Production Designer

Love nature? Then you’re going to love The Nat.

The San Diego Natural History Museum (The Nat) was founded by amateur naturalists in 1874 and has played a major role in the conversation of our region. The Museum recently celebrated its 150th anniversary and completed a strategic plan focused on encouraging a love for nature, levering science and collections for conservation, and using our own voice to be here for nature.

As Production Designer for The San Diego Natural History Museum (The Nat), you’ll play a critical role in shaping the design aesthetic and communications for one of San Diego’s most popular and loved cultural attractions.  

The Production Designer is a core member of the Marketing and Communications team, serving as a vital, cross-functional partner to clients across the museum. This role requires a proven mid-level design professional who thrives in a fast-paced environment and can seamlessly concept, develop, and implement high-quality print and digital assets under tight deadlines. Balancing daily creative execution with technical precision, this position focuses heavily on traditional print and digital marketing assets, while independently supporting digital communication channels.

The successful candidate is a highly organized, proactive communicator who can problem solve and move complex projects forward independently. They must possess an impeccable attention to detail, an established track record of managing production pipelines in a high-volume setting, and the ability to confidently champion brand integrity across a diverse, rapidly moving institutional landscape.

Your Day-to-Day Work

Graphic Design

• Brand Stewardship: Independently master and apply the Museum’s graphic standards, techniques, and style guides across all media, ensuring brand consistency.
• Multi-Channel Execution: Own the design, layout, and technical production for a wide array of institutional needs without typographical or formatting errors, even when operating under compressed timelines, including:

• Marketing Collateral: Traditional/digital advertising, localized print collateral, stationery, and publications/brochures.
• On-Site & Environmental Graphics: Large-scale posters, environmental banners, wayfinding, and operational signage.
• Digital Media: High-performing social media assets, website elements, and email marketing templates.
• Exhibit Graphics: Gallery wall panels, object labels text.

• Creative Strategy: Actively contribute to marketing strategy discussions, bringing forward-thinking concepts and actionable design solutions to the table.

Digital Communications & Static Multimedia

• E-Newsletter Management: Design, program, test, and manage scheduled e-newsletters, ensuring cross-client email compatibility, responsiveness, and brand alignment.
• Web Management: Update and maintain layout pages for various internal departments using the Museum’s CMS, adhering strictly to current UI/UX best practices and accessibility standards.
• Basic Digital Asset Prep: Format, crop, and optimize basic multimedia assets (such as static graphics, GIFs, or short pre-existing b-roll clips) for digital display and social channels; advanced video creation/editing is not a core requirement of this role.

Print Production & Traffic Management 

• End-to-End Print Management: Autonomously drive the print production pipeline. This includes proactively sourcing vendor estimates, establishing rigid production schedules, and tracking/trafficking projects through to physical completion.

What You Bring

• Proven Experience: Minimum of 3 years of full-time, professional production or visual design experience (museum, cultural institution, or agency experience is a major plus). Must have a demonstrated history of working effectively in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment. A strong portfolio demonstrating diverse print, digital, and production-ready work is required.
• Technical Expertise: Mastery of the Adobe Creative Suite, specifically InDesign, Photoshop, Illustrator, and Acrobat. Basic familiarity with Premiere Pro or digital cutting tools is a plus.
• Digital & CMS Proficiency: Proven experience in front-end design for web/mobile, content management systems (CMS), and email marketing platforms (e.g., MailChimp).
• Rigorous Attention to Detail: Exceptional print production skills, including advanced knowledge of pre-press setup, color calibration (CMYK vs. RGB), bleeds, and preparing flawless, error-free mechanicals for external vendors.
• Proactive Communication: Exceptional written and verbal communication skills. Must be comfortable managing internal client expectations, asking clarifying questions early, responding to constructive creative feedback, and managing project updates transparently in a fluid workspace.
• Independence & Problem Solving: Demonstrated ability to self-start, adapt quickly to changing priorities, prioritize a high-volume workload under tight deadlines, and troubleshoot technical design bottlenecks autonomously.
• Tools: Hands-on experience with project management and collaboration to track deliverables independently.
• Education: B.A./B.F.A. in Graphic Design, Art, or an equivalent combination of education and proven field experience.

The Production Designer reports to the Creative Director and sits within the Marketing and Communications team. 

Pay: $27/hour. 

This is a full-time, non-exempt position with benefits such as health insurance, vacation, 15 paid holidays, free admission into all of Balboa Park’s museums, and more.