The Brand Business Director role encompasses prospecting for new business and the ongoing development of ASTRO’s Brand Communications and Design creation and consulting services. This role is responsible for the entire account development process including lead generation, presentations, speaking engagements, proposals and RFP responses. Also, often supporting and supplementing Brand Strategy, Design and Development in collaboration with ASTRO’s Brand Creative Director. The position is primarily focused on new client relationships and secondarily on "new" business from existing accounts.

Job Responsibilities

Consultative Sales:
Lead individual and team efforts that contribute to successful new business acquisitions:
• Point of view development; internally and for clients through consultation
• Appropriate levels of due diligence
• Pitch strategy; content positioning and ASTRO marketing support
• Pricing / proposal strategy and content
• Team integration; (i.e. Partner, Creative Director, Program Director, etc.)
• Strategically drive thoughtful RFP initiatives

Lead identification, cultivation:
• Targeted lead generation; prospecting as needed
• Presentations and lead generation materials: case studies, leave-behinds
• Negotiation and conversion of opportunities into client relationships
• Work with PA partners and related design & innovation partner/collaborators
• Meet annual targeted business goals (both personal and team goals)

Team Collaboration:
• Develop strategies for optimal integration of all ASTRO competencies to best meet client needs
• Help build a network of Partnerships (UI/UX, Ad Agencies, Research, Venture Capital etc.)
• Establish business objectives for Brand/Digital capability growth with Directors and Partners
• Identify new growth opportunities in different sectors

Knowledge / Skills / Abilities:
• Proven Business Development / Account Leadership
• Strong negotiation skills
• Self-starter, ambitious
• Ability to understand and represent the ASTRO story through a client service-driven model
• Excellent communication skills: engaging public speaker and effective proposal writer
• Intrinsic knowledge on how to qualify and offer relevant insights for prospective clients
• Detail-oriented, with strong client service and follow-through skills
• Strong understanding of process and production of brand and digital projects
• Strong understanding of roles and responsibilities of a design team
• Highly driven team player

Education and Experience:
Minimum of a Bachelor’s Degree at an accredited university. Minimum of 6+ years of successful business development and/or account management experience within a professional design firm and/or digital or advertising agency. Client-side marketing leadership experience a plus.

The Director of User Experience (UX) is the principle leader of the UX department. Their key objective will be to lead the UX department in growth and excellence by promoting collaboration in the department, creating a positive environment, embodying the business/product values and, assisting in the achievement of digital product goals.

The Director of UX also conducts research and documents findings, creates consumer scenarios, and creates strategy documents and content to supply to the UX department personnel as well as collaborating digital product departments. The Director will work closely with research and insights personnel, and directly lead UX and UI designers across all web, app, and digital experiences.

Additionally, the Director will work with program managers to ensure consumer requirements and needs are considered and incorporated in the digital product from the conceptualization to the realization of the product.

Job Responsibilities

Activities:
• Hire, mentor and lead an excellent team of digital designers
• Lead the UX/UI team through management and mentorship
• Elevate and oversee the design process across all digital capabilities
• Take the role of lead expert in all things digital
• Establish process for digital capabilities
• Provide feedback throughout the design process to improve efficiency and quality of deliverables
• Interpretation of user stories and generation of user experience flows and requirements
• Conduct a wide range of competitive analyses of websites and digital mediums
• Build UX/UI mockups and prototypes to present to stakeholders
• Collaborate with engineering to translate user requirements into implementation plan
• Participate in marketing and branding efforts as the role requires
• Responsible for the identification of new market opportunities
• Play lead role in the creation and execution of digital product strategies
• Manage client relationships and lead presentations

Team Collaboration:
• Direct collaboration across digital product development, brand and graphic design, and business development teams
• Work cross-functionally with digital product and brand teams to define roadmap and provide high-level vision and style guides
• Collaborate with insights team identify and create strategies

Knowledge / Skills / Abilities:
• Fluency in all aspects of user-centered design, including best practices for information architecture, interaction design, visual design, and the user-centered design process
• Passion for trends and technology and user interface patterns for web
• Ability to solve real-world user design problems
• Demonstrate practical success in taking UX research findings and applying them to add value
• Intrinsic knowledge on how to qualify and offer relevant insights for prospective clients
• Proficiency in design tools such as Adobe Creative Suite, Sketch, Figma, Principle, InVision, and other wireframing, prototyping, and UI software
• Proficient in MS Word, Excel, PPT
• Excellent research and analytical skills
• Excellent written and oral communication skills
• Detail-oriented, with strong client service and follow-through skills
• Strong leadership skills
• Must have strong interpersonal and people skills
• Highly driven team player

Education and Experience:
Minimum of a Bachelor’s Degree at an accredited university. Minimum of 10+ years experience with a focus on digital product development and mobile applications; 3+ years managing focused UX/UI teams

The Copywriter will work across the Digital, Design and Brand teams, to support copy needs for brand communications, strategy, research & insights, and ASTRO marketing initiatives as needed. The ideal candidate will have relevant design, marketing and/or communications experience, demonstrating a strong understanding of how to craft brand language, tone and messaging, across various markets and business channels ranging from digital properties to complex concepts, business to social media and marketing. A keen perspective on creating social content is required as responsibilities for both clients and ASTRO will be expected. Additionally, the writer will have the opportunity to refine ASTRO’s brand, tone, and establish a structure for other collaborators.

Job Responsibilities

Activities:
• Creation of engaging content with a distinct voice to be disseminated across various channels and platforms
• Production of error-free edited content
• Presentation of concepts and underlying strategic thinking to business leaders
• Interpretation of creative direction and adaptation of points from creative briefs into persuasive copy concepts
• Flexibility in writing styles across different needs that range from creative copy, editorial copy, and foundational brand copy
• A varying degree of on-going projects from brand, to industrial design, to marketing initiatives will be active concurrently

Team Collaboration:
• Collaboration with Partners, Directors and creative teams in production of content
• Client-facing collaboration and presentation
• Participation with the Marketing team and brand initiatives
• Collaboration with digital team for web/app projects/initiatives

Knowledge / Skills / Abilities:
• Highly creative, curious, and imaginative
• Ability to communicate skillfully and effectively across all team and client team members
• Keen and fine-tuned attention to detail, accuracy and ability to edit own work
• Empathetic POV and strong ability to communicate brand values
• Ability to simultaneously manage multiple projects with short deadlines
• Demonstrable success in managing a business social media presence
• Experience in production of copy for digital, print and video content
• Understanding of user experience
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite
• Solid understanding of SEO concepts a plus

Education and Experience:
Minimum of a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing, Journalism or Communications from an accredited university. Minimum of 2+ years experience in a similar position with proven success.

ASTRO Studios is looking for Program Managers who are relentlessly process-driven, stellar communicators, detail-oriented and very proactive program champions. You will be expected to facilitate and foster clients relationships, and manage large, complex programs and guide them to successful completion while meeting or exceeding client expectations. Program Managers play the dual role of client advocate and internal team advocate, facilitating a fluid and consistent line of communication between ASTRO and our clients. Program Managers are responsible for the day-to-day operational aspects of projects, teams, budgets, schedules, communications and client relationship building.

Job Responsibilities

Activities:
• Management of client relationship throughout the life of project durations, acting as the main point of contact between the client and ASTRO
• Preparation of client proposals including review of initial RFP/RFQ, whiteboarding proposal outlines with Associate Creative Directors / Creative Directors / Business Director, creating hour shells against scope and translating into proposal drafts for Director review
• Ensuring services delivered by ASTRO conform to contractual agreements and monitoring the delivery of the services against agreed-upon scope, schedules and budgets
• Internal project performance reporting on deliverables and budgets
• Ongoing maintenance and distribution of detailed meeting notes and “playback” of information of project feedback, progress and any action items, ensuring all verbal communications are documented and acknowledged
• Acting as an escalation point around issues of potential change orders, client issues, internal resources
• Management of internal resource planning and adjustments as necessary
• Support of key business development owners in all requested aspects of execution of marketing campaigns including travel and communications, mailings, creation of marketing collateral from internal asset creation to external vendor communications

Knowledge / Skills / Abilities:
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, and ability to proactively facilitate communication
• Highly professional demeanor and even temperament
• Extreme attention to detail
• High level of organizational abilities
• Resilience in the face of conflict
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team to meet deadlines
• Experience managing and nurturing overall client relationships
• Ability to demonstrate good decision-making, time management, communication and coordination
• Proficiency in client resource databases
• Ability to deliver high-quality documents
• Proficiency in Adobe Creative Suite and Microsoft Office Suite
• Graphic design skills a plus

Education and Experience:
Minimum of a Bachelor’s Degree at an accredited university. Minimum of 3+ years experience in a similar position at a creative or design agency.

A Brand Designer participates and contributes as a creative team member. They should demonstrate a strong understanding of design, and the processes required to achieve it. They will be expected to have the ability to generate fresh, creative solutions and communicate them effectively.

The key expectation is to quickly learn to contribute with impact on projects. Designers at this level should strive to get good and comfortable with their design tools and continue to learn new ones. A Designer should also learn to effectively communicate with clients and staff as directed and modeled by the Creative Directors & Lead Designers. The designer will work on a variety of programs and learn and grow from more experienced designers to gain a basic understanding of the business side of design consulting.

Finally, ASTRO is a distinct brand within the global marketplace. Our clients come to us for our strong, unique point of view, and hard-hitting approach. We ask all our designers to push the envelope, because that’s what our clients ultimately respect us for the most.

Job Responsibilities

Activities:
• Translation of client needs and branding strategies into design strategies
• Design of visual concepts using graphic design tools in 2D or 3D art
• Design of logos and layouts for print and digital media
• Selection of colors, fonts, photographs, layouts and other design elements to communicate creative concepts
• Articulation and pitching of design concepts to Directors and teams
• Ideation and design of social content and Astro brand material
• Design and management of presentation documents

Team Collaboration:
• Must have strong interpersonal skills, and the ability to partner with colleagues and be receptive to the ideas of others
• Must have ability to take direction and accept constructive criticism from Lead Designers and Creative Directors
• Will work with other capabilities ranging from Strategy/Insights, to Marketing
• Will have the freedom and encouragement to express creative POV
• Will work with the teams across multiple categories of design
• Will work on more than one project at once

Knowledge / Skills / Abilities:
• Up-to-the minute knowledge of global trends, technology and fashion
• Ability to demonstrate insightful, fresh conceptual thinking
• Ability to deliver effective written and oral communication
• Ability to prioritize work and manage time effectively
• Ability to meet deadlines and demonstrate reliability
• Detail-oriented and organized
• Strong understanding of visual communication principles such as shape, form, color, composition, etc.
• Strong understanding of digital design and social platforms
• Expert understanding of graphic applications such as Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign, etc.
• Proficiency in Adobe Creative Suite, Sketch
• Photography/Video is a strong plus
• Motion / Interactive design skills a strong plus
• Understanding of digital prototyping tools for product, mobile and web a bonus

Education and Experience:
Minimum of a Bachelor’s Degree in Graphic Design, Visual Communications or relevant equivalent at an accredited university. Minimum of 1+ years in a similar position with similar responsibilities in the field of Brand and Graphic Design

Industrial Design Internship

We offer hourly paid year-round seasonal 3-month internship opportunities to those students in their 3^rd or 4^th year of accredited industrial design programs. The start and end dates are flexible depending on your program requirements. Be sure to submit your most recently updated portfolio when applying.

Application windows:

• Winter (within JAN-MAR): apply only between 9/1-9/15 of each year
• Spring (within APR-JUN): apply only between 12/1-12/15 of each year
• Summer (within JUN-SEP): apply only between 3/1-3/15 of each year
• Fall (within OCT-DEC): apply only between 6/1-6/15 of each year

Applications submitted outside of their respective windows or from applicants in their 1^st or 2^nd years of study will not be viewed or responded to.