Available for full-time Creative Director opportunities + select fractional engagements
Who I Am
I’m a senior creative leader with 15+ years shaping brands, campaigns, and creative teams. My core gift is what I call Visionary Translation: taking what an organization is really trying to say and giving it form: a position people understand, a standard teams can follow, and work that holds together everywhere it shows up.
I’ve done that as a founder, inside a national real estate brand, for an executive sales organization, and alongside chamber and community leadership. The setting changes. The job doesn’t: see it clearly, say it plainly, and lead the work to done.
“Creativity is not decoration. It is direction.”How I work, in one line
What I Lead
Before anything is designed, we get clear on what the brand is and why it matters.
A clear point of view for the work, so every piece feels like it came from the same place.
The people, process, and standards behind the work: built to hold up after I leave the room.
Insights: How I Think
Most creative problems aren’t talent problems. They’re clarity problems. A few things I’ve learned to say out loud:
When a project is on its fourth round of revisions, the work usually isn’t the issue. The direction was never settled. More options won’t fix an unclear brief. A decision will. Clear direction up front is what protects the timeline, the budget, and everyone’s confidence in the work.
If everything is the priority, the team decides what matters, quietly, and not always well. Part of creative leadership is choosing, out loud, and letting the rest wait. Focus is a kindness to the people doing the work and the fastest route to finished.
I’ve watched strong ideas die in the gap between “this could be great” and “here’s exactly what we’re doing.” My job is to close that gap: to translate the idea into a direction a team can actually run with, and standards they can measure against.
Brands are built by people, in real weeks, with real limits. The leaders who get the best work aren’t the ones who push hardest: they’re the ones who make the goal clear, the expectations fair, and the progress visible. People do remarkable work when they can see why it matters.
Working With Me
Whether I join a team full-time or lead fractionally, the first weeks look like this:
The request on the table is rarely the whole story. I start by hearing what’s actually stuck: from leadership, from the team, and from the audience the work has to reach.
Then I translate it: what we’re building, who it’s for, and what “good” looks like, in plain language, so everyone is aiming at the same thing.
Direction becomes repeatable: visual standards, messaging, and workflows the team can run without starting over every time. Consistency is what turns effort into a brand.
Teams and vendors get clear direction, honest feedback, and room to do their best work. I lead the work to done, and leave people stronger than I found them.
Selected Work
I don’t lead with deliverables. I lead with what I saw, the direction I set, and what changed because of it.
Creative & Marketing Direction · 7+ Years
Senior Graphic Designer · Dec 2021 – Aug 2025
Creative Consultant · Sep – Nov 2025
Fractional Brand & Marketing Leadership
Organizations I’ve worked with
Experience
Leading brand and creative work across corporate, agency, nonprofit, and founder-led settings.
Brand and campaign engagements led since founding Nina Simmons Designs, Inc. in February 2016.
M.A. Advertising Design, SCAD. B.S. Studio Art, Florida State University.
Elevate Creative Direction Certificate, Randy Stein, plus published design work (2014).
Full timeline, roles, and references available in the resume.
Services
My first choice is a full-time creative leadership seat. I also take on a small number of fractional and advisory engagements each year.
Senior creative leadership inside your organization: direction, standards, and team guidance, without a full-time hire. Best for leadership teams who need a creative seat at the table now.
Start a conversationA trusted creative voice for founders and executives: brand decisions, campaign direction, and honest counsel before you commit resources. Ongoing, steady, and candid.
Start a conversationA clear-eyed read of where your brand stands: across business, understanding, trust, experience, execution, and opportunity, and what to do next. Delivered as direction, not a binder.
Start a conversationContact
Tell me which door you’re walking through, and I’ll meet you there.