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Senior Design Manager
2 years ago
Company Overview:
Age of Learning is a leading education technology innovator based in Glendale, California, with a talented team of more than 600 individuals comprised of nationally-renowned educators, curriculum experts, developers, artists, writers, designers, engineers, producers, product managers, analysts and marketing experts! Together we develop engaging, effective digital learning technology and content to help children build a strong academic foundation for lifelong success.
Our flagship product
ABCmouse.com Early Learning Academy ® is a comprehensive online curriculum and the #1 digital learning product for young children. To-date, more than 30 million children worldwide have completed over 8 billion Learning Activities on ABCmouse. We recently launched Adventure Academy, the first massively multiplayer online (MMO) game designed specifically to help elementary- and middle-school-aged children learn. It features thousands of engaging Learning Activities—including minigames, books, original animated and live action series, and more—in a fun and safe virtual world. Other Age of Learning programs include immersive English language learning products for children in China and Japan; ReadingIQ, a digital library and literacy platform; and a groundbreaking personalized, adaptive digital learning system that individualizes math instruction for every child through AI-driven technology.
We are committed to helping all children succeed. We provide our educational programs at no cost to teachers, Head Start programs, public libraries, and other community organizations, and have served millions of children through these initiatives. We recently established the Age of Learning Foundation to expand this work globally.
As we expand our global reach and increase the educational impact of our programs, we’re looking for passionate, ambitious, and collaborative leaders to become a part of our growing team.
Summary :
Working as an independent contributor, the Sr. Design Manager, Creative Services, will provide creative support across all areas of Age of Learning as the company continues to grow, and play a key role in building a merchandise business from the ground up, through merchandise design and licensing. This includes contributing to new licensing opportunities and partnerships, optimizing branding guidelines for all product touchpoints, helping innovate products that delight and inspire, juggling priorities, project schedules, deadlines, and managing external agencies.
It will be vitally important for this person to work well under pressure and be able to produce and lead artwork on multiple and varied projects with short and fluctuating timeframes. This position reports to the Sr. Creative Director, Creative Services, the in-house creative agency.
Responsibilities:
- Design and execute on all aspects of Creative Services including supporting our expansion into retail merchandise/licensing as well as ensuring the extension of the educational and inspirational impact of our brands and characters with children
- Develop new concepts and products
- Manage relationships with licensees and retailers
- Create and presenting strategy pitches, product concepts through packaging, displays, and marketing. Extending brand offline through narrative
- Develop brand guidelines/processes/standards for end-to-end creative, approvals and distributions, asset packs, style guides, palettes to inform all areas of the business
- Plan and meet departmental design objectives with the Sr. Creative Director and Sr. Producer
- Communicating estimated timeframes and design schedules as priorities shift and workflows into/out of the department
- Create a wide range of assets, leading, and managing reviews and QC of licensed product submissions
- Provide creative and design support across all other divisions of Age of Learning including, Schools, Brand, Marketing, PR/Comms/Social, Curriculum/Research, Customer Care, Foundation, and International as achieved
- Manage day-to-day design deliverables and processes
- Maintain the evolving schedule by which these components are accomplished
- Anticipate iterations, making processes as efficient and streamlined as possible; being flexible
- Give and take art direction in representing the goals of the Sr. Director and internal clients
- Being responsible for checking technical asset integrity as well as ensuring all mechanical files leaving the department meet necessary specifications
- Understanding various manufacturing techniques (ideal)
- Interface with internal clients, providing exceptional customer service, managing expectations, and ensuring design projects stay on schedule
Required Qualifications:
- 7+ years of sr. design and production experience, creating product-related assets and tools for development of licensed properties, product or marketing side, as demonstrated in a strong portfolio featuring published packaging
- Product design experience for character merchandise, preferably with a large Studio. Proficiency with Adobe CC; expertise in InDesign, Photoshop, Illustrator
- A great storyteller with a passion for children’s properties and education, and how to blend them
- Highly collaborative and proactive approach to innovation, with the ability to deliver inspirational creative
- Experience designing costume characters for stage shows a plus
- Direct experience sourcing, managing, freelancers, and agencies in collaboration with in-house team
- Budget, deadline, and priority conscious
- Solid written and verbal communication skills
Age of Learning currently provides:
• 90% - 100% of health and welfare benefit premiums
• A 401(k) program with employer match
• 15 paid vacation days plus 11 observed national paid holidays
• Team bonding events and a highly collaborative environment
• Commitment to Equal Opportunity Employment in addition to an inclusive and supportive company culture
• Access to our internal DEI Task Force that focuses on ensuring our products represent all children on a global scale
• Opportunities for professional growth through professional learning and development programs
• A temporary 100% remote work environment, due to COVID restrictions, to help ensure the safety of our employees
• Monthly internet stipend provided due to temporary remote work environment
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