Hey Reader,
Hiring is underway for the motion designer role I talked about in the last issue and wow – we've had more than 700 applications so far. I've been reviewing a lot of portfolios and show reels, which has been both exciting and overwhelming.
Last week I hopped on a call with our recruiter, Emily, for an intake meeting to get aligned on what we're looking for in this role. She asked me a really good question:
"What are some of the qualities of a successful Brand Studio team member? And what are some indicators that someone isn't going to be a successful fit?"
It was one of those questions that forced me to articulate things I'd been thinking about but hadn't put into words yet.
Here's what I shared with Emily about the qualities that make Brand Studio teammates successful:
They think like business strategists, not just visual creators
The most successful team members understand that every creative decision needs to ladder up to measurable outcomes – whether that's signup rates, feature adoption, or brand affinity. They don't just ask "Does this look good?" but "Will this help meet our goals?" They're metrics-minded and connect their creative work to business outcomes.
They embrace systematic thinking over one-off masterpieces
While craft quality is non-negotiable, successful team members know when to create a template or component that can be reused 20 times versus spending that same energy on a single bespoke piece. They're systems builders who create tools, templates, and processes that make everyone more efficient.
They work in public and iterate fearlessly
The best team members share work-in-progress early and often, treating feedback as fuel rather than criticism. They understand that in our fast-moving environment, shipping something good and learning from it beats perfecting something in isolation. They deliver quality without perfectionism.
They take initiative to solve business problems
Successful Brand Studio teammates don't just fulfill requests from other teams – they pay attention to cross-functional projects and offer their expertise when they see ways their skillset can help reach project goals. They're proactive problem-solvers who take ownership while actively seeking input and feedback.
On the flip side, what doesn't work?
- Operating as an order-taker rather than a problem solver – Doing a great job of what's asked of them, but not understanding or noticing additional ways their skills can help drive results across the business.
- Being reluctant to share work – If someone only shares work when they're happy with it, it usually means they're sharing too late in the process for feedback to have meaningful impact.
- Not connecting creative decisions to business impact – Missing the bigger picture of how their work ladders up to measurable outcomes and business goals can mean they invest too much effort into lower impact projects, leaving no space for higher impact work.
- Outsourcing decision-making – We rely on each team member to be the CEO of their own domain, which includes making recommendations on the best solution which are backed by data and their business understanding, even when someone else makes the final call on what to implement.
I'm curious: what are the qualities of successful members of your team that might not be obvious from the outside? Emily mentioned that she's observed other brand teams that aren't as connected to the business as ours, which surprised me – but maybe that strategic focus isn't as common as I thought. Hit reply and let me know what you look for beyond the technical skills.
Talk soon,
PS: If you have experience working in-house in a motion design role at a tech company and you have strong examples of how you've used 2D motion graphics to market a website, app or digital product, I'd love to see you apply! Check out the job description and apply here.
