Experiential Art Director

Caterpillar•Chicago, IL

2d•Onsite

About The Position

Ironworks is the in-house creative agency for Caterpillar Inc., and we’re looking for an Experiential Art Director to design the spaces and experiences that immerse people in our brand. This is a role for someone who loves working in three dimensions, shaping everything from permanent environments to live, one-of-a-kind experiences around the world. Wherever people encounter Caterpillar in person, you’ll help decide what they see, feel, and remember. You blend the sensibility of an interior designer, the craft of a graphic designer, and the vision of an experiential art director, and you’re just as comfortable specifying materials and finishes as you are creating a distinctive visual identity for a live event or designing the content that plays across a two-story video wall. If you love turning spaces into stories and you’ve got a portfolio that proves it, we’d love to meet you.

Requirements

Customer Focus: Knowledge of the values and practices that align customer needs and satisfaction as primary considerations in all business decisions and ability to leverage that information in creating customized customer solutions.
Collaborating: Knowledge of collaborative techniques; ability to work with a variety of individuals and groups in a constructive and collaborative manner.
Creativity: Knowledge of the approaches, tools, and techniques for promoting creative, original thinking and ability to apply it to a variety of business situations.
Relationship Management : Knowledge of relationship management techniques; ability to establish and maintain healthy working relationships with clients, vendors, and peers.
Vendor/Supplier Management: Knowledge of external provider management processes and ability to effectively manage the business relationship with external providers (e.g. vendors, service providers, contractors, consultants and suppliers).
Promotion and Marketing Communications: Knowledge of different promotional and marketing communication techniques; ability to use different marketing channels and tools in combination to focus on how a business communicates a message to the market.
A strong creative point of view and the ability to think conceptually, not just execute.
Real range across disciplines: environmental and interior graphics, spatial design, and experiential design, with an instinct for how people move through and feel a space.
The ability to craft a distinctive visual identity for an experience and carry it consistently across every surface, screen, and moment.
Fluency in brand: you know how to bring a brand’s voice, look, and message to life, whether it’s built to last for years or to shine for a single event.
Comfort working alongside architects, fabricators, and production partners, with a working understanding of how designs come together in the real world.
Sharp communication and presentation skills, so you can explain the “why” behind your work and win buy-in.
A collaborative, low-ego approach that makes the people around you better.
Deep command of Adobe Creative Cloud, and enough comfort with Microsoft Office to hold your own.

Nice To Haves

A portfolio that shows range and craft across environmental, interior, and experiential work, including both permanent spaces and live experiences.
Hands-on art direction or senior-level design experience, in-house or at an agency.
Experience designing for large-format digital, video walls, or other in-space multimedia.
A bachelor’s degree in design or a related field, or equivalent experience that speaks for itself.
A track record of thriving in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment.

Responsibilities

Design immersive, on-brand environments and experiences, from permanent interior spaces to live, temporary activations.
Create distinctive visual identities that give each space or experience its own point of view while staying unmistakably on-brand.
Lead environmental and interior graphic design: signage, wayfinding, murals, dimensional elements, and architectural branding.
Shape the full journey through a space, deciding how form, function, materials, and moments come together to tell a story and move people.
Develop multimedia content that lives inside these experiences, including motion and video-wall content designed for the display and the room around it.
Partner with architects, fabricators, event producers, and production teams on locations, specifications, and the details that make an install or activation shine.
Use audience and brand insights to guide your aesthetic and experiential choices.
Translate designs into highly detailed and accurate print ready files.
Own comprehensive design and build plans, from first concept through fabrication, installation, and, when it’s a live experience, show day.
Travel to sites to art-direct execution and make sure the finished space or experience matches the vision.
Present your thinking clearly and persuasively, whether you’re with the internal team or in front of a client.
Juggle multiple complex projects at once, holding a high creative bar and a sharp eye for detail under tight timelines.
Help build a culture of collaboration with your creative peers, account partners, production teams, and clients.