Lead Web Designer/Art Director

Interactive Strategies; Washington, Northern (District of Columbia, KY); Hybrid; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Flexible Spending Account (FSA)

Profit sharing

Vacation/Sick time

Short-term and long-term disability

Life and AD&D insurance

11 paid holidays

401k with company match

New business referral bonus

Job summary

Interactive Strategies in downtown Washington, DC seeks a Lead Web Designer/Art Director to craft experiences that create emotional connections and inspire action. You’ll shape how causes engage audiences with strategic thinking, discovery insights, and compelling design and UX deliverables.

You’ll lead a talented team, mentor junior designers, and collaborate with writers and strategists to develop holistic creative solutions.

Qualifications

• 7+ years in UX and web design.
• Strong portfolio with diverse work.
• Ability to craft multiple visual styles and practical web solutions.
• Experience building logos and brand systems.
• Comfortable pitching to executives and collaborating with writers/strategists.
• Experience mentoring designers.
• Multidimensional skills: illustration, typography, motion, or front-end coding.

Responsibilities

• Shape experiences that connect audiences and drive action.
• Lead and mentor a design team.
• Collaborate with writers and strategists on holistic solutions.
• Present designs to clients and defend creative decisions.

Skills

UX design

Web design

Brand systems

Logo design

Mentoring

Client pitches

Front-end coding

Illustration

Typography

Motion design

Job description

At Interactive Strategies, we don't just build brands, websites, and marketing campaigns-we help tell the stories that matter. Our work supports organizations tackling some of the world's biggest challenges, from climate action to public health. We're looking for a Lead Web Designer/Art Director to craft experiences that create emotional connections and inspire action.

In this role, you'll be hands-on in shaping how these causes engage their audiences. Everything we do is rooted in deep strategic thinking informed by discovery and research, and you'll play a key part in gathering insights and translating them into meaningful creative solutions. You'll help clients refresh or reimagine their brands and deliver highly conceptual, strategically grounded designs and UX deliverables.

You'll also be a leader on a seasoned team, mentoring, inspiring, and collaborating with others as you contribute to some of our most high-profile and challenging engagements. Your talent, experience, and work ethic will help elevate the work we do every day.

QUALITIES YOU BRING TO THE TABLE

• Creative. You come with imagination and fresh ideas; you create works of art that inspire and engage.
• Strategic. You deliver more than just great design; you craft elegant user experiences that meet our clients’ important goals.
• Innovative. You push boundaries and implement innovative techniques.
• Well-spoken. You can eloquently present your designs to clients and stand behind your ideas.
• Committed. You're committed to valuing diversity and contributing to an inclusive working and learning environment.
• Passionate. You love what you do and are looking to work on a team with that same passion.
• Curious. You're constantly seeking out new techniques and approaches to advance your skills.
• Friendly. You're a people person who enjoys collaborating and works well with others.

Requirements

• You have been in UX and web design for 7+ years and can hit the ground running
• You maintain your own website portfolio with a large collection of inspiring work samples
• You have the ability to design in a variety of styles, and execute unique-yet-functional solutions to websites’ most common problems
• You are adept at developing logos and visual brand systems
• You are comfortable building nuanced creative narratives and confidently pitching work to executive teams.
• You are collaborative and have demonstrated experience working with writers and strategists to develop holistic creative solutions
• You have experience managing and mentoring more junior designers
• You are multi-dimensional. In addition to your design skills, we'd love for you to be great at something else… illustration, typography, motion design, front-end coding. Show us your stuff!

We have a simple motto when it comes to company culture, "Everyone deserves to come to work and be happy." This means a few things: (1) we care as much about quality as we do about budgets, (2) we find the strengths in each employee and nurture them, (3) we encourage a culture that values innovation and creative freedom, and (4) we want you to have fun while you're at the office. We may be an agency, but we understand that you have a life outside of work.

We allow our employees creative freedom. We treat them with respect. We value their opinions. In that spirit, we offer the following benefits:

• Company-sponsored health, vision and dental insurance
• Pre-tax Flexible Spending Account (FSA)
• Profit sharing
• 4 weeks of vacation/sick time from day one; 5+ weeks at year 3
• Company-paid short-term and long-term disability
• Company-paid life and AD&D insurance
• 11 paid holidays
• 401k with company match
• New business referral bonus

Annual Compensation: $90,000 - $130,000

A little about us

We're a well-respected interactive agency in downtown Washington, DC, known for deep strategic thinking. We strive to cultivate a collaborative, innovative environment where people feel valued, respected, and free to push creative boundaries-while finding balance between work, home, and life outside the office.

Interactive Strategies is a certified LGBTBE business and equal opportunity employer that values workplace diversity. We believe that diverse voices and viewpoints are critical to producing great work and helping our clients represent themselves effectively.