Director, Brand Design

Betterment; New York (NY); Hybrid; USD 175,000 - 205,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical coverage

Dental coverage

Vision coverage

Life insurance

AD&D insurance

Disability insurance

Infertility support

Transgender health benefits

Employee Assistance Program

Transit benefits

FSA/HSA options

Equity for all employees

Day-one 401(k) match

Job summary

Betterment is seeking a Director of Brand Design to raise the ambition and craft of our brand across advertising, web, motion and sales collateral for Retail and B2B.

You’ll stay hands-on while leading concepting, art direction, and a small design team, partnering with copy, marketing, and operations to drive a cohesive brand. This hybrid NYC role offers strong compensation and growth opportunities.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of brand/design experience, including experience leading or managing designers.
• A strong, well-defined point of view on brand design systems, with experience evolving an identity system over time rather than just applying one.
• Proven ability to translate business strategy, objectives, and growth goals into a clear creative point of view and compelling work, while shaping creative briefs and providing direction before execution begins.
• Experience managing and developing designers at varying levels of seniority, including supporting both craft-focused and people-leadership growth paths.
• A strong track record of partnering cross-functionally with copy and brand voice, marketing, operations, and external agencies to keep creative work on-brand and on schedule.
• Excellent presentation and communication skills, with the ability to represent your team’s work and decisions to senior and executive stakeholders.
• A portfolio that demonstrates range and craft across advertising, web, motion, and sales materials.

Responsibilities

• Be arbiter of our brand design system and standards; evolve visuals and keep identity current.
• Review and shape creative briefs to start with clear direction and objectives.
• Lead craft across advertising, web, motion, and collateral; refine work at key moments.
• Manage and develop a team of senior designers with clear goals and feedback.
• Build and pitch proposals for new design initiatives.
• Collaborate with marketing and sales to align goals and measure success.
• Foster a culture of creative risk-taking and constructive critique.
• Present team work to senior leadership and translate decisions into business context.
• Participate in hiring: portfolio reviews and team scaling.
• Source vendors and agencies to supplement our work.

Skills

Brand design leadership

Brand systems

Creative direction

Cross-functional collaboration

Presentation skills

People leadership

Job description

About Betterment

Betterment is a leading, technology-driven financial services company that offers investing, savings, and retirement solutions for retail investors and investment advisors, as well as financial wellness solutions, including a 401(k) for small and medium-sized businesses. Our team is passionate about our mission, to empower people to build wealth with confidence and ease. We're headquartered in NYC and offer hybrid NY-based positions (four days/week in-office, with no required office days during the summer and winter holidays).

About The Role

Betterment is entering its next phase of growth, and we’re looking for a Director of Brand Design to raise the ambition and craft of our brand everywhere it shows up. This role is for someone who obsesses over the kerning in a web nav as much as over the motion piece that moves people. You have exceptional taste, a sense of curiosity to learn new things, and a strong point of view. You’ll be the brand’s primary design voice and the final word on our brand design system, knowing when to hold the line and when to evolve. You will make the brand feel like one brand across advertising, web, motion and sales collateral, for both our Retail and B2B businesses. You’ll stay hands-on. You’ll lead concepting and art direction on our biggest initiatives and shape them from the first idea. You’ll polish the work that matters most and jump in wherever the craft needs you. You’ll also lead and develop a small team of designers, setting the bar for their work and trusting them to own execution in their areas. Stakeholders will come to you for creative direction, not just review. Reporting to the VP, Brand Creative, you’ll partner closely with our Director of Copy and our Director of Brand Operations.

This role is based out of our NYC office. Below we've reflected the base salary range for this position. Actual salaries may vary depending on factors including but not limited to location, experience, and performance. The range listed is just one component of Betterment’s total compensation package for employees.

• New York City: $175,000-$205,000

This job may also be eligible for variable compensation in the form of a company incentive bonus.

A Day in the Life

• Act as the arbiter of our brand design system and standards; challenge the system when it starts to feel stagnant and keep a constant eye on how our visual identity needs to evolve.
• Review and shape creative briefs before work begins, ensuring projects start with clear direction and objectives.
• Hold the overall craft bar across advertising, web, motion, and collateral. Lead concepting and art direction on key initiatives, personally refining work at critical moments, and catching any execution misses or inconsistencies.
• Manage and develop a team of senior designers: set clear goals, deliver regular and constructive feedback, and push design execution from good to great.
• Build and pitch proposals for new design initiatives.
• Work closely with marketing and sales stakeholders on assignments to understand goals and what success looks like.
• Create a team culture where designers feel empowered to take creative risks, raise dissenting opinions, and learn from projects that don't land perfectly the first time.
• Represent your team's work and point of view to senior leadership, translating creative decisions into business context.
• Participate in hiring: lead portfolio review interviews, evaluate candidates, and help scale the team as it grows.
• Source and direct vendors and agencies to supplement our work.

What We're Looking For

• 10+ years of brand/design experience, including experience leading or managing designers.
• A strong, well-defined point of view on brand design systems, with experience evolving an identity system over time rather than just applying one.
• Proven ability to translate business strategy, objectives, and growth goals into a clear creative point of view and compelling work, while shaping creative briefs and providing direction before execution begins.
• Experience managing and developing designers at varying levels of seniority, including supporting both craft-focused and people-leadership growth paths.
• A strong track record of partnering cross-functionally with copy and brand voice, marketing, operations, and external agencies to keep creative work on-brand and on schedule.
• Excellent presentation and communication skills, with the ability to represent your team’s work and decisions to senior and executive stakeholders.
• A portfolio that demonstrates range and craft across advertising, web, motion, and sales materials.

Bonus Points If You Have Experience

• Working in fintech, wealth management, or another regulated industry, given the compliance and disclosure requirements that shape our creative work.

We change lives

Be a part of a community of innovators working to transform financial outcomes for real people. Your work will make an impact, always laddering up to our mission; to empower people to build wealth with confidence and ease.

We set audacious goals

We set them for the company, our customers, and ourselves, and we won't stop until we reach them. We don't just show up; we give our all, then celebrate our wins.

We value all perspectives

When we collaborate, we're at our best. We believe diverse perspectives lead to better outcomes and strive to uphold our supportive and inclusive community.

We simplify financial services

We're financial services pioneers, always finding new ways to improve, optimize, and enhance. Constant improvement is in our DNA.

Our Commitment To Your Total Well-being

• We offer a competitive suite of benefits, including medical, dental, and vision coverage; life and AD&D insurance; short-and-long term disability; infertility support and WPATH-aligned transgender health benefits; an Employee Assistance Program (EAP); transit benefits and FSA and HSA options
• Ownership: Equity for all employees, including new hire and refresher grants.
• Time: Flexible paid time off, paid parental leave, and a fully paid four-week sabbatical in your sixth year.
• Growth: Company-paid professional coaching for all employees.
• Wealth: Day-one 401(k) match plus matching on qualified student loan payments.

What Happens Next

We'll take a few weeks to review all applications. If we'd like to spend more time with you, we'll reach out to arrange next steps, which will include 3-4 sets of meetings with your future colleagues. In the interview process, we'll look to learn more about your skills, experiences, capabilities, and motivators. Many of our questions will be aimed at understanding how you might operate here at Betterment. Depending on the role, we may ask you to complete a case study exercise or technical assessments, as we want to collect a robust set of data points to better inform our decisions. On average, it takes us around 3-5 weeks to make a hiring decision, depending on your availability and sense of urgency. As a best practice, we aim to interview at least 2-3 final round candidates before making a hiring decision. Please note that, as we usually receive an overwhelming number of applications for open positions, we're unable to offer individual feedback during the interview process. We recognize that interviewing for a new role is a big deal. We appreciate you considering Betterment as the next step in your career, and our Recruiting Team is here to support and advocate for you through the interview process.

Come join us!

Betterment is dedicated to providing accommodations to candidates upon request. If you need accommodations at any point throughout the interview process, please reach out to your recruiter.

Please note that in any materials you submit, you may redact or remove age-identifying information such as age, date of birth, or dates of school attendance or graduation. You will not be penalized for redacting or removing this information.

We're an equal opportunity employer and comply with all applicable federal, state, and local fair employment practices laws. We strictly prohibit and do not tolerate discrimination against employees, applicants, or any other covered persons because of race, color, religion, creed, national origin or ancestry, ethnicity, sex, gender (including gender nonconformity and status as a transgender or transsexual individual), sexual orientation, marital status, age, physical or mental disability, citizenship, past, current or prospective service in the uniformed services, predisposing genetic characteristic, domestic violence victim status, arrest records, or any other characteristic protected under applicable federal, state or local law.