Creative Director Jason Hutchinson

Ever wondered what the life of a creative director looks like? Creative Director of Melbourne Eclipse Group Jason Hutchinson gives us an insight into one of Australia’s largest web development and consulting firms.

Where were you born/grew up?
I’m a Perth boy through and through. I was born and raised in the hills of Perth in a suburb called Kalamunda.

How long have you been in the industry?
I’ve been in the design industry for about 13 years. During that time my focus has evolved quite a bit. I originally started in print and have been purely online for the last 7 years.

Where/what did you study?
I have a BA in Design from Curtin University in Perth although I spent a majority of my time studying from the beaches of Mandurah.

What have you been up to lately?
Things have been very busy lately with some really large and interesting projects. My last couple of projects have been the re-design of Coles Online and Telstra Enterprise and Government. I am now working on the redesign of the BHP Billiton Corporate Portal. It is a really challenging job which is consolidating a landscape of over 190 intranets into one uber portal built in SAP. I am finding the restraints of SAP quite interesting to say the least…

What is your typical day like?
It usually starts with a coffee while responding to emails and catching up on any news feeds or articles I subscribe too. I then usually try to get my day planned before the cycle of meetings and presentations kicks off. I find I spend a fair amount of the day is either managing or presenting to existing clients or developing new relationships and the remainder is hands on working with my team, designing, wireframing, brainstorming and prototyping etc.

How did you first get into digital marketing?
It was an evolution really. I originally started as a print designer and then moved into the multimedia space and now it’s purely online. I think the nature of our business is ever evolving and I expect in 5 years time my focus would have changed again. I think you have to move with the technology otherwise you get left behind.

How have Australian companies responded to the growth in digital and how has this changed over the last 10 years?
The landscape has really changed. It’s been a fairly tumultuous ride over the last 10 years. We have seen a lot of companies rise and fall but I think the market is fairly settled now. There seems to be a core group of companies that are really setting the standard, maturity and value for the industry as a whole.

I also think that the market has matured and are looking for companies that can offer a range of services with solid and proven methodologies. I don’t think you can afford to just be great at design anymore it needs to be complemented with a strong strategy and rock solid technical implementation. I have seen a lot of companies with a patch work of sites built in different technologies by different people which just gets them in a whole world of pain.

What are some of the biggest challenges a Creative Director has to face?
Retaining talent has to be one of the biggest challenges for all companies. It’s been a fairly competitive environment over the last couple of years. It’s hard to replace good people. By the way were looking for a Mid Weight Designer feel free to send your CV to me.

Where do you find inspiration?
Everywhere! The people I work with, other companies, other designers, other mediums.…

What advice would you have to younger designers entering the industry?
Don’t just get the design right but also get the detail right, the typography, the image cropping, the spelling, the presentation. It’s the detail that makes a good design great.

Link:
www.eclipsegroup.com.au

Recent work:
www.telstraenterprise.com
www.countryroad.com.au
www.ubank.com.au
www.sydneyoperahouse.com
www.colesonline.com.au
www.gameanalyser.afl.com.au
www.mbf.com.au
www.thesmithfamily.com.au
www.freedom.com.au

Eclipse Group Melbourne are currently searching for a talented Mid-weight Web Designer. If you are interested email your CV To Jason here.