Senior Graphic Designer

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Posting Reason:

New Position

Job Type:

Employee

Anticipated Duration in Months (for contracts and temporary assignments):

N/A

Job Family:

Communications and Marketing (JF)

# of Open Positions:

1

Faculty/Service - Department:

Telfer Marketing and Communications

Campus:

Desmarais Hall

Union Affiliation:

SSUO

Date Posted (YYYY/MM/DD):

2026/03/12

Applications must be received BEFORE (YYYY/MM/DD):

2026/03/23

Hours per week:

35

Salary Grade:

SSUO Grade 09

Salary Range:

$72,437.00 - $91,502.00

About the Telfer School of Management
The Telfer School of Management at the University of Ottawa is located in the heart of Ottawa and is the proud academic home of some 4,300 students, 200 faculty members, over 100 staff members, and over 30,000 alumni. At Telfer, everything we do from teaching to research, to policy advice is firmly aligned with helping Canada reach its potential. We believe that better business practice means a better Canada and that a better Canada means a better world.

Position Purpose:

Reporting to the Manager, Brand, Digital and Events, the Senior Graphic Designer is responsible for the development of cohesive, high-quality visual assets (advertising, print media, digital) for the Marketing and Communications team at the Telfer School of Management.

The Senior Designer oversees the conceptual development, creation and design of campaigns and products that will be relevant and appealing to Telfer students, faculty and staff, alumni, donors, prospective students, and community members, while conveying Telfer and uOttawa’s values and brand identity. They are also the custodians of the Telfer brand guidelines, working with the leadership team to continuously develop and grow the Telfer brand to create consistency and build distinctiveness with respect to other business schools.

In this role, your responsibilities will include:

Design functional expertise:

• Provides expertise and creative input from the inception stage of design work through to final production, all while managing priorities and possible conflicts. 

• Keeps abreast of design and graphic trends, best practices and standards including new production technologies, design software and project management tools.  Recommends needs and solutions for equipment, online and desktop publishing, printing methods, and other related fields.

• Recommends the most suitable design concepts; the designer conducts research on subject matters to ensure that visual presentation properly interprets contents and delivers desired impact.

• Acts as the creative expert in the staging of photographs for promotional and other marketing materials.

Creative Services & Design delivery

• Delivers all creative services for Telfer’s Marketing-Communication function, including the design of digital and print communications, events collateral, social media, PowerPoint, and high-profile brochures.

• Produces tools and templates using PowerPoint, Canva and other design software to empower Telfer Units and employees to create designs that are on brand and aligned with accessibility standards.

• Creates, maintains and iterates elements of Telfer’s brand guidelines including colours, fonts, photography, iconography, graphical elements, and more.

• Conception of creative ideas for campaigns, events, and initiatives, based on briefs developed by communications strategists, and the leadership team.

Design oversight:

• Provides oversight of graphic design work done by Telfer units and external agencies and answers any questions and guides them in establishing priorities, best practices, and meeting deadlines on projects. 

• Oversees the team’s designs and large-scale marketing and communications projects for clients of Telfer. It is imperative that the designer be a good listener and able to effectively translate client ideas and needs into strong, and effective marketing and/or communication designs that are in keeping with Telfer’s branding and look and feel. 

• Develops conceptual creative approaches for the Manager’s and Director’s approval; oversees production schedules developed by project managers and then has the responsibility of presenting concepts and artwork to clients.

• Acts as the creative lead for all Telfer branded materials and the keeper of the brand identity guidelines.

Production expertise:

• Plans all stages (expectations, initiation, execution, and reports) and all segments (timeline, budget, human resources), and identifies and manages the necessary expertise in design, production and distribution for marketing and communications graphic design projects. 

• Works with team members and external agencies to ensure proper management of production and delivery. 

• Collaborates with manager and team members to conduct negotiations with suppliers (design, web, print, photography, display, film production, etc.).

Client relations:

• Meets with clients and works with managers, strategists, advisors, and units to help assess client needs and define project deliverables and their specifications.

• Ensures that client expectations and needs fit with overall Telfer and University objectives.

• Ensures high-quality professional client service and maintains a strong team ethic at all times.

What you will bring:

• Graduate of a post-secondary program in graphic design, marketing, communications, or a related discipline. Or an equivalent combination of education and experience.

• Five (5) years of experience with direct coordination of design projects, from client assessment, concept and design, to production, delivery and evaluation.

• Formal training and proven abilities in art direction and graphic design

• Knowledge of the post-secondary education environment is considered an asset.

• Proven abilities in graphic design and possessing a sound understanding of graphic design principles.

• Knowledge of marketing and the development and use of marketing tools (print, outdoor, Web and other digital, display systems, etc.) generally acquired through post-secondary training in marketing, communication, multimedia, or a related field, or equivalent experience.

• Strong customer service orientation

• Proven project management skills

• Must have superb organizational, interpersonal and communication skills, possess good judgment, tact and diplomacy.

• Collegial and a team player, possesses the ability to work both independently and within a team environment.

• Proven ability to organize and execute several projects simultaneously under tight deadlines.  This includes prioritizing tasks and negotiating with clients and suppliers.

• Well versed in design software such as InDesign, Photoshop, etc. in a Mac operating environment and a good knowledge of Microsoft Office.  Knowledge and experience with other software e.g., web design tools, mobile/tablet software, etc. will be considered an asset.

• Strong French and English comprehension and spoken, with solid writing skills (French and English).

Key Competencies at uOttawa:
Here are the required competencies for all or our employees at uOttawa: 

Planning: Organize in time a series of actions or events in order to realize an objective or a project. Plan and organize own work and priorities in regular daily activities.
Initiative: Demonstrate creativity and initiative to suggest improvements and encourage positive results. Is proactive and self-starting. Show availability and willingness to go above and beyond whenever it is possible.
Client Service Orientation: Help or serve others to meet their needs. This implies anticipating and identifying the needs of internal and external clients and finding solutions on how to meet them.
Teamwork and Cooperation: Cooperate and work well with other members of the team to reach common goal(s). Accept and give constructive feedback. Able to adjust own behaviour to reach the goals of the team.

The University of Ottawa embraces diversity and inclusion in the workplace. We are passionate about our people and committed to employment equity. We foster a culture of respect, teamwork and inclusion, where collaboration, innovation, and creativity fuel our quest for research and teaching excellence. While all qualified persons are invited to apply, we welcome applications from qualified Indigenous persons, racialized persons, persons with disabilities, women and LGBTQIA2S+ persons. The University is committed to creating and maintaining an accessible, barrier-free work environment. The University is also committed to working with applicants with disabilities requesting accommodation during the recruitment, assessment and selection processes. Applicants with disabilities may contact hrtalentmanagement@uottawa.ca to communicate the accommodation need. All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadians and permanent residents will be given priority.

Note: if this is a union position: The hiring process will be governed by the current collective agreement related to the union affiliation noted above; you can click here to find out more.

If this is a front-line position with responsibilities to interact with students, selected candidates must be rated at the Low Advanced proficiency level or higher for both oral comprehension and reading comprehension in their second official language. The rating is determined by a proficiency test designed by the Official Languages and Bilingualism Institute.

Prior to May 1, 2022, the University required all students, faculty, staff, and visitors (including contractors) to be fully vaccinated against Covid-19 as defined in Policy 129 – Covid-19 Vaccination. This policy was suspended effective May 1, 2022 but may be reinstated at any point in the future depending on public health guidelines and the recommendations of experts.