Client
NDA
Role
Creative Director · Lead Strategist
Services
Brand Strategy · Design System · Campaign · Web Design · Guides · Email · Social · Print & Signage
Timeline
Six months
01 — About the project
Overview
These clients sat at the frontier of human discovery, but for employees, students, and retirees, understanding their benefits didn't always feel that way.
As Creative Director and lead strategist, I built the strategy and the design system that changed that. Drawing on the institutions' history, real audience insight, and the existing corporate brands, I created a benefits brand that turns dense, high-stakes decisions into a journey people can easily navigate. One system flexible enough to speak in both voices, across every audience and every touchpoint.
My Contributions
Brand & campaign strategy
Creative direction
Design system development
Messaging, voice & tone
Web design & experience
2
connected institutions
3
distinct audiences
38,000+
Employees, alumni, & students
100+
customized brand promotions
02 — Challenge
Make the most complex decisions feel navigable.
Benefits are one of the most valuable things an employer offers and one of the hardest to communicate. For two institutions built on precision and inquiry, the challenge was to bring that same rigor to employee communications. How do you cut through the complexity, unify two corporate brands and three audiences without flattening either?
03 — Approach
Turn benefits into a
journey worth taking.
Lead with strategy.
I developed the platform and campaign concepts, pitched multiple creative campaigns and brands, and developed "Explore. Shape. Grow." from the ground up. Three pillars (Discovery, Fulfillment, Growth) that map benefits to the arc of a person's life and career.
Building a system.
I created a flexible design system of typography, color, "Expanding Orbit" core graphics, iconography, and voice that extends cleanly for both clients.
Design for how people actually decide.
Every touchpoint was built to guide employees. The brand was inviting, clear, and human, so employees, students, and retirees can find what they need and act with confidence.
04 — The Work
One unified system.
Websites that make benefits make sense.
Guides that teach and direct.
Campaigns that meet you where you are.
05 — Outcome
A benefits brand the institutions trust and employees actually use.
What began as scattered, hard-to-parse communications became a single, cohesive benefits brand spanning two institutions and three audiences. "Explore. Shape. Grow." gave the client a system that's consistent, flexible, and unmistakably theirs. Employees saw a clearer path through some of their most important decisions. The client has repeatedly pointed to how streamlined the process became and how impactful the brand and campaign have been across the organization.
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