Jay is an interactive designer who has graduated from York University for Visual Arts and Multimedia. As well, he has graduated from the Web Design program at Sheridan College in 2006. After graduating he entered into the Toronto design agency two weeks after school at an agency called Organic. His first big website in the field was for Jamieson.
Jay specializes in interactive web experiences, online advertisements, mobile, and print. Jay is passionate about talking about Henderson Bas and explains that there are around 80 employees. He says one of the best parts of the atmosphere is the culture, which is both fun and exciting to him. In the creative department there are 4 juniors, 3 seniors, 3 art directors, 1 associate creative director, and 1 creative director.
Jay’s roles and responsibilities include brainstorming, making concepts, designing, overseeing work, and meeting timelines. Some brands he has worked on include Coco Cola, Nintendo, Tim Hortons, Kraft Dinner, Dillions, Infusion, Timex, and LG.
He explains that he reports directly to the art director, and once the art director approves the work, they go to the creative director. After approval, the project is submitted to the account manager to ensure that it is ready to show the client. The client then will be allowed to ask questions and have input for a round of review. I found this process really interesting since each design firm does the process a little differently.
When asked about how many hours he works, he explains hours are based on a value system. He gets a set number of projects per week, and it’s up to him to set the hours so he can get everything completed. For example, he could get one large e-commence site or various projects on the go at once. This is not a typical 9 to 5 job, since it is a company where you work extra hours to build up an amazing portfolio and win awards. If you are not done your work at 5, you are expected to stay and finish. Jay enjoys this since he likes being challenged and likes winning awards and creating an amazing portfolio.
Jay then starts showing us examples. He showed us LG Shrine Plus. He also talks about the website Get Connected. At this point in the presentation I was so excited since I have come across both of these websites before and I loved the design and usability in them! He also talks about how the company stays away from stock photography, which I find interesting.
Jay also explains how they design these projects. They first brainstorm, sketch the concept, present, design, build, and then revise. He shows us a great example of the whole entire process with a Mercedes Brenz project. He showed us examples of the concept, the brainstorming, and the idea behind the website. This process moves fast. The company usually spends two days on concept, two days on design, and finish the design in a week and a half while working on various other projects. He explains, sometimes the deadlines are shorter or longer depending on the project.
He also expands on the subject by showing us how many revisions he has to do on a simple navigation bar. Sometimes a few hours of work turns into days of work because of revisions that the client wants you to complete. For this reason, he explains how we should cherish our student work and enjoy projects that we can be creative with.
A job he has really enjoyed was TIMEX because he got to be completely creative and incorporate his own creative freedom since there was not many guidelines or rules. He is also not a fan of site maintenance since he really enjoys being creative.
His advice that works include:
1.) Stay close with classmates.
2.) Network a lot and use online networking, such as LinkedIn.
(Networking is how he got a job at Henderson Bas.)
3.) Be a team player, not a hero. As well, don’t have an ego!
When he was asked about how much he makes, he didn’t give an amount but he did say he makes double the amount he started off with and gets great benefits, such as a drug plan, dental, and RSPs. He also explains side jobs, such as contracting can be more high paying, but shorter termed. He also explains to us that when we start off as junior designers, we should ask for 35,000 to 55,000 for our yearly salary. He also explains how Creative Niche is very helpful.
When Jay finished college, his 5-year plan was to be an art director, which he has almost succeeded on. He plans on staying in Toronto since he loves the culture, the industry, and it is the third largest location for design in North America. He wants to eventually become a creative director and one-day (in the far future) start up his own company.
Some things he would approach differently if he took the Sheridan Web Design course again include focusing on typography a lot more. As well, networking more outside of class and to go on more tours.
To learn more about Jay’s work and for contact information, you can visit his portfolio.
Henderson Bas:
Website
479 Wellington St. W.
Toronto, ON
M5V 1E7
416-977-6660
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