Senior Art Director

Job Description

The Job

The Senior Art Director provides leadership and design direction to a highly functioning, innovative and strategically oriented print and Web in-house design team; responsible for partnering with Creative Director to create workflow efficiencies, and provide full-service support to business partners. The role retains a working knowledge of the overall business challenges, and communicates the business partners' objectives to lead innovative and conceptual solutions for internal teams. The Senior Art Director develops short-term business strategies, direction and priorities in alignment with key marketing and industry dynamics, and has significant leadership, strategic direction, creative guidance, business-partner relations, staff development, process efficiency and results-oriented responsibilities. Must exhibit outstanding creative judgment and be an expert in media and advertising knowledge. The objective of the group is to achieve the highest possible standards of reproduction for all print, digital, outdoor and collateral materials. The Senior Art Director also requires strong mediation skills and the ability to troubleshoot sensitive issues and situations with various groups.

The Daily
• Deliver on SVP, creative director and business partner creative strategies by leading the team to develop the highest caliber innovative and cutting-edge creative solutions: on strategy, on time and on budget.
• Drive innovation by overseeing the development of cross-platform print and digital tools to enhance the quality of in-house design production.
• Provide coaching, direction and leadership support to team members to achieve partner, business and team results.
• Realign teams and project freelancers to create highest performing teams for business partner support and to promote individual growth.
• Develop communication procedures with peers and colleagues to alleviate the impact of unfavorable business changes and to ensure timely strategic response.
• Maintain leadership role with SVP, creative director, and business partner groups, ensuring teams maintain effective working relationships; promote cross-functional/cross-team understanding and collaboration; oversee project-needs and preplanning sessions.
• Maintain leadership role when collaborating with photo services, print production and the legal department to manage effectiveness of teams' output.
• Create strategically oriented design team; drive staff's understanding of business partner objectives and strategies as well as overall business/industry trends, to achieve consistently on-target creative output.
• Partner with SVP and creative director to identify and solicit new business areas (internal/external); elevate status and understanding of teams' capabilities throughout HBO.
• Promote professional development of the staff and encourage staff to stay abreast of current trends, cycles and demographic demands.
• Conduct and/or participate in brainstorming sessions.
• Update the creative director on the status of departmental affairs.
OTHER RESPONSIBILITIES
• Complete performance review forms and conduct reviews to fully understand the staff's strengths and areas of improvement.
• Collaborate with management team on a regular basis to discuss and resolve issues within the department, including staff performance evaluations.
• Manage staff development by (1) ensuring that subordinates understand accountability for specific responsibilities and take responsibility; (2) regularly soliciting feedback and opinions from the staff and communicating information back to the VP; (3) demonstrating and expecting best work habits across the department; (4) demonstrating and expecting staff collaboration across all levels; (5) through opinion-seeking and sharing, including staff in decisions for department.

The Essentials
• B.F.A. degree in graphic design and 10–15 years' design/art direction or agency experience
• 2–3 years in a supervisory position
• Proficient in Mac/PC software: Adobe CS and Microsoft Office
• Proficient in the use of Macintosh and PC systems and programs
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Clear understanding of project deadlines and budgetary requirements
• Creative vision and affinity preferred
• Entertainment industry experience a plus

Jobcode: Reference SBJ-gwpp3p-3-139-72-78-42 in your application.