Associate, Creative & Branding

American-College-of-Cardiology-; Washington (District of Columbia); On-site; USD 70,000 - 76,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Insurance benefits

Paid time off

Tuition assistance

Retirement plan

Job summary

The Creative and Branding Associate at American College of Cardiology (ACC) sits on the Marketing & Communications team, delivering original design for print, digital, presentation, and display formats using Adobe Creative Cloud on Macintosh. Under the Team Leader, Creative and Branding, you ensure on-brand output that aligns with ACC’s cardiovascular care mission.

You will manage assets, collaborate across departments, and maintain efficient project workflows to meet deadlines and budgets while

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Design or related field.
• 5+ years professional graphic design experience.
• High proficiency in Adobe Creative Cloud on Mac, with Canva knowledge; After Effects and Premiere Pro familiarity.
• Strong portfolio across graphic design disciplines and typography.
• Knowledge of industry artwork prep for press.

Responsibilities

• Create original graphic design and production per ACC brand guidelines across formats.
• Collaborate with teams to incorporate input from business lines.
• Manage projects to meet on-time, on-budget objectives.
• Maintain organized asset files and repository per standards.
• Work with Production Manager on budget and postal/printing considerations.

Skills

Graphic design

Branding

Layout design

Communication

Collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree in Design

Tools

Adobe Creative Cloud

Canva

Final Cut Pro

Premiere Pro

After Effects

Job description

• Target Salary Range at Hire $70,000 - $76,000

Job Description

The Creative and Branding Associate is a graphic designer on ACC's Creative and Branding team within Marketing & Communications, responsible for original design and design production across print, digital, presentation, and display formats. The role requires a high level of proficiency in Adobe Creative Suite on the Macintosh platform and a working understanding of brand and visual identity systems, and operates under the day-to-day direction of the Team Leader, Creative and Branding.

Responsibilities

The Creative and Branding Associate is a graphic designer on ACC's Creative and Branding team within Marketing & Communications, responsible for original design and design production across print, digital, presentation, and display formats. The role requires a high level of proficiency in Adobe Creative Suite on the Macintosh platform and a working understanding of brand and visual identity systems, and operates under the day-to-day direction of the Team Leader, Creative and Branding.

Key deliverables and objectives:

Original, on-brand design work across the full range of marketing and communications formats — collateral systems, ad campaigns, newsletters, magazines, exhibits, and more

Projects delivered on time, within budget, and to the creative and business objectives set for each assignment

Accurate, up-to-date creative asset management (photography, fonts, software, art materials) so the team can work efficiently

Organized, current project files and archives on shared servers per department standards

This is an individual-contributor design role with no direct reports and no departmental budget ownership. The Associate is accountable for delivering individual projects within their assigned budgets and for recommending cost‑saving or efficiency solutions, in partnership with the Creative and Branding Production Manager, but does not hold budget authority.

Major Duties and Responsibilities

The Associate exercises creative and technical judgment in executing design work and recommending cost or production solutions, but works within brand guidelines and accepts project assignments from the Team Leader — direction on priorities and scope comes from above, while execution and problem‑solving on individual projects is largely self‑directed. The role requires regular judgment calls around production feasibility, budget, and postal/printing regulations. Primary interactions are with the Team Leader and Creative and Branding team (assignment and collaboration), the Production Manager (budget and production feasibility), and marketing/communications teams and other business lines across the College (gathering input and ensuring projects reflect their needs).

Create original graphic design and design production for marketing and communications projects, in keeping with ACC's visual and brand identity guidelines

Partner with marketing and communications teams to ensure projects reflect the expertise and input of relevant business lines across the College

Manage assigned projects to ensure on‑time, on‑budget delivery that meets creative and business objectives

Work with the Creative and Branding Production Manager to keep projects within budget and compliant with postal regulations; recommend solutions that improve creative results and/or reduce costs

Accept assignments from the Team Leader and collaborate with the Creative and Branding team to deliver projects from concept to completion — collateral systems, ad campaigns, newsletters, magazines, exhibits, and similar formats

Maintain creative asset files and resources, including stock and assignment photography, fonts, software and updates, and art materials

Manage individual project workload through the team's web‑based job tracking system

Organize project files per department standards and keep shared‑server project archives current for team access

Demonstrate ongoing personal and professional commitment to collaborating with the marketing and communications team, supporting members and business areas, and fostering creative excellence

Success measures:

% of projects passing brand‑standards QC review on first submission

Turnaround time on standard design requests

Positive feedback/re‑engagement from marketing & communications partners on creative quality

Qualifications

Required Qualifications

Bachelor's degree in Design, Graphic Design, Digital Design, or a related field

Minimum of 5+ years of professional graphic design experience

High proficiency in Adobe Creative Cloud (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign) on the Macintosh platform, with working knowledge of Canva; knowledge of Adobe After Effects and Premier Pro

Thorough knowledge of visual identity systems and the graphic support needs of a high-volume, fast-paced, deadline‑driven creative team in an association environment

A technically and creatively strong portfolio demonstrating proficiency across graphic design disciplines and a solid understanding of communication design and typography principles

Knowledge of industry standards for preparing artwork for press

Excellent written and verbal communication skills; ability to give and receive constructive feedback within a collaborative team

Strong commitment to completing design assignments within budget and deadline while adhering to brand standards and marketing objectives

Attention to detail and ability to work effectively in a highly collaborative environment

Desired Qualifications

Proficient knowledge of Final Cut Pro or Premiere Pro for video editing

Experience with photography, including basic knowledge and use of Canon cameras

Experience in the creative services/communications department of a large association, corporation, design studio, or advertising agency

Active membership and participation in professional graphic design societies

About Us

At the American College of Cardiology, we bring our hearts to work.

We are a 500-person organization dedicated and committed to our mission to transform cardiovascular care and improve heart health for all for more than 75 years. When you join our team, you become part of a culture that envisions a world where science, innovation and knowledge optimize cardiovascular care and outcomes.

Every day, we are committed to supporting our more than 60,000 members and their patients around the globe and in doing so, ensure our staff have a positive environment of teamwork, collaboration, professionalism and excellence. To learn more about why ACC has been recognized as a great place to work, please visit our site, www.acc.org/jobs .

What We Offer:
ACC values all members of our College family, including ACC staff. As the foundation of the organization, ACC staff enjoy world‑class benefits and a culture of work-life balance. Our benefit offerings include insurance (medical, dental, vision, basic life, and short‑and‑long-term disability, and supplemental options), generous paid time off (pre-loaded vacation and sick, 12 holidays and an organizational shut‑down during the last week of the year, parental leave, 2 community service days, and half‑day summer Fridays), tuition assistance and a very competitive 10% retirement contribution after a year of service, and much more! You can visit our careers site for an overview of our full offerings. Please note that these offerings may change at any time.

ACC believes in fair and equitable pay. Multiple factors are taken into consideration when we determine what salary to offer a selected candidate. These factors include, but are not limited to, the scope and responsibilities of the role, the selected candidate’s work experience, education and training, as well as internal equity, market, and business considerations. Our salary ranges differ based on the cost of labor in the local market where the job will be performed.
The salary ranges for will vary based on the local labor market; ACC’s Recruitment Team will be able to provide more information to candidates during initial discussions.

EEOC:
ACC is proud to be an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all candidates and employees. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, merit and business need. Equal Opportunity Employer, including individuals with disabilities and veterans. ACC is committed to providing reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities and disabled veterans in our job application procedures. If you need assistance or an accommodation due to a disability, you may contact Katie Sarreal, HR Business Partner at [e-mail] [phone].