Questions & Answers

Q: Give me a quick professional overview.

A: Briefly:

• I’m a seasoned, hands-on creative director skilled at managing teams, budgets, and agencies for global brands, products and IPs. 

• I’m skilled in pitching concepts, and driving projects from ideation through final production.

• I take a collaborative approach with marketing, developers, and production teams to find the optimal solution.

• Throughout my career, I have operated in dynamic, deadline-driven environments and my aim is to align creative execution to the business needs.

Q: You have worked as a Creative Director and Designer. What’s the difference?

A: In my experience, the Creative Director is just as much of a hands-on designer as the other designers on the team. The difference is a matter of scope. The Creative Director works to see how design needs to meet the business objective, knows the design tools and the team’s skills, and leads from the trenches to the solution. The Designer, through their artistic and technical skills, builds that business solution.

Q: How hands-on are you as a Designer?

A: It really depends on the project. Some days I’m in back to back meetings with little time to design. Other days, I’ll have a touch base with the team and then design for the next 12 hours. Everything in my portfolio from Western Digital, SanDisk, SanDisk Professional, WD_Black and Virtually Live are all my designs where I did the work. I hope you like what you see.

Q: Management experience?

A:  Yes, both on-site and remote. I have managed a cross-disciplinary team of 13, 12 external agencies, seven production houses and annual budgets up to $8.4M. I’ve managed design and production processes for branding, packaging, photography and 3D renders, retail, online and print communications.

Q: What about project management and design?

A: They go hand-in-hand. A great idea will not see the light of day if the team cannot tie the creative to the project objectives, goes over budget, misses production deadlines, or fails to get sign-off from stakeholders.These details need regular attention throughout the design process to final execution.

Q: Did you work through those issues or did someone else on the team work out those details?

A: Both, actually. I have worked with some stellar project managers at Western Digital. And at PlayStation and Virtually Live, I also acted as the project manager. I’m experienced in asking questions, writing (or rewriting) creative briefs, building production calendars, managing design progress and stakeholder reviews, and providing regular updates to all of the stakeholders. Follow-up and follow-through is key.

Q: You have a Marketing degree?

A: Yes. My B.A. is from Pace University in New York City.

Q: Why did you get a Marketing degree? 

A:  I wanted to work internationally in business and be creative. Marketing seemed like the best fit for me. I started out as an Analyst in Geneva, Switzerland. It was good work and, over time, I searched out and became more involved with the creative aspects of Marketing. This altered my career trajectory to design and the management of creative teams.

Q: Has the Marketing degree been a benefit?

A: Absolutely. It helps me communicate effectively with both the creatives and the clients in marketing by approaching each job with both a designer’s eye and a marketer’s sensibility. 

Q: No Master’s degree?
A: While I do not hold a Master's degree, I have extensive practical experience, the ability to navigate ambiguity, and a proven record of leading both direct and cross-functional teams to get the job done.

Q: How many brand identity systems have you built?

A: Nine in total. Two for Western Digital (SanDisk and SanDisk Professional). One for Virtually Live. Six for PlayStation. And each brand system had to work across packaging, retail spaces, online, print and large format graphics for trade shows. (This does not count the product specific brand systems I had built for PlayStation’s sports lines.)

Q: Favorite branding project?

A: Each one of them. Here’s why:

• SanDisk for its sheer scale and complexity - building a distinct design structure that worked across six product lines and still keeping a firm handle on the brand consistency.

• The modular approach that delivered a high degree of design flexibility for the SanDisk Professional brand language.

• The final design for Virtually Live’s logo and brand system was a labor of love as the last project I did for the startup.

• The PlayStation 4 was a global launch that touched every single aspect of PlayStation’s business from massive live events to the smallest gift card in a GameStop.

• The PlayStation Exclusive partnership required active and direct collaboration with Channel Marketing, Third Party Publishers, Product Marketing, Legal, and the Executive teams. In the end, we increased PlayStation brand visibility by an average of 28% when all we asked for was a 10% increase. 

Q: What design styles draw you?

A: I like design with layers in the concept. I love a smart use of negative space, light and shadow. I’m drawn to art deco and steampunk. Sports logos. Science fiction and comic books. I can be a bit of a nerd.

Q: What is your design aesthetic?

A: It depends on the brand, its visual language and priorities. From clean to high energy, I flex to fit the brand. Anything less is professional malpractice.

Q: Who are your clients?

A: I worked directly with cross-functional teams from Product and Brand Marketing, Channel Marketing and Retail, Promotions, Public Relations, Third Party Publishers, Legal and Compliance groups, and Executive staff.  

Q: Closing statement?

A: I have more than 20 years of connecting the creative insight to the final design. I have:

• A deep understanding in developing end-to-end brand experiences across multiple consumer touchpoints — brochures, advertising, email, retail, trade shows, videos, websites, presentations, pitch decks, and packaging.

• Proven ability as a creative director and a hands-on designer by setting creative benchmarks and managing expectations to deliver the final product on time and budget.

• Led teams and mentored and developed individuals into people managers and creative leads.

• Directed creative teams and external agencies for corporate and start-up needs.

• Led the creation, development and delivery of all aspects of creative and branding for the launch of products and services.

• Ensured all creative resources, executions and staff aligned with the business objectives for all product launches.

• Managed departmental and project budgets, including project spend, invoicing, operational needs, and annual forecasts.

I’m ready to discuss how I can help your team.