RESUME
My career has been comprised of various experiences on both the Agency side, as well as In-House side of creative departments. I don’t just manage projects, I manage the brand vision and creative team that supports that vision. I develop and deploy high-level creative strategy for brands that refuse to settle for industry standards.
INTRODUCTION
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20+ years of experience within creative departments in both B2B and B2C
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Ten years as a Creative Director
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Expertise, shaped by both agency and client-side roles, allows me to deliver innovative solutions that drive brand success
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Expertise in omni-channel experiences, integrated brand marketing, UI/UX design, brand guidelines, with an ability
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Ability to lead in both digital and traditional print platforms
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Marketing agency and client-side roles
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Experience leading creative, branding, and marketing teams
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Experience aligning and managing multiple brands across various channels
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Dedicated to crafting solutions while navigating the unique challenges of supporting two different companies, each with its own CEO and unique objectives
CURRENT EXPERIENCE
Creative Director
BodySolid + FitnessFactory
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Led a high-performing internal creative team of five to transform brand strategies and consumer insights into unified approaches for B2B and B2C brands.
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Oversee all aspects of brand development and standards, as well as internal and external marketing initiatives, web development, social media, photography/video production, email marketing, advertising, and support for sales staff and trade shows.
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Directed the migration of a multi-million dollar B2C e-commerce website onto BigCommerce. The advanced platform allows this team to capture sales analytics, order tracking, and re-marketing efforts to enhance the customers experience.
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Due to the success of this first re-launch, my team also completed a second website migration, also onto BigCommerce. The B2B portion of this organization is now actively hosted on the BigCommerce platform preparing to shift to a Direct-to-Consumer platform.
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Translate business objectives into marketing strategies that effectively convey the goals set by management while also enhancing brand awareness.
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Oversee all aspects of brand development, including web development, social media, email marketing, and support for sales staff and trade shows, ensuring brand consistency and innovation. I have effectively been able to revamp the brand strategy utilizing consumer insights, and internal feedback into a unified approach for both external facing brands.
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Orchestrated the development and execution of a comprehensive photo and video shoot strategy, resulting in a significant increase in engagement and viewership across social media channels.
RECENT EXPERIENCES
Associate Creative Director
DeVry University (2012 – 2016)
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Oversaw designers for two internal brands (DeVry University and Keller Graduate School), managing all design projects to ensure brand consistency.
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Grew the team from 2 to 14 members through effective leadership and targeted recruitment.
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Led the design team, and was lead collaborator with the IT team, during the migration of the university’s main website onto the Adobe AEM platform, enhancing user experience and functionality.
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Developed and executed cutting-edge creative campaigns that significantly enhanced brand visibility, expanded market share, and drove growth across multiple campuses.
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Conceptualized dynamic graphic content to support the diverse colleges within the university.
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In addition to being the lead designer for the university, I was also hands-on for university press-checks ensuring top-notch accuracy in every piece of printed collateral produced for the university’s target audiences.
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Mentored junior designers to cultivate a culture of creativity and excellence within the department.
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Mid-way through my tenor at DVU, I was promoted from Sr Art Director to Associate Creative Director.
Senior Art Director
DeVry University (2009 – 2012)
- First full-time creative hire for DeVry University.
- Conceptualized and designed visually stunning graphics and content that resonated with target audiences
- Later promoted to Associate Creative Director
PREVIOUS EXPERIENCES
Senior Art Director
DeVry University
Senior Art Director
CompTIA
Freelance Art Director
The Nielsen Group
Art Director
Draft Worldwide
Senior Designer
The Marketing Store
Graphic Designer
Maximum Marketing
EDUCATION
MBA, Marketing
Keller Graduate School
BFA, Graphic Design
Eastern Illinois University
PROJECT EXPERIENCES
Creative Direction
Big Commerce®
Implementation
Brand Marketing
Web Design
Print Design
Photographic Styling and Direction
Graphic Design
Presentations
Typography
Packaging and Die lines
Tradeshow Design
Catalogs
Marketing Guidelines and Style Guides
User Experience
Photography
Out Of Home
Landing Page Design
B2B and B2C
Signage
Customer Insight
Social Media
Logos and Identity
Pitch Decks
Email Marketing
Web Development
Team Management
Leadership
Mentoring
HOBBIES
Tinkering with older cars, photography, home renovations, throwing lots and lots of frisbees for my dog, international travel,
and searching for the best cheeseburger in Chicago.
BFA in Graphic Design
MBA in Marketing
years experience as a Creative Director
years experience in Advertising + Design
Send me a Message:
Bob@RobertOBrien.net
Call, or Text Me
773-520-5205
