Job Description

At DC Thomson we are a business with a purpose – to make a positive impact on the communities we serve.

We are home to some of the world’s best loved media brands, organised around local news and radio, companionship, kids, advocacy, energy, puzzles and hobbies.

The Courier, The Press & Journal, The Sunday Post, Beano, Stylist, Puzzler, The People’s Friend, My Weekly, Pure Radio, bunkered, Energy Voice, Findmypast and Brightsolid are just some of the brands you might know us for.

Deeply rooted in our communities, we are investing in data, technology and talent to unlock a new level of understanding about what really matters to our customers. This is how we are shaping the future of media.

We’re changing the way we work to create a flexible, collaborative, learning-led culture that draws on expertise from across the organisation to create award-winning content and cultural moments that make audiences want to be part of our communities.

Our HQ is in Dundee and we have bases around the UK employing over 1,200 extraordinarily creative colleagues working in a mix of office/home/hybrid. They’re passionate about being part of the story of so many well-loved brands and they’re crucial to our ambitions for the company.

We’re looking for the best people to join us at DC Thomson, to share their energy, ideas and skills and be part of our story.

Why join us now?

DC Thomson is on an exciting transformation journey to growth. Our brands matter to people and we are passionate about sustaining meaningful relationships with the communities these brands serve.

Focused on creating brilliant content and experiences that inspire our audiences and communities.

The Opportunity

DC Thomson’s magazine brands are undergoing a period of transformation, adopting new ways of working across a new department-wide structure. As part of this transformation, DC Thomson is looking for a Designer to play an important role within our central Studio design team.

Reporting into a Senior Designer, the Designer will work primarily on core children’s brands 110% Gaming and Unicorn Universe, designing engaging content with high visual impact suited to the brand’s reader profile, in keeping with style guides, technical specifications and agreed timelines.

What will you be doing as a Designer?

Working closely with the Senior Designers, the central production team and editorial staff in contributing to the delivery and publication of titles both ongoing/regular publishing as well as ad hoc publications.
Responding to business needs, working across brands showing a flexibility and ability to adapt to different styles, systems and audiences.
Creating visually impactful print and digital content in-keeping with style guides and brand values across a range of magazines and brands.
Preparing design layouts using techniques such as photography, illustration and computer-generated imagery.
Working collaboratively with features team members to provide image sourcing as applicable.
Ensuring fully edited and complete pages are technically correct and ready for upload to print approval site.
Working closely with the Senior Designers to ensure that all work is completed within deadlines.
Contributing to the design of brand extensions and projects as necessary within a team environment.
Ensuring layout changes meet the needs of internal and external customers.
Actively developing and maintaining an up-to-date knowledge of the relevant subject(s) aligned to the reader needs and trends.
Interpreting instruction and prioritising tasks in a fast-paced working environment.
Ensuring all content is suitably tagged and categorised to agreed standards to ensure content can be searched and archived for future use.
Actively developing and maintaining an up-to-date knowledge of relevant publishing tools and software applications
Displaying a willingness to undertake any training required to improve skillset across software and familiarity of brand style guidelines.

What we are looking for

Exceptional graphic design skills and creativity
Ability to create and generate graphics/logos/backgrounds using Indesign, Photoshop, Illustrator
High output, accuracy and attention to detail are essential
Imaginative, with a highly developed visual sense.
Adept with page design software.
Collaborative approach, able to give and receive feedback on designs.
Superb time management and organisation, able to prioritise.
Adaptable and flexible approach, to allow work over multiple titles for different audiences.
Passionate about magazine trends and graphic design.

To apply for this role, please follow our online application process and submit a CV and cover letter.

This is a full-time, permanent position, working 35 hours per week from our Meadowside Office. We offer a flexible-working hybrid environment with the opportunity to combine home working alongside office attendance. Working one day a week, a Tuesday, from our Dundee office is preferred for this role, especially in the forming stage of new teams to allow for team building, training, workflows, brainstorming and workshops. We are open to considering roles where we can on a part-time, flexible, hybrid basis. Where this is not the case, we will give rationale on why.

We offer a generous package including 34 days holiday, Health Cash Plan, excellent Pension, a competitive salary, and many more staff discounts and benefits.

We are an equal opportunity employer and encourage applications from everyone and do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, disability or any other protected characteristics.

If you have any issues with your application, please email [email protected]

Please note that we reserve the right to close the vacancy early once we have received suitable applications. Therefore, please ensure you submit your application as early as possible to avoid disappointment.

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