Lead: Design

Humankind Group; Stellenbosch; On-site; ZAR 900,000 - 1,300,000; Full time

Job summary

Humankind Group is seeking a Senior Design Lead in Stellenbosch to guide a creative team in crafting brand-aligned design concepts for marketing across products and campaigns. You’ll shape visual language, supervise design work, and drive cohesive ATL/BTL campaigns, ensuring brand consistency and strategic impact.

You will bring 6–7 years in advertising/communications, hands-on expertise with Adobe CC and Figma, and a track record of leading design teams, mentoring designers, and delivering

Qualifications

• 6-7 years' proven experience in an advertising and communications environment, with design expertise.
• Experience across brand, traditional and conceptual design.
• Proven experience delivering large, integrated campaigns.
• Hands-on experience with Adobe Creative Cloud and Figma.
• Proven experience leading a team, managing projects, and mentoring designers.
• Retail marketing and branding experience.
• Experience with design systems.
• Exposure to multiple brands and brand work.
• Experience in Art Direction.
• Ideation and prototyping.
• Presentation and virtual collaboration techniques.
• Experience working on multiple brands simultaneously.
• Leadership for projects in a high-performance team in a fast-paced environment.

Responsibilities

• Designing and developing concepts for Marketing and other departments in a visual language consistent with the brand
• Creating conceptual positioning, design and campaign elements for existing and new products launched to market
• Taking overall responsibility for the creative team where required
• Co-leading and coordinating the delivery of ATL and BTL campaign elements
• Acting as custodian of the brand from a visual communications design perspective, promoting consistency and advising on correct communications design usage to support business objectives

Skills

Attention to Detail

Communication Skills

Interpersonal & Relationship Mgmt

Presentation Skills

Problem-Solving

Leadership

Mentorship

Education

Tertiary qualification in Design

Post-graduate qualification in Design

Tools

Jira

Confluence

Adobe Creative Cloud

Figma

Microsoft Office

Job description

Purpose Statement

We're looking for a senior Design Lead to help protect and evolve our brand and promote a favourable, consistent market profile by leading and overseeing a team responsible for:

• Designing and developing concepts for Marketing and other departments in a visual language consistent with the brand
• Creating conceptual positioning, design and campaign elements for existing and new products launched to market
• Taking overall responsibility for the creative team where required
• Co-leading (in collaboration with the Copy Lead) and coordinating the delivery of exceptional Above the Line (ATL) and Below the Line (BTL) campaign elements
• Acting as custodian of the brand from a visual communications design perspective, promoting consistency and advising on correct communications design usage to support business objectives

Experience Minimum:

• 6-7 years' proven experience in an advertising and communications environment, with specific exposure in an advertising agency or internal studio environment as a designer
• Proven experience across brand design, traditional design and conceptual design
• Proven experience delivering large, integrated campaigns
• In-depth, hands-on experience with Adobe Creative Cloud and Figma
• Proven experience leading a team, managing projects, and mentoring designers
• Retail marketing and branding experience
• Proven experience with design systems
• Exposure to a variety of brands and brand work
• Experience in Art Direction
• Ideation and prototyping
• Presentation and virtual collaboration techniques
• Experience working on multiple brands simultaneously
• Experience taking leadership for projects/assignments in a high-performance team, dealing with volume in a fast-paced, high-pressure environment

Ideal:

• Experience in the application of web and social media campaigns
• Experience in mobile app UI design
• Experience in web animation
• JIRA experience and working in sprints
• 3D & animation development
• Prototyping and user testing
• Previous supervisory/people management experience

Qualifications Minimum:

• A relevant tertiary qualification in Design

Ideal:

• A relevant post-graduate qualification in Design

Knowledge Minimum:

• Industry-standard design software (Adobe Creative Cloud, Figma, etc.)
• Presentation and virtual collaboration techniques
• Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Outlook)
• Design techniques, trends and skills
• Technology related to the design/advertising industry
• The advertising and creative process
• Ideation and prototyping
• Digital marketing and marketing technology

Ideal:

• Tools such as Jira, Confluence, etc.
• Influence of Machine Learning and AI on design principles
• Behavioural sciences
• Skills
• Attention to Detail
• Communication Skills
• Interpersonal & Relationship Management Skills
• Presentation Skills
• Problem-Solving Skills
• Strong team leadership and mentorship ability
• A collaborative, ego-free approach culture fit is essential; we're looking for someone who leads with humility, values the team over individual credit, and fosters a positive, supportive working environment