Art Director

Shutterfly - Eden Prairie, MN

Full-time - Mid Level

Eden Prairie, MN

Personal and Laundry Services

About the position

The Art Director at Lifetouch plays a pivotal role within the Creative Team, focusing on the development and execution of innovative marketing campaigns that resonate with the Lifetouch brand. This position is designed for a collaborative and enthusiastic creative professional who possesses a keen eye for design and aesthetics. The Art Director will be responsible for bringing concepts to life across various marketing channels, ensuring that the creative vision aligns with the brand's identity and objectives. The ideal candidate will have a portfolio that showcases their ability to create compelling campaigns and solve design problems creatively. In this role, the Art Director will lead brainstorming sessions with designers and copywriters, fostering an environment of innovative thinking and collaboration. They will partner closely with cross-functional teams, presenting ideas and facilitating feedback to ensure effective implementation of creative solutions. The Art Director will manage a mix of long-term projects and quick-turnaround tasks, demonstrating professionalism and adaptability in a fast-paced environment. They will also coach and mentor junior and mid-level designers, providing constructive feedback to help elevate the team's overall creative output. The position requires a proactive individual who can self-manage their projects while maintaining strong relationships with key partners. The Art Director will be expected to continually adopt new tools and practices as the industry evolves, ensuring that Lifetouch remains at the forefront of creative marketing. This full-time role includes direct reports, making leadership and management skills essential for success.

Responsibilities

• Work collaboratively from concept to execution—define and bring to life the creative vision, bringing groundbreaking creative ideas and solutions to the table
• Lead designers and copywriters in inspirational brainstorm sessions and help to push creative concepts that work across multiple channels
• Lead innovative thinking, with a test and learn mentality
• Partner closely with cross-functional team members, present ideas, articulate rationale and facilitate effective feedback and implementation
• Participate actively in project kickoffs, asking insightful questions to gain detail, clarification and alignment with Business Partners
• Juggle a mix of long-term and quick-turnaround projects, often with overlapping priorities and urgency
• Show professionalism in all aspects of daily tasks, including taking feedback and edits with grace and positivity
• Continually adopt new tools and practices as the work evolves
• Coach and mentor junior and mid-level designers, comfortable providing design feedback
• Proactively self-manage own creative projects.

Requirements

• Bachelor's Degree in Design, Graphic Arts, Advertising or Fine Arts highly preferred, but will accept additional experience in lieu of formal education
• 7+ years of work experience in design field
• 3+ years working as an Art Director at an ad agency, web design firm, e-commerce company
• Experience managing direct reports
• Portfolio to showcase your skills
• Hands-on experience designing across a variety of marketing channels
• Fundamental knowledge of typography, grid systems, design systems, brand systems, color theory, and composition
• Great eye and aesthetic that compliments and elevates the Lifetouch brand
• Understanding and knowledge of advertising technology, digital marketing solutions and print
• Ability to prioritize workloads and manage multiple projects simultaneously
• Be self-motivated and a thoughtful, yet quick problem solver
• Low ego, balanced with confidence and a healthy sense of personal drive, ambition and ownership
• A great attitude and flexibility towards business and its ever-changing, sometimes ambiguous nature
• Sense of humor and the ability to have fun doing what you love.

Nice-to-haves

• Advanced knowledge of Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator)
• Strong background in concept development, consumer experience design; digital and print
• Portfolio demonstrates strong design concepts, exceptional design sensibility and attention to detail, a sophisticated, clean aesthetic
• Ability to communicate and exercise superior verbal and written skills as to how their art direction drives business objectives
• Demonstrated experience and expertise in branding and brand development
• Ability to work collaboratively in a team environment, and works well to cascade direction to more junior team members
• Self-directed, extremely organized and can manage multiple projects.