Kenneth Velasquez
Art Direction & Visual Design Consultant
Brooklyn, NY, USACreative professional with experience in managing projects and leading teams. Proven expertise in corporate / nonprofit branding and marketing. Adept at, and energized by, working in a fast-paced organization. Known for a hands-on, results-oriented style, and an unwavering enthusiasm for making a difference in the world.
Work Experience
Lincoln Financial Group
Senior Designer, Creative Services
Art direction, concept and development of print and digital collateral, infographics, and campaigns for corporate and product lines.
June 2015
- Present
Pennsylvania, United States
Ken Velasquez
Freelance Design Consultant
Worked with a variety of clients in nonprofit, education, and government sectors, on a diverse range of projects: annual reports, brochures, logos, visual identities. Managed projects from initial concepts through vendor management and production of final pieces. Select clients include: NYC Department of Education, New York Cares, Homes for the Homeless, Institute for Children and Poverty, International Peace Academy, Harper Collins.
April 2014
- Present
Pennsylvania, United States
Teach For America
Senior Managing Director, Creative Services
Senior Managing Director (SMD), Creative. Member of the Marketing Leadership Team, and integral part of growing the overall team from three to more than sixty full time staff, that served fifty plus regional sites and national office teams. Oversaw the daily operations of the creative team (eight full-time art directors / designers), and worked closely with account and project management teams on management and prioritization of all creative projects. Lead annual budget planning for personnel and hardware, team off-sites, conferences, professional development opportunities, and hiring of photographers and illustrators.
As I evolved from Graphic Designer to SMD of Creative, I conceived and set-up many firsts, including:
• An e-commerce store for printed materials serving regional offices and national
teams, that leveraged bulk ordering to increase savings across the organization.
• Researched and implemented a digital assets management system to house a
growing library of photography (200,000+ images), and cloud based storage for
creative team.
- Revolutionized work flow between creative and organization by moving to
laptops and utilizing cloud based storage. Gave team freedom to travel from
office to office enabling better collaboration with regional partners.
• Lead the creation of an online store for promotional items that served regions
and teams, as well as a retail store for supporters. The store included functionality
that gave internal audiences the ability to purchase items at cost.
As I evolved from Graphic Designer to SMD of Creative, I conceived and set-up many firsts, including:
• An e-commerce store for printed materials serving regional offices and national
teams, that leveraged bulk ordering to increase savings across the organization.
• Researched and implemented a digital assets management system to house a
growing library of photography (200,000+ images), and cloud based storage for
creative team.
- Revolutionized work flow between creative and organization by moving to
laptops and utilizing cloud based storage. Gave team freedom to travel from
office to office enabling better collaboration with regional partners.
• Lead the creation of an online store for promotional items that served regions
and teams, as well as a retail store for supporters. The store included functionality
that gave internal audiences the ability to purchase items at cost.
August 1996
- March 2014
New York, New York, United States
Education
Parsons The New School For Design
BFA Communication Design
September 1993
- May 1996
New York, United States
Skills
Adobe Creative Suite,
Color Correction,
CSS,
HTML,
Keynote ,
Mac OS,
Microsoft Office Suite,
Photography,
Powerpoint,
Pre-press,
Print Production,
Retouching,
WordPress,