Senior Graphic Designer

Senior Graphic Designer — NxtWave Academy (POD Lead) Location: Remote / Hyderabad (hybrid) Reporting to: Design Manager / Head of Creative About NxtWave Academy NxtWave Academy empowers learners to build career-ready skills through focused upskilling programs. As we rebrand and scale our learning POD model, we need a Senior Graphic Designer who will be the single-point POC for all design requirements within the POD — owning end-to-end design execution, brand stewardship, and cross-functional collaboration. Role overview We’re looking for a Senior Graphic Designer who can operate independently and lead the visual output of a product/marketing POD. You will be the One Point of Contact (POC) for all design needs — turning briefs into strategic, on-brand, and conversion-focused creative across digital and print. You should have deep craft knowledge, a robust design thinking process, strong presentation skills, and the ability to articulate design rationale clearly to stakeholders. Responsibilities Own end-to-end design for the POD: concept, exploration, execution, handoff, and QA. Act as the primary POC for internal stakeholders (content, marketing, sales, product) and external vendors. Interpret business goals and user needs into creative solutions that drive engagement and conversions. Produce high-quality assets across formats: social ads, landing pages, email templates, banners, thumbnails, presentations, infographics, motion/short animations, and brand collateral. Maintain and evolve brand guidelines to ensure consistent visual language across touchpoints. Create and document design rationale for key deliverables — explain choices in hierarchy, typography, color, layout, and user intent. Mentor and review work of junior/mid designers — give actionable feedback and help raise craft standards. Manage timelines, prioritize requests, and balance multiple ad-hoc and planned items under tight deadlines. Collaborate with performance marketing to A/B test creative and iterate based on data. Keep up with design trends (Gen-Z aesthetics, motion, micro-interactions) and propose fresh visual directions. Must-have skills & experience 6+ years of professional experience in graphic design, preferably in education, edtech, or high-growth startups. Strong portfolio showcasing strategic thinking, end-to-end projects, and measurable impact (social, product, or campaign work). Expert-level skills in Figma / Adobe XD, Illustrator, Photoshop, and basic After Effects for motion thumbnails/short animations. Exceptional typography sense — able to design and document typographic systems for headers, body, and UI copy. Solid understanding of layout, grids, composition, and visual hierarchy for both static and motion formats. Proven ability to work as an independent owner — from brief to final deliverable — with minimal supervision. Excellent verbal and written communication: can present design rationale and negotiate trade-offs with stakeholders. Experience creating and maintaining brand guidelines and asset libraries. Comfortable with data-informed creative iteration (working with CTR, CVR, engagement metrics). Nice-to-have Experience with illustration and iconography systems. Experience in video editing (Premiere) or more advanced motion (After Effects) workflows. Experience working in a POD or agile cross-functional team. Familiarity with web design principles and basic HTML/CSS constraints. Portfolio requirements (apply only if you can provide these)6–8 portfolio pieces that include a short 3–5 line context (objective, role, process, result). At least one full campaign case study showing concept → execution → metrics (e.g., uplift in CTR, engagement, or conversions). Examples of both social/ad creatives and product/UI assets (e.g., landing pages, thumbnails, presentations). Interview process Portfolio review (30–45 mins): Candidate presents 3 key case studies and explains process & impact. Design task (take-home or live whiteboard - 24–48 hrs): Short brief simulating a POD requirement (thumbnail + static social creative + short rationale). Stakeholder round (30–45 mins): Meet with content/marketing/product to assess collaboration fit and communication style. Final leadership round (30 mins): Strategic fit, growth plan, and compensation discussion. KPIs & success metrics (first 6 months) Timely delivery: % of design requests delivered on or before agreed deadline. Quality: Stakeholder satisfaction score (target >4/5) from repeated feedback loops. Impact: Improvement in creative-driven metrics (CTR, watch time on thumbnails) for owned campaigns. Process: Documentation completeness — maintaining an updated POD asset library and guidelines.