| Detail | For this role |
|---|---|
| Department | Media and Advertising |
| Level | Mid level |
| Reports to | Art Director |
| Direct reports | Graphic Designer |
| Experience | 4 to 7 years in graphic design across print and digital |
Senior Graphic Designer job description template
Copy this job description, replace the text in square brackets and post it on your careers page or a job portal.
Job title: Senior Graphic Designer
Department: Media and Advertising
Reports to: Art Director
Location: [City], [office, branch or site]
About the role
A Senior Graphic Designer leads the design work on a set of brands or projects. They take briefs and set the visual direction, design complex layouts, brand systems and campaign assets across print and digital, and set the quality bar for junior designers. The role sits in a design or creative team, often under an art director or design lead. A good one produces polished, on-brand design at speed, solves tricky layout problems, and keeps the whole team's output consistent and correct.
Key responsibilities
- Take design briefs and set the visual direction for brands, campaigns and projects.
- Design complex layouts, brand identities, packaging, brochures, and digital and social assets.
- Build and maintain brand style guides and templates so design stays consistent across the team.
- Adapt one design across many sizes, formats and channels without losing quality.
- Prepare print-ready and export-ready files with correct colour, bleed, resolution and formats.
- Review and correct the work of junior designers against brand guidelines and the brief.
- Coordinate with copy, art direction and production to deliver finished assets on time.
- Manage several design jobs at once and keep each on schedule.
- Suggest fresh visual approaches and keep up with design trends and tools.
- Check final artwork for errors in type, logo, colour and layout before release.
Requirements
- Bachelor's degree or diploma in graphic design, applied arts or fine arts
- A strong design portfolio across print and digital
- Knowledge of motion or UI design is an advantage
- 4 to 7 years in graphic design across print and digital
KRAs and KPIs for a Senior Graphic Designer
Key result areas for the appraisal form, each with a KPI you can measure every month or quarter.
| Key result area | How to measure it |
|---|---|
| Design quality | Designs approved within two rounds on most jobs, meeting the brand standard |
| Accuracy | Zero release errors on colour, logo, type or file setup across the quarter |
| On time delivery | Assets delivered by the agreed date for at least 95 percent of jobs |
| Consistency | All team output follows the brand style guide, checked on a sample each month |
| Throughput | Handle the agreed volume of design jobs a month without a drop in quality |
| Team development | Junior designers need fewer corrections over the quarter |
Skills and tools
Tools used day to day: Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe InDesign, Figma, CorelDRAW.
Reporting line and career path
Interview questions for a Senior Graphic Designer
- Walk me through a brand identity or complex layout in your portfolio.
- How do you keep design consistent across a team of designers working on the same brand?
- You have one design and need 40 sizes by end of day. How do you set it up?
- How do you prepare a file for offset print so nothing goes wrong at the press?
- How do you give a junior designer feedback that improves their work?
- A client keeps asking for changes that hurt the design. How do you respond?
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What does a senior graphic designer do?
A senior graphic designer leads the design on a set of brands or projects. They set the visual direction, design complex layouts, brand systems and campaign assets across print and digital, build style guides, and review the work of junior designers. They own quality, consistency and correct file setup for everything the team produces.
What is the difference between a graphic designer and a senior graphic designer?
A graphic designer executes designs to a brief, often under guidance. A senior graphic designer sets the visual direction, handles complex work, maintains brand systems and mentors juniors. The senior role owns quality and consistency across the team, while a junior focuses on producing clean artwork and building their craft.
Is a senior graphic designer the same as an art director?
No. A senior graphic designer is the top of the design craft: producing and directing polished design. An art director develops the campaign idea, pairs with a copywriter and directs shoots, thinking about concept as much as craft. Many senior designers move into art direction as their next step.