Brand Design Manager

About the role

PepsiCo Design & Innovation is a creatively driven team that leverages the power of Design Thinking to solve brand and business problems that drive meaningful value and growth. Our mission is to elevate the role of design and design thinking as a function, process, mindset, and culture in PepsiCo and the broader business world. We are a consumer-centric organization with a start-up mentality within our larger organization, collaborating with world-class partners in Marketing, Insights, and R&D to strategically drive business results with purpose.

As a Brand Design Manager for Gatorade, you will report to the Design Director, Gatorade, partnering on the design and execution of projects that support PepsiCo’s Gatorade Portfolio business in North America. You will deliver outstanding 360-degree creative work, crafting design excellence through all consumer touchpoints, including brand design strategies, packaging and portfolio systems, promotions, and immersive brand activations across print, packaging, social/digital, licensing, environmental, and new media.

Responsibilities

• Lead, manage, and mentor designers across the Protein portfolio, emphasizing creative excellence in collaboration with the PBUS Gatorade Design Director and other leaders across brand, product, enhancers, structural packaging, marketing, and advertising.
• Generate creative design proposals (visions, scenarios, concepts) to share with cross-functional partners within PepsiCo and external suppliers, ensuring products are developed and delivered with quality, value, and efficiency.
• Energize and lead both internal teams and external design resources from idea phase to commercialization, regularly reviewing project status with leadership to meet expectations.
• Participate in research activities and translate customer needs into actionable design strategy, executing those requirements into design solutions and driving final design recommendations and approvals.
• Demonstrate outstanding graphic design skills, developing brand extensions, limited-time offers (LTOs), and collaborations that captivate consumers. Create purpose-built creative toolkits that establish clear brand throughlines and facilitate innovative brand concepts.
• Partner with designers to define and codify brand language and visual systems, communicating ideas clearly through compelling visualizations and effective presentations to stakeholders.
• Oversee and execute the creative process from briefing to execution, focusing on concept visualization and defining all design elements, including visual identity systems, typography, iconography, illustration, and animation.
• Build a reputation for leadership, reliability, and excellence, empowering others to achieve their best while balancing visionary thinking with effective project management.
• Expand your network by engaging freelancers and agency partners to enhance creative output.
• Incorporate AI tools into workflows to enhance creativity, efficiency, and innovation across design processes.
• Support the PepsiCo Design & Innovation organization in building and cultivating a robust external design network.

Requirements

• 8+ years of hands-on brand and packaging/product/graphic design experience.
• Full-time agency-side and/or client-side experience.
• Advanced experience with Adobe Creative Suite and Firefly software.
• Willingness and ability to travel 15% of the time.

Preferred Qualifications

• Strong conceptual design skills, package design, and design strategy experience.
• 360 brand design experience (print, packaging, digital, environmental, experiential).
• Extraordinary design taste and expertise with an excellent sense of design trends.
• Illustration and motion skills highly preferred.
• Previous experience managing creative teams and/or designers.
• Systems design thinker (packaging architecture and visual identity systems).
• Ability to work in an agile, dynamic environment with a start-up mentality (comfortable with risk and uncertainty).
• Strong stakeholder relationship management—effectively influence at all levels in the organization, across regions and functions.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills with internal and external business partners.
• Collaborative and works well with others to deliver results while keeping stakeholders informed.
• Ability to multitask and excellent time and project management skills to meet deadlines.

Pay

The expected compensation range for this position is between $110,700 and $185,250. Location, confirmed job-related skills, experience, and education will be considered in setting the actual starting salary. A bonus based on performance and eligibility targets a payout of 12% of annual salary, paid out annually.

Benefits

• Paid time off, including paid parental leave, vacation, sick, and bereavement (subject to eligibility).
• Comprehensive benefits package, subject to elections and eligibility, including:
  • Medical, dental, and vision insurance.
  • Disability, health, and dependent care reimbursement accounts.
  • Employee Assistance Program (EAP).
  • Insurance (accident, group legal, life).
  • Defined contribution retirement plan.