Kevin Baier
Designer, director, writer, builder of solutions. Looking to get involved with a team working on products that make a difference.
About me
I've been a working creative for 20+ years, collaborating on design projects, managing teams, finding solutions, balancing multiple clients and constantly learning new things. I reach to build connection and effectively translate business requirements into visual results.
Experience
Owner, Designer / Developer
Small business operation, developing digital products and business materials. Brand and campaign developer, web designer for small and growing businesses. Deep dive needs with clients to deliver custom messaging, dynamic visuals and target business growth.
Often assemble and manage teams of creatives to efficiently complete large projects. Sift together client needs, balancing sales/marketing goals with development needs. Build and deliver presentations, discuss and collaborate on evolving direction to reach optimal goals.
Detail-oriented designer, prototyping from the scratch board or re-tooling existing concepts. Creator of many things for print, web, presentations and live events. Manage internal financials, project budgets and ongoing development. Clients include CBRE, Meals on Wheels, Behr Paint, HMH Publishing, Cannadip, Sterling Publishing, Quarto Publishing, Sky Pony Press, Pearson, Cambridge University Press, Teaching Strategies, Whatcom County Council on Aging.
Additional design samples here.
Director Creative Services / Design Manager
Directed design and production for large academic publisher. Created books, covers, online products and marketing collateral for educational publishing business. Managed design staff and freelance vendors network. Balanced multiple projects, coordinated visual development, scoped branding visuals, researched and wrote creative briefs. Developed interactive products, mobile sites and videos. Coordinated timelines and teams for delivery ahead of schedule. Evaluated internal workflow and budgets, delivered process changes and improvement at reduced cost.
Art Director / Senior Designer
Managed design of books, charts, website and digital products for Sparknotes educational imprint and Quamut “how to do it” brand. Designed books, covers, kit packages and floor displays for adult and children’s lists. Supervised staff and freelance vendors. Developed and managed creation of photography, illustrations, tech art, infographics. Implemented processes for design workflow, color management, image correction and archiving.
Skills
UI/UX Design
Assess projects with end user in mind: how does product communicate goals, how does user get there, how does it feel in their hands? If it's a non-digital product, how does it fit in on the shelf? How does it look in the room? What is the room? Do we need to build the room?
User Research
Consider demographics and visual vernacular of product when building design solutions. Who is reading? What is the level of sophistication? How does it fit in with competition? How clean can we make it?
Tools
Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator, Dreamweaver, After Effects, XD, Acrobat. Sketch, Figma, Webflow, Wix, Microsoft Office Suite, Google Workspace, Affinity. Adaptable to all visual build software. Diverse X-Acto blade skillset.
