Art Director

Blue Matter; United States; On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

401k match

Medical, dental, vision coverage

FSA/HSA

Life insurance

Parental leave

Wellness benefit

Paid time off

Job summary

Blue Matter is seeking an experienced Art Director to lead the visual direction of our pharmaceutical and life sciences campaigns. You will translate complex strategy into compelling creative, guiding projects from concept through delivery while ensuring regulatory compliance.

You will work with copywriters, project managers, and clients to elevate brand visuals, sustain high quality, and push creative standards in a fast-paced agency setting.

Qualifications

• Ability to translate strategy and content into visually compelling creative.
• Experience designing for regulated industries, pharma or life sciences preferred.
• Strong portfolio showing print and digital excellence.

Responsibilities

• Lead the visual direction of projects and execute design work across channels.
• Collaborate with writers, account leads, and clients to align visuals with messaging.
• Manage projects from concept to delivery with high accuracy and quality.
• Ensure work adheres to brand guidelines and regulatory requirements.

Skills

Adobe Creative Suite

Figma

PowerPoint

Tools

InDesign

Illustrator

Photoshop

Figma

PowerPoint

Job description

Blue Matter is a rapidly growing management consultancy specializing in strategy and execution, primarily in the biopharmaceutical industry. We partner with our clients to help them achieve commercial success across the lifecycle of their products, portfolios, and organizations. Our project types include new product planning, launch strategy and execution, portfolio planning, communications and creative services strategy and execution, and disease area strategy. The majority of our work is in specialty therapeutics, with oncology and rare diseases as specific areas of expertise.

We have a unique entrepreneurial culture and invest in building Blue Matter to be one of the best places to work. We have a strong global presence with offices in the US (San Francisco, New York, and Boston), Europe (London, Zurich, and Netherlands), and India.

We’re seeking a versatile, experienced, hands‑on Art Director to join our fast-growing creative agency serving the pharmaceutical and life sciences industry. In this role, you’ll play a key role in shaping the visual and conceptual direction of work, actively contribute to day-to-day design execution across a range of formats and channels, and partner closely with cross-functional teammates to deliver high-quality, compliant work.

You’ll be responsible for translating complex information into high-quality creative that is compelling and on-brand. From initial concept to final delivery, you’ll shape the look, feel, and visual storytelling of assets, ensuring they meet the highest creative and regulatory standards. Collaborating closely with cross-functional partners including copywriters, project managers, consulting, leadership, and clients, this is an opportunity to help shape the agency’s creative standards and contribute meaningfully to its growth.

Primary Responsibilities

• Lead the visual direction of projects, guiding overall look, feel, and layout decisions while actively executing design work
• Develop and execute design concepts across multiple channels (digital and dynamic/interactive materials, print deliverables, presentations, other pharmaceutical marketing materials)
• Collaborate closely with content strategists, copywriters, and account leads to ensure alignment between visuals and messaging
• Manage projects from concept to delivery—including layout, refinement, production, and file handoff—ensuring accuracy and quality throughout
• Present ideas and design rationale internally and to clients with confidence and clarity
• Ensure creative work adheres to brand guidelines and regulatory requirements (e.g., ISI, fair balance, references, and review preparation)
• Provide art direction and feedback to junior designers or freelancers as needed
• Contribute to concept development and brainstorming for new campaigns or pitches
• Collaborate with the Creative Director to uphold visual standards and push creative quality
• Help create, maintain, and evolve internal brand visual standards, templates, and asset libraries
• Support broader creative team operations by wearing multiple hats, contributing to both direction and hands‑on execution in a lean, fast-paced environment

Desired Experience and Skills

• High proficiency in Adobe Creative Suite (especially InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop) and expertise in Figma and PowerPoint
• Demonstrated ability to translate strategy and content into visually compelling creative
• Experience designing for regulated industries, ideally in pharmaceutical or life sciences marketing, market access specific experience is a plus
• Proven experience working within and adapting brand guidelines while contributing original ideas and elevating the visual standard
• Strong organizational skills and attention to detail, ability to juggle multiple projects and timelines in a fast-paced environment
• Clear communicator, enthusiastic collaborator, and team player who can contribute ideas, accept feedback, and refine work independently

Preferred Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience in a creative or design-focused role (prior agency and pharma experience strongly preferred)
• Strong portfolio demonstrating creative thinking, layout excellence, and polished design execution across both print and digital formats
• Motion or interactive design experience is a plus (e.g., HTML5, video, banner animation)
• Experience working in PowerPoint to create or refine high-quality presentation decks
• Exposure to new business development or pitch work
• Familiarity with the market access space and prior pharmaceutical creative experience
• Familiarity with the MLR process including annotation and reference management
• Previous experience in a startup or small agency environment

Compensation:

Base salary range: $90,000 - $130,000 depending on experience. Generous incentive compensation structure.

Benefits Package:

• 401k - generous employer match with immediate vesting and financial planning resources
• Comprehensive medical, dental and vision coverage options effective day 1 of employment
• Flexible spending account (FSA) or Health Savings Account (HSA)
• Company paid insurances including Short- and Long-Term Disability and Life insurance as well as additional voluntary options
• Paid parental leave for all new parents
• Health & Wellness Benefit (e.g., gym memberships; $1000 reimbursement annually)
• Employee Assistance Program
• Generous paid time off including vacation, sick days, floating and company holidays

Blue Matter is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate against otherwise qualified applicants on the basis of race, color, religion, ancestry, age (40 and over), sex (including gender identity, sexual orientation and pregnancy), national origin, disability, marital status, parental status, genetic information, political affiliation, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.