About me

I am currently working as the in-house Graphic Designer for a social policy and urban regeneration company. A key area of our work is dealing with local authorities seeking to engage with communities with lively, attention grabbing design. Whilst my current role matches the job description very closely, I am very interested in the opportunity to be part of a larger team with a passion for good design.

EXPERIENCE

As the only full-time designer at my current organisation, I pride myself in having not only established a brand identity for the company but also in constantly challenging myself to develop creative ideas for our work. I try and ensure that every project undertaken by the company has it's own visual identity clearly defined in all of the printed and electronic material relating to the project.

This also helps explain my desire to move on - whilst I have had a great deal of fun and satisfaction in my current role, I want to use my talents in a more high profile organisation in which I can help develop my ideas in the surroundings of a dedicated creative team. Whilst trying to avoid the inevitable clichés associated with an interest in travel - the obligatory gap year and an increasingly respectable collection of stamps in my passport - the idea of being involved in your industry on a design level is something that I find very stimulating.

TECHNICAL KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS

I have a thorough knowledge of the Adobe CreativeSuite CS5 (and previous) package, including a range of experience in preparing materials for print and working with photography - full details are listed on my CV. My skills have broadened with some interesting freelance work, including email marketing for a high-profile event at the Met Bar and assisting the art production for the launch of a wine range. I have also been recently commissioned to prepare business cards and brochures for both very high and very low budget clients, from a disability technology consultancy to a local health food shop. My print preparation has expanded accordingly, from window-sized posters through to quirky conference material, banner stands and books.

Over the last couple of years I have been developing my web skills, project managing the redesign of our company website based on my initial wireframes and visual concepts. I have also developed a series of email marketing materials in an attempt to improve our client communications and event marketing, and I have set up and maintained a portfolio website for a published urban regeneration author. This has given me a solid understanding of HTML and CSS, and the tricks and techniques necessary for adapting this to email marketing and web templates.

PROJECT MANAGEMENT

I am solely responsible for the design, production and overall quality control of all final products for my current organisation. These include toolkits and guides (online and printed) for a wide range of practitioner audiences, major strategies for local authorities and regional and national bodies, and evaluation reports. Obviously this requires a good knowledge and understanding of design and web usability. For example, a recent online toolkit was designed to help regional government officials and local authorities to apply best practice delivery techniques. I worked up the design of the site with wireframes and illustrations to demonstrate these techniques in a way that non-specialists could quickly grasp.

Producing detailed reports of this kind, which often contain a mixture of written copy, images and other representations of complex data requires meticulous attention to detail, especially when we are producing several major outputs at once.

ADMINISTRATION

I feel that my time management and communication skills are particularly strong, and there is very little of the Microsoft Office package that I have yet to work out. Over the last couple of years I have also been working closely with a sister company of my current organisation, helping them tighten up their brand identity with corporate stationery, marketing and presentation materials, as well as continuing to work with them to prepare their more high-budget proposals and final reports. This has drawn heavily on my writing skills, which has been very enjoyable as I have a background in written communication, having been selected at college for a place on an Arvon Foundation writing course and an early career in administration, proofreading and copyrighting.

THAT'S IT, REALLY

I hope you will consider my application seriously, if you need any further information from me my contact details are attached. Design for me is as much of a genuine interest as a career and I would love the chance to contribute to your team.

Colin Bottomley