Senior Design Manager

Oct 29 2025
Honolulu Museum of Art |Honolulu|Full Time, $75,000 - $85,000 / year
Job Description


TO BE CONSIDERED APPLY DIRECTLY TO https://honolulumuseum.org/opportunities-m1xn

Job Summary:

Under the general direction of the Chief Marketing & Communications Officer, the Senior Designer Manager oversees and maintains all aspects of the Honolulu Museum of Art’s visual branding and identity. The Senior Design Manager leads as an art director, combining creative leadership with management of HoMA's visual identity to ensure high quality, cohesive visuals across all channels. This role goes beyond hands-on design, focusing on strategic vision, conceptualization, and high-level direction, communicating across various departments, and guiding creative projects from concept to completion.

This role is responsible for upholding and enforcing brand standards to ensure consistency and cohesion across visual communications platforms.

 

The Honolulu Museum of Art:

Opened in 1927, the Honolulu Museum of Art is a home for art and education created for the benefit of the entire community. Founder Anna Rice Cooke envisioned a museum that would bring people together through the power of art and “the deep intuitions that are common to all.” The museum was conceived of as a place of meaningful exchange and dialogue, celebrating the diverse artistic and cultural traditions of Hawai‘i’s multi-ethnic population. From this founding intention grew the museum of today, with a world-class encyclopedic collection of more than 55,000 works of art, representing a stunning breadth of places and eras, from all corners of the globe and from the ancient past to the present day.

To learn more about HoMA, please visit our website. https://honolulumuseum.org/about-us-zpj4

 

Minimum Qualifications

  • A Bachelor’s Degree in graphic design or related field with at least 8 years of comprehensive experience in design, brand, or creative service, or equivalent combination of education and experience.
  • Extensive professional experience in print and digital design.
  • Excellent design ability, including experience with exhibition design, print design, publication design, digital marketing, and digital publishing.
  • Demonstrated experience in art direction, including leading visual concept development, providing creative direction to designers and collaborators, and overseeing execution to ensure alignment with project goals.
  • Proven ability to enforce and maintain brand standards across all internal and external communications to ensure visual consistency and brand integrity.
  • Fluency in Microsoft Office Suite, Adobe Creative Suite and Cloud, and Adobe After Effects.
  • Familiarity with large-format printers, specifically the Epson 9600.
  • Strong knowledge of the print production process, with the ability to write specs, get estimates, and make informed choices.
  • Honesty, integrity, and a strong work ethic supported by commitment, enthusiasm, and follow-through.
  • Ability to work within and support a diverse community of visitors, artists, and employees.

Desired Qualifications

  • Familiarity with museum visual collateral.
  • Experience in a museum, arts and culture, or nonprofit organization.
  • Understanding of and dedication to advancing the Honolulu Museum of Art’s identity, vision, and values.

Essential Duties

  • Oversees and advances the visual identity of the Honolulu Museum of Art, ensuring alignment with the Museum’s strategic vision and mission.
  • Leads art direction and design for major institutional projects, including member magazines, exhibitions, campaigns, signage, and other collateral, balancing creative vision with hands-on design execution.
  • Directs and develops cohesive exhibition branding and supporting materials such as graphics, banners, and digital assets in collaboration with Curatorial, Learning and Engagement, and Marketing teams.
  • Designs and maintains templates and brand assets that promote brand consistency across all museum communications and advertising.
  • Manages the design process from concept through production, establishing project priorities, schedules, and workflows in collaboration with departments across the museum.
  • Oversees vendor relationships including printers and fabricators to ensure design integrity, quality, and budget alignment across all deliverables.
  • Provides creative partnership and guidance to departments on marketing, advertising, and branding strategies for both print and digital channels.
  • Manages and collaborates with the in-house Photographer and Videographer. Provides art direction for photoshoots supporting exhibitions, the museum shop, members magazine, website, and catalogue.
  • Produces in-house printed materials using in-house Epson 9600 printer as needed to support timely project delivery.
  • Upholds and evolves HoMA’s brand and exhibition design standards, ensuring consistency and accessibility across all visitor touch points.
  • Demonstrates a commitment to fostering cultivating, and preserving a culture of inclusivity, diversity, equity, and accessibility through respectful communication and cooperation with others, continuous training, and the modeling of inclusive behaviors.
  • In partnership with HR, supports the leadership team in ensuring equitable experiences, strengthening inclusion acumen and promoting a culture of belonging that embraces the contributions of all staff.
  • Other duties as assigned.

Compensation

The Honolulu Museum of Art is committed to practicing salary transparency. The salary for this position is $75,000 per annum to $85,000 per annum. Please note that pay range information is a general guideline only. Many factors are taken into consideration when setting pay, including education, experience, the external labor market, and internal equity.

This opportunity includes a generous benefits package, including but not limited to:

  • Fully covered medical, dental, and vision insurance for employees.
  • 12 paid holidays.
  • 15 days of vacation accrued in the 1st year, increasing to 20 days in the 2nd year.
  • 15 days of sick leave accrued annually.
  • Group retirement plans with employer matching after 12 months of service.
  • Shop, Museum Café, and Art School discounts.
  • Onsite parking provided.

Working Conditions and Atmosphere:

Work takes place in an office environment. General office hours are Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. with flexible scheduling as appropriate. Ability to operate general office equipment including computers, copiers, printers, etc. Ability to lift, carry, push, pull, up to 25 pounds of general office material or equipment. Ability to work some evening and weekend hours.

The employee must be able to fulfill all Essential Duties with or without a reasonable accommodation. This job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive list of all activities, duties, or responsibilities that are required of the employee. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change, or new ones may be assigned, at any time with or without notice.

 

EEOC Statement:

HoMA is proud to be an equal opportunity employer and is committed to providing equal opportunity for all employees and applicants. HoMA recruits, hires, trains, promotes, compensates, and administers all personnel actions and benefit programs without regard to race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, including pregnancy and gender identity and expression, national origin, age, disability, sexual orientation, reproductive health decisions, marital status, arrest and court record (except as legally applicable), citizenship, credit history, military and veteran service, victim of domestic violence or sexual abuse victim status, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law.

The statements contained herein describe the scope of the responsibilities and essential functions of this position but should not be considered an all-inclusive listing of work duties and requirements. Individuals may perform other duties as assigned, including work in other areas to cover absences or relief to equalize peak work periods or otherwise balance the workload.

HoMA maintains a policy of nondiscrimination in all employment practices and decisions, ensuring equal employment opportunities for all qualified individuals. This applies to both HoMA employees and applicants for employment with the Museum. Any form of harassment of any employee because of any protected status is prohibited.

HoMA welcomes people from all backgrounds and walks of life, and this is reflected in our diverse community of employees. We encourage applications from candidates across a wide variety of backgrounds, including, but not limited to, people of all races and ethnicities, people with disabilities, women, veterans, and all members of the LGBTQ community.

TO BE CONSIDERED APPLY DIRECTLY TO https://honolulumuseum.org/opportunities-m1xn