DesignMinds · 18 hours ago
Design Director
Somerville, NJ
Full-time
Onsite
Director/Executive
10+ years expDesignMinds is a company focused on design excellence, and they are seeking a Design Director to lead their design team. The role involves providing strategic direction, mentoring team members, and ensuring high-quality deliverables while fostering collaboration across departments.
Staffing & Recruiting
Hiring Manager
Mike Kull
Responsibilities
Provide mentorship, coaching, and technical guidance to foster a high-performance, collaborative team culture
Model and promote accountability, innovation, and continuous improvement across departments
Conduct monthly one-on-one meetings with direct reports to review the Design Performance Matrix
Address performance issues with clear documentation, initiating weekly one-on-ones and Performance Improvement Plans (PIPs) when necessary
Create a two-week onboarding orientation schedule for new hires reporting directly to this position
Generate and manage a 12-week development plan with identified deliverables to ensure new designers are progressing in their training
Ensure Design Managers are actively managing onboarding, coaching, and development within their teams
Conduct regular check-ins with all direct reports to assess training needs and plan for continuous development
Identify opportunities to enhance collaboration, engagement, accountability, and client focus across departments, and partner with leadership to develop and implement improvement plans
Assign project work through ZOHO once project scope, product solutions, and timeline have been validated
Ensure effective resource alignment to balance workload, optimize utilization, and support timely, high-quality deliverables
Monitor workload and capacity, and align resources to ensure teams have the support they need and are able to meet deadlines with accurate, high-quality deliverables
Monitor team capacity and collaborate with leadership to proactively address resourcing challenges
Provide guidance and strategic oversight on key or complex projects/accounts
Ensure all direct reports are actively tracking tasks in ZOHO, updating comments, meeting deadlines, and closing tasks appropriately
Oversee MxT Utilization Tracking to ensure alignment with billable goals of 85% minimum utilization
Support and lead problem-solving efforts across departments to maintain high output standards and resolve project obstacles
Champion innovation in processes, design thinking, and technology adoption
Foster strong working relationships across departments to ensure open communication and enterprise alignment
Promote collaboration between design, sales, operations, and project management to deliver cohesive client experiences
Exceptional communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to build relationships with clients, partners, and team members
Assist in guiding teams to appropriately engage with Growth Ventures
Partner with sales leadership on strategic accounts, providing design expertise and support for business development initiatives
Serve as a design resource in key client engagements, presentations, and strategic planning sessions
Strong product knowledge of commercial furniture, including market trends and innovations
Elevate the role of design as a strategic differentiator within the sales process
Qualification
Required
Bachelor's Degree in Interior Design, Architecture, or related field
10+ years of experience in commercial furniture design, with at least 5 years in a leadership or management role
Excellent communication, organization, and interpersonal skills
Demonstrated ability to manage and mentor a team while meeting individual project responsibilities
Company
DesignMinds
We are a Talent Acquisition and Consulting company that helps our clients build great teams and a great culture.
2-10 employees
Funding
Current Stage
Early StageCompany data provided by crunchbase