Design Manager - Brand and Marketing

Design Manager - Brand & Marketing

Map Communications Full-Time | Onsite in Chesapeake, VA

Salary $90,000

About the Role

Map Communications is seeking a highly creative and strategically minded Design Manager to lead the development and execution of compelling, brand-forward visual experiences across digital and print channels.

This role combines hands-on design execution with creative leadership. The ideal candidate is both a strong visual storyteller and an organized creative lead - someone who can move seamlessly between high-level brand strategy and detailed production execution while maintaining exceptional visual standards across all brand communications. The Design Manager will serve as a pillar of the company's internal marketing agency, working across multiple brand identities and numerous channels, engaging audiences both above-the-line (ATL) and below-the-line (BTL).

You will collaborate closely with marketing, leadership, developers, and external partners to create cohesive, impactful brand experiences that support business growth and customer engagement.

Our ideal candidate is a strategic, solution-oriented visual thinker with an exceptional eye for hierarchy and brand consistency. You possess strong conceptual abilities and a passion for storytelling, allowing you to seamlessly differentiate identities and creative approaches across multiple similar brands and audiences. As a collaborative and adaptable teammate, you are highly organized, bring strong project management instincts to the table, and feel entirely comfortable leading creative discussions or defending your design decisions.

To truly thrive in this role, you should have a solid familiarity with front-end design principles, UX/UI systems, or interactive experiences, ideally paired with a background in motion graphics, animation, After Effects, or video editing. Finally, you maintain a curious mindset, staying constantly engaged with emerging technologies, AI-enhanced workflows, and evolving design trends to keep our brand building at the cutting edge.

Responsibilities

• Lead the development and execution of visual brand systems across digital and print platforms
• Manage creative projects from concept through final production, ensuring quality, consistency, and timely delivery
• Collaborate cross-functionally with marketing, product, leadership, developers, vendors, and external partners
• Create and maintain brand guidelines, typography systems, color systems, and visual identity standards
• Design high-impact marketing assets including websites, landing pages, social campaigns, presentations, and branded collateral
• Translate brand strategy into compelling visual storytelling across campaigns and customer touchpoints
• Mentor junior creatives and external vendors while maintaining creative direction and quality control
• Present creative concepts and design rationale clearly to stakeholders and leadership teams
• Balance strategic thinking with hands-on production and execution
• Ensure all creative deliverables align with business goals, user experience principles, and brand standards
• Manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment while maintaining strong attention to detail

Qualifications

• 8+ years of professional experience in graphic design, brand design, visual design, or print design
• Previous experience leading projects, managing creative workflows, or supervising designers and freelancers
• Strong portfolio showcasing expertise in branding, visual identity systems, and campaign design
• Advanced proficiency in Adobe Creative Suite (Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign)
• Experience with Figma and collaborative design workflows
• Strong understanding of typography, layout systems, visual hierarchy, color theory, and production best practices
• Ability to operate at both strategic and executional levels of design
• Excellent communication, presentation, and stakeholder management skills
• Experience with generative AI and AI-enabled/AI-enhanced workflows

Beyond these core skills, bonus points go to candidates who bring deep experience in go-to-market strategies and integrated marketing campaigns. You are comfortable developing creative assets for complex multi-channel initiatives and thrive when collaborating closely with marketing and growth teams to align design execution with broader business goals. With a solid understanding of performance-driven creative, you have a proven track record of optimizing assets for social media advertising, email marketing, and other digital campaign efforts to maximize audience engagement and drive results.