CAREER DEVELOPMENT
Oxford & Cherwell Valley College, Oxford (November 2009 – Till Date)
Design Coordinator
- Provide project coordination to a range of annual and bi-annual promotional items, advertisements, publications including the Website.
- Maintain the college corporate identity and assist in the development of emerging brands for the college curriculum areas.
- Maintain and develop the College house styles and assist staff in producing materials that are consistent with our Identity.
- Develop and maintain professional working relationships with external printers, consultants, designers (student designers), photographers and other agencies essential to the delivery of high quality promotional materials.
The Institution of Structural Engineers, London (November 2008 – April 2009)
Design Consultant
Primary responsibilities include:
Provide design and production support to the Marketing and Communications Team in the delivery of the Institution's re-brand of the necessary Institution-wide marketing, communications and events collateral.
- Ensure all design follows new house style and brand guidelines
- Responsible for detailed checking of files before sending them to print companies
- Arrange and co-ordinate the design and production of leaflets, brochures, reports, etc to ensure jobs are completed on time, within budget and without technical problems
- To liaise with the Journal production team (in particular, the Art Editor and Design Coordinator) to balance workload and resource
- Source and negotiate print costs to reduce the overall marketing spend
Homeserve Membership, London (October 2007 – September 2008)
Senior Graphic Designer
Primary responsibilities include:
Responsible for the design, development and production of artistic and graphic work as per the specifications supplied by Group Employees and external clients, ensuring all designs and branding adhere to corporate identity guidelines. Manage projects from briefing to supplying print ready artwork, ensuring all work is prioritized and delivered by the relevant deadlines
- Undertaking design and development of artistic and graphic work as per the specifications supplied by Group Employees and (where appropriate) external clients. (Brochures, Direct mail, PoS materials etc)
- Acting as the brand champion – ensuring all designs and branding adhere to corporate identity guidelines of the group and it’s affinity partners
- Working on projects from briefing to print ready artwork
- Ensuring all work is prioritized and delivered by the relevant deadlines
- Liaising with third parties regarding printing, ensuring that such third parties are aware of deadlines
- Ensuring that all intellectual property rights belonging to the Group are protected by the procedures and standards set by the Group
- Liaising with third parties regarding printing and photography, ensuring that such third parties are aware of all deadlines
- Assisting other Marketing colleagues in their duties
- Ensuring all documentation is filed away correctly and a new project file is made upon receipt of project instruction
- Retaining all work copies on file, including all amends and client sign off, in order to maintain a historical register of the project in accordance with compliance policies
- Making recommendations on the use, development and purchase of design software
- Providing advice, information and guidance for the business on Financial Services Authority (FSA) Financial Promotions guidelines to help ensure that all work produced is compliant (where appropriate)
- Understand and operate the Continuous Customer Network Model ensuring culture, customer service and continuous improvement elements are upheld.
Cohesion Design Services, Tonbridge, kent (July, 2005 – October 2007)
Senior Graphic Designer
Tasks include:
- Receive and interpret briefs either from line manager or direct from clients
- Design for print with involvement all through project lifecycle and following corporate guidelines
- Design and print management of events and marketing collateral, making sure that project is delivered to time and budget
- Presentation of concepts to stakeholders
- Update all stakeholders on project status
- Managing the print process, image searches and purchase, designing brochures, cards, reports, display materials, flyers, direct mail
- Production of design materials from written or verbal briefs, guidelines and direction
- Design for web (flash banners, websites, e-flyers, e-newsletters)
- Design and manage client’s e-mail marketing campaigns via bespoke web-based system
- Advising on appropriate use of logo according to corporate guidelines
- Preparation of print ready artwork
- Assisting clients with designing PowerPoint presentations
- Sending artwork to print via ftp, afp, or CD
- Photography with digital camera
- Updating job /client database using Filemaker Pro and Co-efficient
- Project planning using Filemaker Pro
- Obtaining estimates for projects and checking printers proofs
- Liaising with clients and printers on projects worked on.
Freelance designer, London (April - July, 2005)
- Designed web sites
- Designed the financial reports for two offshore banks and managed print production
- Worked on several Corporate identities – Logo designs and stationery.
Design pro initiative (a subsidiary of Saatchi and Saatchi), Lagos (2001 – 2005)
Deputy Creative Director (2003 – March, 2005)
Group Art Director (2001 – 2003)
Seconded from Saatchi & Saatchi to lead the design team of a small but strategic start-up design agency that would focus on the design and production of annual reports, brochures, illustrations, posters, corporate identities and other below the line materials of some Saatchi and Saatchi clients as well as build an independent client base. Managed a team of five, setting creative direction along side the Creative Director, managed client interface and coordinated with suppliers to ensure projects were delivered on time and to specification with regards to budget and quality.
- Designed annual reports yearly and supervised the printing process
- Designed calendars, annual reports, billboards, brochures, cards, fliers, identities etc for top Nigerian companies such as MTN Nigeria Communications, Guaranty Trust Bank, Access Bank, Citi Bank, TotalFinaElf, Abuja Sheraton, Ford Foundation, Cadbury, Central Bank of Nigeria, Nigeria Communications Commission and Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation.
- Liaising with clients to receive briefs and make presentations
- Art directing photography
- Trained junior art directors in the use of computer graphic software
- Reduced running costs of the studio by 10% by sourcing for suppliers that were more flexible with pricing
- Successfully helped start a new design unit and made a turnover of forty million Naira in the first year and seventy million the next.
Saatchi & Saatchi, Nigeria (1998 – 2001)
Art Director 1 (1999 – 2001)
Art Director 2 (1998 – 1999)
Hired as a junior artist and promoted several times to positions of progressive responsibility.
- Visualizing and designing of creative materials i.e press, calendars, annual reports, brochures, cards, billboards etc.
- Using digital cameras to take pictures for layouts
- Image searches
- Brand Management
- Creating storyboards for TV/directing photography sessions for designs
- Supervising end to end design projects/production on annual reports, calendars, brochures etc
- Presenting Designs to clients on advertising/communication issues.
Nitel staff school, Lagos (1997 –1998)
Art Teacher
As an art teacher, I was responsible for teaching nursery and primary school pupils basic art skills and techniques like finger painting, collages and printmaking.
EDUCATION
University of Lagos, Nigeria (Jan – Sept 2004)
Advanced Diploma in Marketing
Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State, Nigeria (1990 – 1997)
B.A. Fine and Applied Arts (Graphic Design Major)
Federal Government College, Ilorin, Nigeria (1984 – 1990)
Senior Secondary School Certificate
AWARDS
2006 Portfolios.com Silver award for Stationery design
CAPABILITIES
- Development of graphic designs using Photoshop, Illustrator, CorelDraw, InDesign and PageMaker, Dreamweaver and Fireworks
- Front-end web design using XHTML and CSS
- Conceptualizing and creating designs for press, calendars, annual reports, brochures, cards, billboards, identities and guidelines, branding, e-mail markerting, e-newsletters, websites etc
- Managing the production process to ensure highest quality print production
- Oversee all matters of the studio including purchase of studio material and equipment
- Liaise/receive briefs from Clients
- Manage and supervise the design process from concept development to print
- Supervise photography
- Develop creative materials according to Client’s brief
- Organize and manage junior art directors/designers in the execution of projects from start to finish in line with Client’s brief
- Manage details under pressure in complex and competitive environment
- Update the Creative Director on daily job status
- Liaise with clients and suppliers at all levels.
SOFTWARE SKILLS
- Adobe
- Photoshop
- Indesign
- Illustrator
- Adobe Pagemaker
- Adobe Acrobat
- Macromedia
- Dreamweaver
- Fireworks
- Flash
- Corel Draw
- QuarkXpress
- Microsoft Office Suite
