Vast Associate Creative Director, Brand & Design at Vast leads brand design standards and manages a small design team. The role involves hands-on design work and mentoring designers.
Responsibilities
Own and evolve Vast's brand design standards, and make sure the work coming out of the team meets them every day, not just at major launches
Manage a team of designers day-to-day: give feedback in real time, run reviews, and set clear direction on what good looks like
Jump into the work yourself, sketching, editing, designing, when that's the fastest way to get something over the bar
Lead creative work from concept through final execution across brand initiatives, campaigns, and key company moments
Translate business goals and technical complexity into creative direction the team can actually run with
Partner with marketing, comms, product, engineering, and business teams to spot where design can move the needle, and follow through on it
Mentor designers on craft and judgment, not just process, help them get better at knowing what to cut
Present creative direction to stakeholders, and hold the line on quality when there's pressure to compromise
Keep a real pulse on how AI is changing design and production workflows, and bring that into how the team actually works
Qualification
8+ years of experience in brandExperience managing a small design teamExperience building brand in aerospaceExperience translating highly technicalAdditional RequirementsAbility to travel up to 10% of the timeWillingness to work overtime
Required
Bachelor's degree or equivalent practical experience
8+ years of experience in brand, design, art direction, or a related creative discipline (e.g., brand design, digital design, visual communications, integrated marketing), with a proven track record of producing high-quality work yourself
A strong portfolio that demonstrates hands-on craft across multiple channels and audiences, with a clear pull toward innovative, simple, and technically-minded work
Experience working in a fast-paced environment, and genuinely enjoying the pace, volume, and ambiguity that come with it
Experience managing a small design team: giving clear creative direction while staying deeply hands-on in the work itself
A natural people mentor who develops direct reports and helps them grow their craft and confidence
Experience translating business objectives, audience insights, and complex concepts into clear, executable creative
Experience partnering with cross-functional teams including marketing, communications, product, engineering, operations, and leadership
Preferred
Experience building brand in aerospace, technology, science, or another category where the product is genuinely hard to explain
Comfortable across brand design standards, design for print, ads, social, events, partnerships, mission graphics, facilities and wayfinding
Experience translating highly technical, hard-to-explain products into stories that land with a broader audience without losing credibility with a technical one
Experience managing external creative partners and production resources
Comfortable in the room with engineers and executives, able to hold a point of view under pressure and get people aligned without watering down the work
Additional Requirements:
Ability to travel up to 10% of the time
Willingness to work overtime, or weekends to support critical mission milestones
