Andrew Barber: Graphic Designer & Web Master - Contract/On-Call in Thousand Oaks, CA

Currently serving in a contract, on-call role providing graphics assistance and facility digital kiosk maintenance for a 501(c)3 non-profit organization offering seniors engaging activities and classes for 1100+ members. Work remotely and on-site; directly report to the Executive Director. -Helped update the website through Wix.com with time-sensitive activity and event announcements for maximum member benefit. -Maintain facility’s digital kiosk; serve as Touchsource technical support team liaison for maintenance or troubleshooting. Key achievements to date include: - Spearheaded the setup of a Touchsource digital kiosk after a large facility move in 2019. Established screen display to loop through slides and design and program updated graphics and info as needed. Efforts have resulted in increased interaction and improved event attendance. - Recognized by organization’s President and Executive Director for being a responsive contract worker capable of optimizing web assets for both speed and performance, and for troubleshooting and resolving complex problems in a timely manner.

Oversee merchandising and inventory control for a high-traffic retail store in Southern California. Process freight and stock shelves to maximize product inventory and ensure a positive customer experience. Additionally serve as a Front-End Assistant; directly report to Store Manager. -Perform opening and closing duties including creating and filling product pull lists, cleaning, closing registers, and counting monies. -Follow corporate Plan-O-Grams to ensure proper branding, signage, and end-cap display placement; study product portfolio to upsell. Significant contributions to date include: - Excel in troubleshooting and solving inventory discrepancies; ensure customer loyalty and increase sales by diligently researching and correcting product pricing mistakes and making the extra effort to help customers find rare products. - Entrusted to manage large store merchandising projects to guarantee branding standards. - Train and orient new staff to store processes and product location, software and scanning gun usage, and how to create and fill pull lists.

Provided custom graphic design, product photography, and video editing services for a toys and rubber/plastics products manufacturing and importing company doing business as Bushman Products. Served as 1 of 15 employees within the Torrance facility; assigned to the management of special projects operations from design to print and ship for the company generating ~$2.7M in annual revenue. Directly reported to Product Designer/Developer and Senior Graphic Designer. -Worked with the Marketing and Sales team to concept, design, develop, and implement all print, digital, and video-related marketing materials and communication in support of Bushman’s brand voice and strategy. -Created free custom graphics and advertising materials such as signs, plan-o-grams, display boxes, POP, stickers, invitations, posters, and billboards for global retailers to use to display Bushman’s products on windows, slat walls, doors, and counters within stores. -Engaged with Sales team to understand overall vision for each project; completed mock-ups to send to Account Managers and customers for edits and approval. -Regularly used Adobe Creative Cloud to design and edit graphics for all marketing materials such as multi-panel brochures, envelopes, emails, and website. -Developed short informational product videos using a DSLR camera; filmed and edited clips showcasing products and Sales team members explaining specs and capabilities for use during tradeshows on video walls, on company webpage, and on social media platforms such as YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. Noted accomplishments include: - Singlehandedly developed items for new product promotions. Additionally spearheaded the redesign of a specific product’s packaging; worked directly with customers in Africa and the Middle East, ultimately creating 10 different redesigns incorporating new and changing specifications. - Consistently received positive feedback; routinely requested by multiple store owners to customize seasonal posters. - Key contributor in the growth of the company; helped increase sales by 20% and contributed to the 3 best consecutive years of sales for the company. - Noted for being a dedicated employee willing to go the extra mile. 1 of 2 Graphic Designers originally hired to create custom graphics; took on increased workload comprised of product photography, video editing, brochure creation, and custom headers after other Graphic Designer left company, for no additional pay.

Appointed with a commercial printer to provide editing, cleaning and retouching services for fashion photographs published in catalogs, brochures, and marketing publications of Castle Press clients. Used Adobe Photoshop; directly reported to Print Shop Manager. -Collaborated with vendors to ensure style and branding consistency. Created clipping masks to adjust and edit photographs.

Entrusted to work in a remote contract role with Ancestry.com after a relocation to Southern California. Accountable for digitizing thousands of images each month and cataloging and managing digital collections. Performed quality control audits to meet Ancestry.com and NARA/National Archives and Records Administration technical guidelines and standards for digitizing archival materials. Significant achievement includes: - Drew upon previously established relationship and process with NARA to protect and care for historical documents. Digitized close to 100K images each month while maintaining quality, resulting in recognition from Ancestry.com.

Brought in to work with the Design Team assisting with unique marketing and advertising projects for an acute-care facility offering a full range of primary care and medical-surgical services. Completed a variety of print and web-based jobs to drive growth. Directly reported to the Head of Marketing. -Collaborated with other Graphic Designers to generate completed projects under aggressive timelines. Typical projects included: banner ads, vehicle wraps, patient handbook, and photograph editing, retouching, and prep for the organization’s website, social media channels, and printed materials.

Hired onto Ancestry.com’s Imaging Team to use education and extensive photographic knowledge to photograph historical locations and digitize genealogical data in the greater Washington D.C. metro area for housing at NARA and future publication use. Mentored a team of 11 Imaging Specialists in a fast-paced, multimedia environment; directly reported to Imaging Services Manager. -Selected to coach a staff of 11 Specialists by ensuring team members had overall vision and tools for success. Taught best scanning practices with a focus on maintaining quality while diminishing the need for rescans and improving overall department efficiency. -Worked in-house and remotely, traveling to assigned locations to use a digital camera for use on web publications. Regularly drew upon expertise in macrophotography, lighting, and image editing. -Served as an effective Project Manager; led cross-functional teams, set priorities, managed project timelines, and coordinated content production and workflow. Provided technical hardware and proprietary software guidance and demonstrated acute attention to detail while managing files and cataloging digital collections. Noted contributions include: - Cultivated a positive vendor relationship with NARA employees; collaborated with archive and genealogical records experts to devise and implement Ancestry.com best practices allowing documents to be safely, quickly, and properly digitized. - Awarded “Employee of the Month” resulting in selection for numerous strategic initiatives and projects including archival elements and imagery for use on the company website. Entrusted to travel to various cemeteries in Philadelphia and Virginia to capture Civil War Veteran gravestones for the Ancestry.com Civil War release; additionally tasked to photograph old Civil War manifests and books requiring the use of an oversized industrial camera. - Received Ancestry.com’s “Grace Under Fire” award for outstanding performance under intense deadlines. - Proved to serve as an effective mentor for struggling team members; helped improve numbers and increase productivity while simultaneously maintaining personal workload. - Originally hired into a full-time position with Ancestry.com as an Imaging Production Specialist/Photographer in 2010; promoted to Team Lead in 11 months’ time due to flexibility and demonstrated leadership skills.