Sr. Design Manager, Brand Creative

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Sr. Design Manager, Brand Creative

Company: Gong.io

Location: Austin, TX; Chicago, IL; New York City, NY; Salt Lake City, UT; San Francisco, CA

Job Type: Full-Time

Category: Brand Creative Operations / Marketing Operations

Date Posted: 2026-05-13T17:36:01

Experience Level: 7+ Years (with 2+ years in leadership)

Remote Status: Remote OK (Hybrid options may be available in specified locations)

🚀 Role Summary

• Lead and mentor a Brand Creative team, fostering a culture of innovation and professional development to drive impactful brand experiences.

• Develop and articulate a strategic creative vision that aligns with overarching business objectives and reinforces the Gong brand identity across all channels.

• Oversee the adoption and optimization of design systems, project management tools, and creative workflows to ensure scalability, efficiency, and high-quality output.

• Manage external vendors, contractors, and agency relationships, ensuring they meet rigorous quality and brand alignment standards.

• Analyze business metrics and leverage data-driven insights to inform design decisions, optimize team performance, and demonstrate the impact of creative initiatives.

📝 Enhancement Note: This role is positioned within Brand Creative Operations, focusing on the strategic management and operational efficiency of creative production and brand consistency. While not a traditional Revenue Operations role, it shares core principles of process optimization, data utilization, and cross-functional collaboration essential for GTM success. The emphasis on scalability, efficiency, and data-driven decisions is directly transferable to operations thinking.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Manage, mentor, and develop a team of 2 designers and 1 videographer, cultivating a collaborative and high-performing creative environment.

• Establish and communicate a clear creative strategy and vision, ensuring alignment with Gong's overall business goals and brand positioning.

• Uphold exceptional quality and brand consistency across all creative deliverables, including digital assets, presentations, video content, and marketing collateral.

• Oversee the implementation and continuous improvement of design systems, project management software, and creative processes to enhance workflow efficiency and scalability.

• Lead and coordinate complex, multi-step cross-functional initiatives, effectively managing priorities, timelines, and stakeholder expectations.

• Partner with the Sr. Creative Director to champion design initiatives and ensure creative solutions support senior leadership objectives and business outcomes.

• Utilize business metrics and data analytics to guide design strategy, measure the effectiveness of creative campaigns, and optimize team performance.

📝 Enhancement Note: The responsibilities highlight a strong focus on operational excellence within the creative function. Managing design systems, optimizing creative processes, and leveraging data metrics are hallmarks of operations roles, albeit applied to creative output. The requirement to coordinate cross-functional initiatives and partner with senior leadership underscores the strategic operational impact expected.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education: Bachelor's degree in Design, Fine Arts, Marketing, or a related field is preferred, though equivalent practical experience will be considered.

Experience: 7+ years of progressive experience in design, with a minimum of 2 years in a people management or design leadership capacity, ideally within a fast-paced B2B SaaS environment.

Required Skills:

• People Management & Mentorship: Proven ability to lead, mentor, and provide constructive, actionable feedback to junior team members, fostering professional growth.

• Creative Strategy & Vision: Ability to develop and articulate a compelling creative vision that aligns with business objectives and brand identity.

• Brand Consistency Management: Strong understanding of brand guidelines and experience ensuring consistent application across all creative assets.

• Vendor & Agency Management: Demonstrated experience managing external vendors, contractors, and agency relationships, holding them to high standards.

• Project & Stakeholder Management: Excellent skills in managing multiple workstreams, setting clear expectations, and aligning cross-functional partners.

• Visual Storytelling: Exceptional ability to communicate complex ideas and narratives effectively through visual design.

• Animation Proficiency: Experience with animation tools such as Adobe After Effects or similar software.

Preferred Skills:

• Design Systems Implementation: Experience in adopting, optimizing, and scaling design systems for efficiency and consistency.

• Data-Driven Design: Familiarity with analyzing business metrics and using data to inform creative decisions and measure impact.

• B2B SaaS Design Context: Deep understanding of design principles and best practices within the B2B SaaS industry.

• Cross-functional Collaboration: Proven track record of successfully collaborating with diverse teams (e.g., Marketing, Product, Sales).

• Presentation & Communication: Ability to effectively pitch creative concepts to senior leadership (e.g., CMO) and technical teams (e.g., engineers).

📝 Enhancement Note: The required skills emphasize leadership, strategic thinking, and operational execution within a creative context. The inclusion of "Design Systems," "Data-Driven Design," and "Cross-functional Collaboration" are strong indicators of operations-aligned competencies. The experience level suggests a strategic contributor capable of driving process improvements.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• Demonstrate a portfolio showcasing leadership in brand creative projects, ideally within B2B SaaS.

• Include examples of strategic creative vision development and execution across multiple channels.

• Showcase instances of managing and mentoring design teams or individuals, highlighting their growth and contributions.

• Present case studies that illustrate effective vendor, contractor, or agency management and the results achieved.

Process Documentation:

• Evidence of establishing or optimizing design systems, workflows, and project management processes for creative teams.

• Documentation or case studies detailing the successful coordination of large, multi-step cross-functional initiatives.

• Examples of how creative feedback was provided and integrated to improve design quality and alignment.

• Demonstrations of communication strategies used to align senior leadership and technical teams on creative concepts.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on portfolio requirements related to process optimization, system adoption, data utilization, and cross-functional coordination directly aligns with operations expectations. Candidates should prepare to articulate the "how" behind their creative successes, focusing on the processes and systems that enabled them.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range: $138,000 - $210,000 USD annually.

Explanation of Range: This range is based on Gong's provided compensation structure, which considers factors such as job-related skills, qualifications, education, experience, and location. Gong utilizes a location-based compensation model, meaning the specific range may vary for candidates in different geographic areas. The total compensation package may also include incentive compensation, bonus, equity, and benefits.

Benefits:

• Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision insurance plans.

• Wellbeing Fund: A flexible stipend to support a healthy lifestyle.

• Mental Health Benefits: Coverage for therapy and coaching sessions.

• 401(k) Program: For investment in your future financial security.

• Education & Learning Stipend: For personal and professional growth and development.

• Flexible Vacation Time: Promoting a healthy work-life balance.

• Paid Parental Leave: Support for new parents.

• Company-wide Recharge Days: Scheduled quarterly to prevent burnout.

• Work From Home Stipend: To facilitate success in a remote work environment.

Working Hours: 40 hours per week (standard full-time). Flexible work arrangements are supported, but core business hours and team collaboration needs should be met.

📝 Enhancement Note: The salary range is competitive for a Sr. Design Manager role in major tech hubs. The detailed benefits package, particularly the "Wellbeing Fund," "Mental Health Benefits," and "Work From Home Stipend," reflects a strong employee-centric approach, which is often valued by operations professionals seeking a supportive work environment. The mention of "location-based compensation" is a critical detail for candidates in different regions.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: AI-powered Revenue Intelligence / B2B SaaS. Gong is a leader in transforming how revenue teams operate through AI, providing a comprehensive operating system that unifies data, insights, and workflows.

Company Size: Gong is a significant player in the SaaS market, indicating a dynamic, growth-oriented environment. The team size for Brand Creative is small (2 designers, 1 videographer), suggesting a lean, efficient operational structure within a larger organization.

Founded: Gong was founded to leverage AI for revenue teams, emphasizing innovation and a forward-thinking approach. This history suggests a culture that values cutting-edge solutions and continuous improvement, which aligns well with operations principles.

Team Structure:

• The Brand Creative team is part of the broader Marketing and Brand Creative function, reporting to the Sr. Director of Web Marketing and Brand Creative.

• This role involves direct people management of 2 designers and 1 videographer.

• Collaboration is expected with external design/animation contractors and key agency partners, requiring strong vendor management.

Methodology:

• Data-Driven Decision Making: The role requires leveraging business metrics and data to guide creative strategy and optimize performance.

• Process Optimization: Focus on adopting and improving design systems, project management tools, and creative workflows for scalability and efficiency.

• Agile/Lean Principles: The fast-paced B2B SaaS environment implies an agile approach to creative production and project management, prioritizing iterative development and quick adaptation.

Company Website: https://www.gong.io/

📝 Enhancement Note: Gong's focus on AI and revenue intelligence positions it at the forefront of business technology. The company culture, described as "innovative products, ambitious goals, and passionate people," suggests a performance-driven environment where operational efficiency and impactful contributions are valued. The emphasis on "transparency and trust" and enabling "visible impact" resonates with operations professionals.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: Senior Management / Leadership. This role is a Sr. Design Manager, indicating a position responsible for strategic direction, team leadership, and operational oversight within the Brand Creative function. It's a critical role in ensuring the brand's visual execution aligns with business goals.

Reporting Structure: Reports to the Sr. Director of Web Marketing and Brand Creative. This position likely has direct reports and works closely with other marketing leaders and potentially GTM leadership.

Operations Impact: The Brand Creative team's output directly influences Gong's market perception, customer acquisition, and brand equity. Effective management by this role ensures marketing campaigns are visually compelling, brand messaging is consistent, and operational efficiency in creative production supports GTM velocity. The ability to leverage data to optimize creative output directly links to revenue impact.

Growth Opportunities:

• Leadership Expansion: Potential to grow into a Director-level role, overseeing a larger creative function or expanding responsibilities to encompass broader brand strategy.

• Skill Specialization: Opportunity to deepen expertise in areas like AI-driven creative tools, advanced animation techniques, or global brand strategy implementation.

• Cross-functional Leadership: Potential to move into broader marketing leadership roles or transition into operational strategy roles within GTM functions, applying creative operations principles to other areas.

• Industry Influence: Contribution to a leading company in the AI and Revenue Intelligence space offers opportunities to shape industry standards in brand creative operations.

📝 Enhancement Note: This role offers a pathway to senior leadership within a high-growth tech company. The operational aspects of managing creative processes, teams, and external resources provide a strong foundation for broader operational or strategic leadership roles within GTM or marketing. The ability to demonstrate impact through data and efficiency is key for career advancement.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: Gong supports a remote-first or hybrid work model. Candidates can be based in Austin, Chicago, New York City, Salt Lake City, or San Francisco. This suggests a distributed team dynamic that requires strong virtual collaboration tools and processes.

Office Location(s): The specified cities are major tech hubs, offering potential for in-person collaboration if desired or required for specific team events, though the "Remote OK" status implies flexibility.

Workspace Context:

• Virtual Collaboration: Expect a heavily digital workspace. Proficiency with collaboration tools (e.g., Slack, Zoom, project management software) is crucial.

• Tooling: Access to industry-standard design and animation software, likely integrated with project management and communication platforms.

• Team Interaction: While remote, the culture emphasizes collaboration and impact. Expect regular virtual team meetings, brainstorming sessions, and cross-functional syncs.

Work Schedule: While a standard 40-hour work week is expected, Gong offers flexible vacation time and company-wide recharge days, suggesting a culture that balances productivity with employee well-being. This flexibility is beneficial for managing complex creative projects and ensuring optimal operational flow.

📝 Enhancement Note: The remote-friendly environment and specified tech hubs indicate a modern workplace that values flexibility. Operations professionals in this environment need to be adept at managing distributed teams and ensuring seamless communication and process adherence remotely. The emphasis on well-being benefits like "recharge days" is a positive indicator for work-life balance.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

• Initial Screening: HR or Recruiter screen to assess basic qualifications, experience, and cultural fit.

• Hiring Manager Interview: In-depth discussion with the Sr. Director of Web Marketing and Brand Creative, focusing on leadership experience, strategic thinking, and team management philosophy.

• Team/Peer Interviews: Meetings with direct reports and/or peers in marketing and other GTM functions to assess collaboration style and functional expertise.

• Portfolio Presentation: A key stage likely involving a presentation of past work, with a focus on leadership, process, and impact. Candidates should be prepared to discuss their role, the creative process, challenges, and outcomes.

• Final Round: Potentially with a VP or other senior leader, focusing on strategic alignment and long-term vision.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Curate Strategically: Select projects that best demonstrate leadership, strategic vision, process optimization, and successful team/vendor management. Prioritize B2B SaaS examples if possible.

• Focus on Process & Impact: Don't just show finished work. Explain the "why" behind the design, the processes used (including any system improvements), the challenges faced, and the measurable business impact (e.g., brand lift, campaign performance, efficiency gains).

• Highlight Management Skills: Include examples of how you mentored team members, managed external partners, and navigated cross-functional collaborations.

• Visual Storytelling: Present your portfolio clearly and engagingly, using visuals effectively to communicate your points.

• Be Prepared for Data Discussion: Since data analysis is a responsibility, be ready to discuss how you've used metrics to inform creative decisions and measure success.

Challenge Preparation:

• Creative Strategy Exercise: You might be asked to outline a creative strategy for a hypothetical campaign or to critique an existing piece of brand creative.

• Process Improvement Scenario: Be ready to discuss how you would approach optimizing a creative workflow, implementing a new design system, or managing a challenging vendor relationship.

• Leadership Scenarios: Prepare for questions about how you handle underperforming team members, resolve conflicts, or motivate a team.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on a portfolio presentation that highlights process, data, and leadership is critical. Candidates should frame their experience through an operations lens, detailing how they improved efficiency, managed resources, and drove measurable outcomes. This is where a candidate can best showcase their operations mindset.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

• Design Software: Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign), Figma (likely for design systems and collaboration).

• Animation Tools: Adobe After Effects (explicitly mentioned) or similar motion graphics software.

• Project Management: Tools like Asana, Jira, Monday.com, or similar platforms for managing creative workflows and cross-functional projects.

• Collaboration Tools: Slack, Microsoft Teams, Zoom for day-to-day communication and virtual meetings.

Analytics & Reporting:

• Web Analytics: Google Analytics, Adobe Analytics, or similar for understanding website performance and campaign impact.

• Marketing Analytics Platforms: Tools to track campaign effectiveness, brand metrics, and ROI.

• Data Visualization: Potentially tools like Tableau or Looker for analyzing and presenting performance data.

CRM & Automation:

• CRM: Salesforce or similar (for understanding sales cycles and customer journeys, though not a direct management tool for this role).

• Marketing Automation: HubSpot, Marketo, Pardot, or similar (for understanding how creative assets are deployed in campaigns).

• Digital Asset Management (DAM): Potentially a DAM system for organizing and distributing brand assets efficiently.

📝 Enhancement Note: Proficiency with industry-standard creative tools is expected, but the emphasis on project management, collaboration, and analytics tools is where operations skills become paramount. Demonstrating experience with systems that drive efficiency, track performance, and facilitate cross-functional work will be advantageous.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• Innovation: A drive to explore new creative approaches and leverage technology (like AI) to push brand boundaries.

• Collaboration: Strong emphasis on working effectively across teams, with external partners, and within the direct creative team.

• Data-Driven: Valuing decisions informed by metrics and insights to ensure creative effectiveness and operational efficiency.

• Impact-Oriented: A focus on delivering creative work that has a tangible positive effect on business goals and brand perception.

• Agility & Speed: Ability to adapt quickly in a fast-paced SaaS environment, managing priorities effectively to meet GTM demands.

Collaboration Style:

• Transparent Communication: Open sharing of information, feedback, and progress updates.

• Cross-functional Integration: Proactive engagement with other departments to ensure brand alignment and support GTM initiatives.

• Feedback Culture: Encouraging constructive feedback to drive continuous improvement in creative output and processes.

• Shared Ownership: Fostering a sense of collective responsibility for brand success and operational excellence within the creative team.

📝 Enhancement Note: Gong's culture appears to align with operational excellence, emphasizing data, efficiency, and collaborative problem-solving. The "innovative products, ambitious goals, and passionate people" ethos suggests a high-performance environment where process and strategy are key to achieving those goals.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Balancing Creative Vision with Business Demands: Ensuring high-quality, innovative creative output while meeting strict deadlines and diverse stakeholder needs in a fast-paced GTM environment.

• Scaling Creative Operations: As Gong grows, the challenge will be to scale the creative team and processes efficiently without sacrificing quality or brand consistency.

• Managing Distributed Teams: Effectively leading and motivating a remote or hybrid team, fostering strong communication and collaboration across different locations.

• Integrating AI into Creative Workflows: Staying ahead of AI advancements and strategically incorporating new tools and techniques to enhance creativity and efficiency.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Advanced Creative Technologies: Opportunities to explore and implement cutting-edge design and animation tools, including AI-powered creative solutions.

• Strategic Brand Management: Deepening expertise in global brand strategy, brand architecture, and brand governance.

• Operations & Process Improvement: Developing skills in operational management, workflow optimization, and project management methodologies within a creative context.

• Leadership Development: Access to training and mentorship that supports growth into more senior leadership positions within Gong.

📝 Enhancement Note: The challenges presented are typical for growth-stage tech companies and require strong operational thinking to overcome. The growth opportunities are substantial, allowing for both creative and operational skill development, paving the way for significant career progression.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• "Describe your philosophy for managing a creative team, especially in a remote or hybrid setting. How do you foster collaboration and professional growth?"

• "How would you approach developing and implementing a scalable design system for a rapidly growing B2B SaaS company like Gong?"

• "Walk us through a time you used data or business metrics to significantly influence a creative decision or optimize a creative process. What was the outcome?"

Company & Culture Questions:

• "What excites you about Gong's mission and its role in the AI and Revenue Intelligence space? How do you see brand creative supporting this?"

• "How do you assess and ensure brand consistency across diverse marketing channels and touchpoints?"

Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Structure: Organize your presentation logically, perhaps by project type or by demonstrating key competencies (e.g., Leadership, Strategy, Process Improvement, Impact).

• Storytelling: For each project, clearly articulate the problem, your strategic approach, the process you followed (including any operational improvements), the challenges encountered, your specific role, and the measurable results.

• Quantify Impact: Use numbers and data wherever possible to demonstrate the success of your work (e.g., "increased engagement by X%", "reduced production time by Y%", "supported Z% growth in pipeline").

• Process Focus: Be ready to detail the systems, workflows, and collaboration methods you employed to achieve successful outcomes. Highlight any process optimizations or efficiencies you introduced.

📝 Enhancement Note: Candidates should prepare to answer questions that probe their operational thinking, leadership capabilities, and strategic approach to creative management. The portfolio presentation is a prime opportunity to showcase how their experience translates into efficient, impactful operations within the brand creative function.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this Sr. Design Manager, Brand Creative position:

• Submit your application through the provided link on greenhouse.io.

• Customize Your Resume: Tailor your resume to highlight experience in people management, brand creative direction, design systems, vendor management, and data-driven decision-making. Use keywords from the job description and operations-related terms like "process optimization," "workflow efficiency," and "cross-functional collaboration."

• Prepare Your Portfolio: Curate a portfolio that effectively showcases your leadership, strategic vision, and operational approach to creative projects. Focus on case studies that demonstrate measurable impact and process improvements.

• Research Gong: Familiarize yourself with Gong's product, target audience, current branding, and company culture. Understand how brand creative supports their AI-driven revenue intelligence mission.

• Practice Your Presentation: Rehearse your portfolio presentation, ensuring you can clearly articulate your role, strategy, process, and results concisely and compellingly. Be ready to discuss how you've managed teams and external resources effectively.

⚠️ Important Notice: This enhanced job description includes AI-generated insights and operations industry-standard assumptions. All details should be verified directly with the hiring organization before making application decisions.