Senior Design and Brand Manager/NAT - CRADLES TO CRAYONS
Newtonville, MA 02460
About the Job
- In-person Engagement - through tens of thousands of children and adults volunteering at our Giving Factory warehouses to sort and package high volumes of new and like-new donations from our communities for our Service Partners to distribute to the children they serve.
- Online Product Donations - Giving Factory Direct matches product donors directly to children who need the items they have to donate. GFD is currently available in a growing number of communities as we expand our reach nationally.
- Advocacy and Awareness - Cradles to Crayons is uniquely positioned to raise Clothing Insecurity as a national issue through awareness campaigns, data/evaluation, and legislative outreach.
Cradles to Crayons has earned the highest possible rating from Charity Navigator since 2009. Only 2% of charities nationwide have received this distinction. C2C has a budget of $19.4M for FY25.
POSITION OVERVIEW:
Reporting to the Director, Marketing Communications, the Senior Design and Brand Manager is a new position within our new centralized MarCom team and is responsible for developing, implementing, and safeguarding C2C’s brand identity, design production, and visual standards. This role serves as the primary brand ambassador, ensuring consistent and compelling representation across all MarCom work and channels, both internally and externally—and handles all aspects of work from hands-on designing to providing art direction. A key, skills-based member of the MarCom team, the Senior Design and Brand Manager collaborates with Market and function teams to design and create visually compelling and on-brand materials that effectively communicate Cradles to Crayons’ mission, values, and initiatives. Additionally, this position works in partnership with external agencies and vendors to support the development and implementation of marketing and communications campaigns.
RESPONSIBILITIES:
- Model and lead a positive “One Cradles to Crayons” culture, underpinned by Cradles to Crayons’ Cultural Values and related behaviors
Strategy
- Work collaboratively with key stakeholders and stakeholder groups to increase national presence and brand awareness for Cradles to Crayons and all our brand assets, such as the Giving Factory Direct platform and the End Clothing Insecurity movement
- Work with Leadership and org-wide staff to recognize internal and external brand and design needs and opportunities; define and execute appropriate strategies to support them
Brand Management
- Develop and maintain the organization's brand identity and guidelines; create and manage an asset library for creative resources; maintain and archive production and raw asset files
- Ensure consistent application of the brand across all MarCom materials and organizational brand assets
- Monitor and protect C2C’s brand integrity, reputation, and creative consistency
- Serve as a “visual gatekeeper” for all outputs (videos, photographs, website pages, emails, social media posts, etc.)
- Develop fresh new ways to push C2C’s brand
Design and Creative Direction
- Design, produce, and oversee visual identity and direction of marketing collateral, promotional materials, and all branded assets—from concept to implementation
- Collaborate with C2C teams and external agencies to develop creative concepts and designs
- Ensure design consistency across various channels (print, digital, social media, website, events, etc.); coordinate design projects from concept to completion
- Build practices for and execute dynamic visual storytelling to increase impact and engagement
- Manage vendors and external partners, such as printers and agencies
MarCom Support
- Contribute to the development and execution of MarCom strategies
- Collaborate with the MarCom team to ensure organizational brand alignment
- Provide design support for campaigns, events, and fundraising initiatives
Team Collaboration and Oversight
- Provide brand and design feedback, review, and approval for Market and function colleagues outside of the MarCom team
Required Experience/Knowledge/Skills/Abilities:
- 4-5 years relevant brand management, design, and MarCom/advertising experience
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills with strong attention to detail
- Proficient in Adobe Creative Suite and other creative platforms
- Proficient in print and digital production and commercial printing
- Proficient in creative campaigning and direction
- Proficient in design/asset/rights management
- Proficient in using digital marketing to raise awareness and take action
- Experience in video production and motion graphics
- Experience in UX/UI and digital user design
- Experience with WordPress
- Experience in social media platforms and digital media content
- Experience with organizations in growth transition
- Endlessly curious in how emerging digital marketing trends can translate into excellent user experiences
- Ability to thrive on a new team in a dynamic, entrepreneurial, and collaborative environment
- Ability to juggle multiple projects simultaneously
- Nonprofit experience a plus
- A passion for Cradles to Crayons’ mission
DIVERSITY IS OUR STRENGTH:
Working Conditions:
Accommodation:
About CRADLES TO CRAYONS:
Cradles to Crayons (C2C), founded in 2002, provides children from birth through age 12, living in homeless or low-income situations, with the essential items they need to thrive—at home, at school, and at play. We supply clothing, shoes, diapers, school supplies, and more, free of charge. Our vision is that one day all children will have the essentials they need to thrive. Two in 5 kids in the United States are currently facing Clothing Insecurity, going without basic essentials like pants, shoes, diapers, and school supplies during their critical development years. Three of the top 10 reasons kids miss school are rooted in Clothing Insecurity—just one example of the significant short- and long-term social and economic costs when these needs go unmet. Cradles to Crayons keeps Clothing Insecurity at the core of our mission and is the only large-scale nonprofit organization to focus on this resource gap. Since its founding, Cradles to Crayons has distributed more than three million customized packages of essentials to children in Massachusetts, Greater Philadelphia, Chicagoland, NYC, and nationally, through Giving Factory Direct—a first-in-kind online product donation platform launched in 2021. Cradles to Crayons takes a three-pronged approach to mitigating Clothing Insecurity: 1. In-person Engagement—through tens of thousands of children and adults volunteering at our Giving Factory warehouses to sort and package high volumes of new and like-new donations from our communities for our Service Partners to distribute to the children they serve. 2. Online Product Donations—Giving Factory Direct matches product donors directly to children who need the items they have to donate. GFD is currently available in a growing number of communities as we expand our reach nationally. 3. Advocacy and Awareness—Cradles to Crayons is uniquely positioned to raise Clothing Insecurity as a national issue through awareness campaigns, data/evaluation, and legislative outreach. Cradles to Crayons has earned the highest possible rating from Charity Navigator for 13 consecutive years. Only 2% of charities nationwide have received this distinction. C2C has a budget of $12.9M for FY22.
