Black Sun Ltd
Design Director - Mat Cover - Corporate Communications Agency
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The role
At Black Sun, we believe great creative work starts by finding what matters.
As a Design Director, you will help turn insight, ideas and complex information into clear, compelling communications for some of the world's leading businesses.
This is a hands-on creative role for an experienced designer who combines excellent craft with strong creative judgement. You will spend much of your time designing and developing work yourself, while also taking responsibility for creative direction on projects, guiding other designers and working closely with Creative Directors and account teams.
We are looking for someone comfortable operating between Senior Designer and Design Director level. Someone who loves making, but is ready to lead. Someone who can see the bigger picture without losing an eye for the detail.
As a maternity cover role, you will be joining established teams and client relationships. You will need to get up to speed quickly, provide continuity and bring your own ideas and experience to make the work stronger.
What you will do
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Find what matters
- Get beneath the brief before starting to design.
- Understand the client, audience, content and communication challenge and identify what needs to come through most clearly.
- Work with Creative Directors and account teams to turn strategy and narrative into creative opportunities.
- Ask good questions, challenge constructively and help bring clarity when the answer is not immediately obvious.
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Have an idea
- Contribute actively to concepts and creative routes rather than waiting for a fully formed design direction.
- Develop strong organising ideas that can work across reports, digital communications, campaigns and other channels.
- Help designers understand the thinking behind the work so that the idea remains strong as it develops.
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Make complexity clear
- Turn detailed corporate, financial, strategic and sustainability information into communication that people can understand and engage with.
- Create strong hierarchy, structure and visual storytelling.
- Bring particular confidence to typography, editorial design, information design and data visualisation.
- Know what to simplify, what to emphasise and what can get out of the way.
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Make every choice for a reason
- Create and develop high quality design from early concepts through to finished execution.
- Establish visual direction and design systems that are distinctive, coherent and practical.
- Make confident decisions about typography, imagery, colour, composition, information and interaction.
- Work across print and digital, with an interest in how motion, AI and emerging creative tools can strengthen ideas and improve how we work.
- Maintain a high standard of craft throughout delivery, working closely with publishing and production teams to protect the integrity of the original idea.
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Make a difference
- Take ownership of the quality of the work you lead.
- Present and explain creative thinking clearly to colleagues and clients.
- Give other designers useful direction and feedback, helping them find stronger solutions rather than simply telling them what to change.
- Bring energy, curiosity and a point of view to creative reviews, pitches and the wider studio.
- Look for opportunities to make the work better, not simply to get it finished.
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What we are looking for
You are an experienced designer with a strong portfolio of thoughtful, beautifully crafted work and the confidence to take greater creative ownership.
You do not need to arrive as a fully formed Design Director. You may be an established Senior Designer looking for the opportunity to take the next step, or already operating at an Associate Design Director or Design Director level while remaining very hands-on.
You will bring:
- Excellent graphic design and typographic craft
- Strong conceptual and visual thinking
- Confidence working with complex content and information
- Excellent editorial design, hierarchy and data visualisation skills
- Advanced knowledge of Adobe InDesign, Illustrator and Photoshop
- Experience across print and digital design
- The ability to develop an idea into a coherent creative system
- Good communication and presentation skills
- Confidence giving direction and constructive feedback to other designers
- The ability to manage your own workload and take ownership of significant projects
- Curiosity about new creative tools, technology and ways of working
- A collaborative attitude and willingness to contribute to the wider team
How you will work
You will collaborate closely with:
- Creative Directors
- Senior, midweight and junior designers
- Account Directors and Account Managers
- Publishing and production teams
- Strategy, investor relations and sustainability specialists
- Digital and other creative specialists
- Clients
You will be encouraged to participate in the creative process, share your thinking and learn from people with different skills and experience.
What success looks like
You will be making a strong contribution when:
- People trust you with important creative work
- Your designs demonstrate strong thinking as well as strong craft
- You can take a brief from initial thinking through to confident creative execution
- The work gets better because of your involvement
- Designers value your direction and become stronger through working with you
- Account teams and clients trust your creative judgement
- You balance ambition with the practical realities of delivering work
- You contribute positively to the thinking, energy and standards of the studio
Our creative belief
Black Sun exists to illuminate potential.
We believe creativity helps reveal what others cannot yet see. The insight beneath the information. The opportunity beneath the complexity. The story beneath the strategy.
That shapes how we work:
- Find what matters.
- Have an idea.
- Make complexity clear.
- Make every choice for a reason.
- Make a difference.
For a Designer at Black Sun, that starts with one simple behaviour: Think before you make.
Interview process
- Phone chat with talent acquisition manager
- 1st Interview (via teams) with hiring manager
- 2nd interview with creative director and team member : In person interview (Fulham Palace), presentation of a task
About Us
Black Sun Global
Black Sun Global is a stakeholder advisory and engagement agency that’s been driving transformation and positive change for ambitious brands for more than 20 years. With deep expertise in disclosure and reporting, ESG, sustainability, and digital engagement, we reshape how organisations connect with customers, investors, employees, and the wider world.
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We are trusted partners to some of the most influential global organisations, sparking innovation and sustainable performance through our strategic insights, partnerships, and proprietary technologies.
As founders of the Positive Change Group, we are on a mission to create a new kind of stakeholder relations partner. Our world-class specialists work closely with executive leadership teams to protect reputations, inspire trust, and promote responsible business practices - building resilience and long-term value in a rapidly changing world.
The Positive Change Group
Business is changing fast - shaped by AI, transparency and rising social expectations – and trust now decides who wins.
Positive Change Group brings together specialist agencies in reporting, culture and communications to help organisations build stronger, more connected stakeholder relationships - aligning what you say with what you do to drive performance, resilience and trust. Clients get deep specialist expertise with seamless access to wider Group capabilities as priorities evolve.
We’re trusted partners to some of the world’s leading organisations, delivering award-winning work that turns complex challenges into meaningful progress. By combining human insight with data and technology, we create intelligent stakeholder engagement that brings clarity, builds commitment and delivers measurable impact.
One partner across your stakeholders - practical, joined-up and built for what’s next.
Join the people driving positive change
Change starts with people. Our global teams bring together different disciplines, nationalities and perspectives, driven by a shared belief that business can be a force for good.
Guided by our Group Values - to learn and grow, go together, show respect, be courageous and deliver excellence - we bring these principles to life every day through our work and each other.
We call it The Changemaker Way: a culture built on trust, inclusion and doing what’s right. It’s how we learn, lead and grow - and make a difference that lasts.
Visit: www.positivechangegroup.com
We pride ourselves on being committed to offering equal opportunities to all potential employees and have zero tolerance for discrimination. We foster a business culture where ideas and decisions from all people help us grow, innovate, create the best work and be relevant in a rapidly changing world. We welcome applicants from all backgrounds to apply and would encourage you to let us know if there are steps we can take to ensure that your recruitment process enables you to present yourself in a way that makes you comfortable.
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