accomplishments in numbers

22

years of experience

200

websites launched

280

businesses helped

310

happy clients

professional experience

Career Highlights

Over the past 23 years, I've worked at small creative agencies, in-house creative departments in large and mid-sized corporations, and even owned my own design firm. Below is a sampling of my experience.

art director at cygnet
2014 – Current

Art Director

Cygnet Midwest – A B2B and B2C boutique marketing and advertising firm.

Art directing, managing design (print, web, UI/UX) and front-end development, leading design and developer teams, managing workflows, and mentoring in agile environments for web and app development. Liaise with client teams daily to ensure success and satisfaction.

  • Improved client satisfaction by 40% and heightened communication by deploying a customized projects portal.
  • Increased sales leads by 35% with our company website redesign, maximizing SEO, responsive functionality, and speed.
  • Identified and developed client web hosting revenue stream, overseeing dozens of client sites, DNS settings, databases, and web application installations.
  • Boosted team performance by 25% by deploying a project management solution.
2012 – 2014

Art Director

Stevens & Tate – A B2C and B2B mid-sized marketing and advertising firm.

  • Created product identity for new line of consumer appliances.
  • Managed vendors and off-site freelance team through time-sensitive project life cycles and budgets, aligning with account executives, copywriters, and web developers.
  • Recoded website with HTML5.
  • Developed UX flow for new web app.
art director at stevens and tate
Lead Web Designer at Sun-Times media
2011 – 2012

Lead Web Designer

Chicago Sun-Times Media

The success of my UI/UX and website redesign work resulted in a lead web designer promotion.

  • Managed web department’s UI design, front-end coding, project workflow and Jira system.
  • Redesigned, redeveloped, and/or debugged sites for Monster co-branded pages, Homes/Real Estate, and RogerEbert.com
2010 – 2011

Lead Marketing Creative

Chicago Sun-Times Media

Project managed creative workflow for marketing department and graphic design team, providing creative direction for graphic design, copywriting, and web design.

  • Launched Sun-Times Media’s daily deal product, WantsaDeal with logo, marketing, ad campaigns, website design, email blasts, etc
  • Optimized UI/UX for online classified ads wizard, enabling customers to more easily purchase print and online classified ads.
  • Maximized department efficiency by 35% by reorganizing workflow protocols, which also reduced errors by 30%.
  • Performed identity refresh for ToDrive.com with integrated campaign of print and web redesigns.
Lead Marketing Creative at Sun-Times media
what I can do

My skills

In the past 23 years, I’ve picked up an extensive skillset.

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Ideation

Creating unique concepts is one of the cornerstones of good marketing and advertising. I not only excel at this, but also brainstorming with co-workers to make our concepts shine.

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Design

From corporate to unconventional design, my design aesthetic has been called chameleon-like. I can design for any medium and any audience. I'm experienced with print, web, digital, trade shows, packaging, and motion.

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Web Development

While building and launching over 200 websites, I've mastered HTML and CSS, as well as worked in many other front-end languages. I also have experience with many content management systems and back-end systems.

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Management & Direction

Managing designers and projects is second nature to me, as I've done it for almost 15 years. I am also well-versed with art direction, providing valuable guidance on designs and campaigns.

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Digital Marketing

Planning, creating, and managing digital marketing campaigns across multiple social platforms and other channels is one of my many fortes. Using all the tools available – automation, drip campaigns, PPC, emails, and many others – allows for a robust data-set to grow. Analyzing this data and then tweaking the campaign, ensures success.

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Print Production

I am proficient with taking a design and preparing it to go to print. I have developed special print production processes for clients to get their intricate pieces printed successfully for the best price.