Graphic Design Lead

Forward Role Recruitment; Bolton; On-site; GBP 35,000 - 45,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

25+ days annual leave

Manchester city-centre office

Accessible by public transport

Discounted parking

Job summary

Forward Role Recruitment is seeking a Graphic Design Lead in Manchester City Centre to lead a small creative team and deliver high-quality marketing design across digital and print. The role blends leadership with hands-on creation for paid social, email, web, whitepapers and campaigns.

The ideal candidate has senior design experience, strong portfolio, and the confidence to guide briefs with stakeholders while maintaining brand consistency and quality.

Qualifications

• Senior-level design experience with leadership/management preferred.
• Strong hands-on design skills across both digital and print.
• B2B marketing experience is highly desirable.
• SaaS experience would be particularly beneficial.
• A strong portfolio demonstrating commercial marketing design.
• Experience creating paid social, email and web assets.
• Experience producing longer-form content such as whitepapers and thought leadership materials.
• Strong understanding of branding, typography, layout and visual communication.
• Confident communicating with senior stakeholders and challenging briefs where appropriate.
• Strong organisational skills, with the ability to manage multiple priorities.
• Excellent Adobe Creative Suite skills.
• Figma experience.

Responsibilities

• Lead and manage the creative team, including two videographers.
• Set creative direction and maintain a consistently high standard of output.
• Manage and prioritise briefs across the wider marketing function.
• Remain hands-on, creating high-quality digital and print assets.
• Develop creative concepts for campaigns and marketing activity.
• Design paid social and other paid marketing assets.
• Create visual assets for email and web.
• Produce whitepapers, thought leadership content and internal communications.
• Maintain and evolve brand consistency across all creative output.
• Review creative work and provide clear, constructive feedback.
• Work closely with marketing and senior stakeholders to understand briefs and deliver effective creative solutions.
• Present creative ideas and confidently explain design decisions.
• Balance planned campaigns with reactive requirements and changing priorities.

Skills

Leadership

Mentoring

Digital and print design

Branding typography layout

Communication with stakeholders

Tools

Adobe Creative Suite

Figma

Job description

Graphic Design Lead

Salary: £35,000 - £45,000 per annum

Location: Manchester City Centre

Working Pattern: 5 days on-site, 37.5 hours per week

Experience: Senior-level design experience, with leadership/management experience preferred

Domain: B2B, ideally SaaS

About the Business

Our client is a well-established B2B software business helping organisations simplify and improve the way they manage their people, HR and workplace responsibilities. With a growing UK marketing function, the business is continuing to develop its brand and creative output across multiple channels.

The Role

This is a hands-on Design Lead position combining creative leadership with the delivery of high-quality marketing design.

You'll sit within a wider UK marketing team of 16 and lead a small creative team, including two videographers. The role is less about a traditional job title and more about taking ownership of the creative output, setting direction, managing priorities and ensuring work consistently meets a high standard.

You'll work across both digital and print, producing creative for paid social, email, web, internal communications, whitepapers, thought leadership and wider marketing campaigns.

The ideal candidate will bring strong B2B experience, with SaaS experience particularly beneficial, alongside the confidence to manage and lead a creative team.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead and manage the creative team, including two videographers.
• Set creative direction and maintain a consistently high standard of output.
• Manage and prioritise briefs across the wider marketing function.
• Remain hands-on, creating high-quality digital and print assets.
• Develop creative concepts for campaigns and marketing activity.
• Design paid social and other paid marketing assets.
• Create visual assets for email and web.
• Produce whitepapers, thought leadership content and internal communications.
• Maintain and evolve brand consistency across all creative output.
• Review creative work and provide clear, constructive feedback.
• Work closely with marketing and senior stakeholders to understand briefs and deliver effective creative solutions.
• Present creative ideas and confidently explain design decisions.
• Balance planned campaigns with reactive requirements and changing priorities.

What We're Looking For

• Strong experience working at Senior Designer, Design Lead, Creative Lead or similar level.
• Previous experience leading, mentoring or managing other creatives.
• Strong hands‑on design skills across both digital and print.
• B2B marketing experience is highly desirable.
• SaaS experience would be particularly beneficial.
• A strong portfolio demonstrating commercial marketing design.
• Experience creating paid social, email and web assets.
• Experience producing longer-form content such as whitepapers and thought leadership materials.
• Strong understanding of branding, typography, layout and visual communication.
• Confident communicating with senior stakeholders and challenging briefs where appropriate.
• Strong organisational skills, with the ability to manage multiple priorities.
• Excellent Adobe Creative Suite skills.
• Figma experience.

This role does not require UX/UI or motion design experience.

Working Pattern & Benefits

• 37.5-hour working week.
• 5 days on-site
• Flexible start times.
• 25+ days' annual leave, increasing to 27 days after two years.
• Manchester city-centre office.
• Easily accessible by public transport.
• Discounted parking available at the nearby car park.