Senior Designer, Creative Services

Job Title: Senior Designer, Creative Services

Department: Communications, External Affairs

Location: Virtual/Remote

Reports to: Director of Strategic Communications

Classification: Exempt

Direct Reports: None

Position Type: Full-Time Employee

Anticipated Pay Range at Commencement of Employment: $69,000 - $88,000

Blue Star Families

Blue Star Families is the largest nonprofit dedicated to making military life better for families. Each year, we support over 1.5 million military- and veteran-connected family members through a national network of 300,000+ members and local chapters in communities across the country.

Our mission is simple and bold: We make military life awesome for families.

We listen, share, partner, and act to deliver evidence-based, data-driven solutions that work for real people. We're a lifestyle organization, a friend and neighbor, and a trusted partner. Our approach is collaborative, human-centered, and designed with the whole family in mind.

A Blue Star Family is one with an immediate family member — a spouse, parent, or child — actively serving in the U.S. Armed Forces, including the Guard and Reserves. These families face unique challenges: frequent relocations, deployments, career disruption, and isolation. We respond with research-informed programs that create connection, build resilience, and foster a true sense of belonging.

We serve with urgency but build trust over time — because change happens at the speed of trust. Whether we're driving spouse employment, supporting caregivers, or helping communities welcome military families, we strive for upstream solutions.

Who We're Looking For:

• Bold thinkers. Fast movers. Smart collaborators. People who want to build, lead, and drive measurable change — and who care deeply about making an impact that matters.

What You'll Do Here:

• Solve complex challenges with data, heart, and humility
• Build cross-sector partnerships that get things done
• Help military families feel at home wherever they live

If you're ready to work in a high-performance, mission-driven environment — and to make life better for those who serve — Blue Star Families is where you belong.

General Description

Blue Star Families is looking for an experienced graphic designer to join the Communications and Brand Marketing team. The Senior Designer, Creative Services is responsible for overseeing and delivering high-quality creative assets that advance the organization's brand and mission. This role creates and manages the development of visual materials across campaigns, events, digital platforms, and print, ensuring a consistent brand identity and engaging design execution. Partnering with teams across the organization, the Senior Designer, Creative Services provides creative direction, maintains brand standards, and brings innovative approaches to storytelling that strengthen visibility, impact, and member and stakeholder experience. The ideal candidate is collaborative, innovative, detail-oriented and able to thrive in a fast-paced environment.

As a fully remote organization, we rely on scheduled in-person gatherings to foster alignment, collaboration, and organizational culture. This role requires the ability to travel out of town overnight, up to several times per year for staff offsites, planning retreats, and company-wide events. These gatherings are essential for connection, brainstorming, and staying strategically aligned across teams. Participation is required as a core part of the role.

Key Job Functions

Advance Blue Star Families' long-term creative communications strategy and brand positioning by developing visual assets and messaging that consistently reflect the organization's mission and focus.

Design, produce, and deliver high-quality graphics across digital, print, and other channels to enhance visibility and engagement.

Develop and implement comprehensive branding that supports both the organization's mission and targeted initiatives.

Create templates and toolkits to increase efficiency (e.g., impact and grant reports, development/fundraising materials, and social media assets).

Collaborate with internal teams to ensure visual asset needs are anticipated and met.

Establish, maintain, and enforce brand standards; educate and empower staff to ensure a cohesive, consistent brand experience.

Manage workflow and provide creative direction for contractors, freelancers, and other designers.

Build and manage relationships with production vendors and creative partners, including printers, promotional product providers, and production professionals.

• Perform other related duties as assigned.

Required Experience, Skills & Background

• Bachelor's Degree in graphic design or marketing or equivalent years of experience in brand management, communications, or design
• At least 4-7 years of experience in graphic design, marketing/communications, or brand management
• An understanding and literacy in communications design and design trends, with a strong ability to respond to current trends as it relates to the member experience
• Knowledge of emerging marketing and communications trends, techniques, and tools to ensure that the Blue Star Families brand remains strong and impactful
• Depth of knowledge of visual and marketing materials needed in various forms of media
• An ability to think strategically and come up with creative, fresh, innovative ideas for campaigns relevant to MSO/VSO communities
• Self-starter and creative thinker with excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Experience with writing and copyediting in a marketing and communications environment
• Works and communicates effectively with people from different backgrounds; fosters teamwork
• Comfortable with technology and working with technology teams
• Occasional out-of-town, overnight travel may be required
• May be required to work nights, weekends, and holidays as necessary to carry out key job functions

Desired Experience, Skills & Background

• Analytical skills and strong attention to detail
• The ability to manage and allocate budgets
• Experience with and an understanding of market research
• Time and project management skills, including the ability to work on multiple projects at the same time

More About Blue Star Families

Blue Star Families empowers military and Veteran families to thrive by connecting them with their civilian neighbors — both people and organizations — to create strong communities of mutual support. We believe we're all stronger when we take care of one another.

Our groundbreaking research is raising the nation's awareness of the unique challenges of military family life. With the help of neighbors across the country, Blue Star Families is overcoming the isolation and alienation of frequent moves, deployments, and reduced support from the government. Our innovative programs are solving specific challenges for military families, including fighting economic insecurity with resources that foster spouse career development, creating family strength with rich family programming, and providing critical peer support for caregivers, whose numbers are only increasing.

Blue Star Families is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.

EEO Policy

Blue Star Families is an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, pregnancy, age, national origin, disability status, genetic information, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.

Why Blue Star Families?

• Virtual/remote nonprofit organization that moves with you (position specific)
• Career growth opportunities
• Excellent benefits (403(b) with matching, Flexible Spending, Life Insurance, Short-Term Disability, Communications Allowance, and more)
• Permanent Change of Station (PCS) Leave for Active Duty Military Spouses
• On-the-job professional development training
• Front-line opportunity to positively impact the military experience
• Competitive salaries
• Workplace flexibility