in Fast-Paced Environments, Deadline Driven and Goal Focused, Maintain Clean and Organized Space, Maintain Organized Digital Files, Excellent Internal and External Customer Service