Design Manager

Council on Foreign Relations; New York (NY); Presencial; USD 120.000 - 140.000; Jornada completa

Descripción de la vacante

The Council on Foreign Relations is seeking an experienced Design Manager to lead hands‑on design across digital products, print publications, and brand touchpoints. Reporting to the Director of Design, the role emphasizes high‑quality, on‑brand work at scale.

The Design Team sits within the Digital organization and supports CFR.org, education.cfr.org, Think Global Health, and related print/digital products.

Formación

• Bachelor's degree in graphic design or equivalent professional experience.
• At least 7 years of design experience across brand, digital, and print.
• Portfolio demonstrating craft and design direction across deliverables.
• Expert Figma proficiency with components, tokens, libraries, and design system docs.
• Experience creating high-quality print materials and typography/layout expertise.
• Experience scaling brand standards and design systems at scale.
• Experience collaborating with freelancers and contractors on production workflows.

Responsabilidades

• Produce high‑quality design across digital products, branding, editorial features, print publications, and campaigns.
• Support the Creative Director with feedback across seniority levels.
• Own complex or high‑visibility design initiatives requiring senior judgment.
• Collaborate with freelancers and contractors on briefs and review of deliverables.
• Maintain and evolve CFR's design documentation and brand guidelines.
• Develop templates and reusable patterns for consistent output at scale.
• Partner with cross‑functional teams to ensure brand standards are met.
• Perform other duties as required.

Conocimientos

Brand design

Figma

Typography

Print production

Design systems

Client/stakeholder communication

Educación

Bachelor's degree in Graphic Design

Herramientas

Figma

Descripción del empleo

Position Summary

The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) is seeking an experienced, highly skilled designer to serve as Design Manager. Reporting to the Director of Design, this role is a hands‑on creative position responsible for producing high‑quality design work across digital products, print publications, and brand touchpoints, and for maintaining CFR's brand and quality standards across every deliverable. This role is ideal for an experienced designer who thrives on executing polished, on‑brand work at a high volume and level of craft.

The Design Team at CFR sits within the Digital organization and is responsible for the visual language, design systems, and user experience across CFR's digital properties, including cfr.org, education.cfr.org, Think Global Health, and a growing portfolio of digital as well as print products.

This full‑time position is based in CFR’s New York City office, at least 4 days per week. Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays are considered institutional anchor days where all staff are required to be onsite. CFR’s remote working schedule is subject to change.

Essential Functions/Responsibilities

• Produce high‑quality design work across digital products, branding, editorial features, print publications, and organizational campaigns.
• Support the Creative Director in reviewing work across seniority levels to provide actionable design and production feedback.
• Take direct design ownership of complex or high‑visibility initiatives where senior creative judgment is required.
• Partner with freelance illustrators, graphic designers, and other contractors on briefing, reviewing deliverables, and maintaining quality and brand consistency
• Maintain and evolve CFR's design documentation so it is usable by staff, consultants, and creative partners throughout the organization.
• Develop templates and reusable patterns across digital and print‑adjacent surfaces that reduce rework and enable consistent output at scale.
• Partner with cross‑functional teams across Digital, Editorial, Programs, and Communications to ensure design work meets and matures brand standards.
• Perform any other duties or tasks as assigned or required

Minimum Qualifications

Education

• Bachelor’s degree in Graphic Design, Visual Communications, or a related field, or equivalent professional experience.

Experience

• At least 7 years of design experience across brand, digital, and print surfaces, with demonstrated senior‑level creative ownership.
• Portfolio demonstrating both executional craft and the ability to shape design direction across a range of deliverables.
• Expert Figma proficiency, including component architecture, variables/tokens, shared libraries, and design system documentation.
• Demonstrated experience designing and producing high‑quality print materials, with expertise in typography, layout, and print production.
• Demonstrated experience building, maintaining, or scaling brand standards, style guides, and/or a design system at an organizational scale.
• Experience collaborating with freelance illustrators, designers, and other contractors on production workflows.

Related Skills & Other Requirements

• Strong communication and presentation skills, able to articulate design rationale clearly across disciplines and stakeholder groups.
• Experience in publishing, media, journalism, or mission‑driven organizations preferred.
• Experience designing for both editorial and digital product contexts is a plus.
• An interest in global affairs is a plus.

Required Application Materials

• Resume
• Cover letter stating your interest in the position
• Portfolio of recent design work (digital and print samples)

Compensation and Benefits

• The full‑time annual compensation range for this position is $120,000 – $140,000, depending on experience.
• In addition to competitive salaries, CFR provides employees with an outstanding benefits package.

About CFR

The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) is committed to fostering a foreign policy community in the United States that is more representative of American society, recognizing that diverse backgrounds and perspectives contribute to broader, more informed participation in the foreign policy debate and lead to an enhanced understanding of the world and the United States’ role therein. To that end, CFR is dedicated to continuing to advance diversity, equity, and inclusion throughout its work and workplace by building a more diverse membership and staff, producing and dispensing thoughtful analysis on a broad range of foreign policy issues, and developing relevant, wide‑reaching programming that also serves to expand the foreign policy talent pipeline to underrepresented populations.