LEAD THUMBNAIL DESIGNER | REMOTE
To Apply: https://righteous-chestnut-b59.notion.site/2a1353fd5db581a2a72ef5a9d4919a8b?pvs=105
ROLE:
As the Lead Thumbnail Designer at Knwn Local, you'll build and develop a team of 5-10+ thumbnail designers who create scroll-stopping visuals that drive channel growth for America's top real estate leaders. This is a player-coach leadership role where you'll spend 60-80% of your time managing, mentoring, and building systems, and 20-40% hands-on designing complex projects.
You'll own design quality standards, team development, and creative operations across the agency, partnering closely with Pod Managers, Creative Director, and leadership on strategic initiatives. Your success is measured not by how many thumbnails you design, but by how well your team performs, grows, and delivers results that drive client success.
This role is perfect for someone who loves developing designers as much as designing itself - someone who gets energized by building systems, coaching talent, and multiplying impact through others. If you want to stay purely hands-on without management responsibilities, this isn't the right fit.
Apply now: https://righteous-chestnut-b59.notion.site/2a1353fd5db581a2a72ef5a9d4919a8b?pvs=105
RESPONSIBILITIES:
Team Leadership & Development (50-70% of role)
Directly manage 5-8 thumbnail designers conducting weekly 1-on-1s focused on skill development and performance
Lead bi-weekly team design reviews with constructive feedback and best practice sharing
Build comprehensive onboarding programs and training materials for new designer hires
Create career development pathways with clear promotion criteria for design team members
Conduct performance reviews and manage accountability through the Clarify Instrument Coach Decide framework
Handle hiring (writing JDs, screening portfolios, conducting interviews, making offers)
Build 2-5+ year relationships with designers through proactive retention and engagement strategies
Conduct skip-level meetings with junior designers to assess team health and identify early warning signs
Creative Excellence & Standards (20-30% of role)
Design 15-30 high-impact thumbnails per month for VIP clients and complex projects
Own and evolve agency-wide creative quality standards, brand guidelines, and style guides
Establish QA processes that maintain 90%+ first-approval rate across all designers
Lead A/B testing strategy and performance analysis across the entire client portfolio
Serve as final creative approval for all thumbnails before client delivery
Drive creative innovation through monthly experimentation initiatives and "Good Flops
Create and maintain design team's template library and asset management systems
Strategic Collaboration & Systems (10-20% of role)
Partner with Pod Managers on client strategy and creative direction for key accounts
Present creative strategy and performance insights in Monthly Client Strategy Calls with clients
Collaborate with executive leadership on agency-wide creative vision and initiatives
Build scalable workflows, capacity planning, and resource allocation systems
Create performance dashboards tracking team metrics (CTR, approval rates, turnaround times)
Document best practices, SOPs, and knowledge base for the design function
Contribute to quarterly planning, annual strategy summits, and company OKRs
REQUIREMENTS:
Leadership & Design Experience
6+ years of professional design experience with 2+ years managing creative teams
Proven track record leading, developing, and scaling design teams of 5+ people
Minimum 3+ years creating high-performing YouTube thumbnails with proven CTR results
Experience hiring designers, conducting performance reviews, and managing accountability
Portfolio showcasing thumbnails that contributed to channel growth (include CTR data)
Comfortable with difficult conversations (performance issues, firing, conflict resolution)
Technical & Strategic Skills
Expert-level proficiency in Photoshop, Illustrator, and Figma (portfolio required)
Deep understanding of YouTube algorithms, CTR optimization, and viewer psychology
Data-driven approach with ability to interpret analytics and translate into design strategy
Experience with A/B testing methodologies, performance analysis, and optimization
Strong presentation skills for client-facing strategy calls and executive meetings
Understanding of creative team economics (capacity planning, resourcing, budgeting)
Communication & Cultural Leadership
Exceptional written and verbal communication for feedback, presentations, and documentation
Demonstrated ability to give feedback that accelerates growth and elevates work quality
Extreme Ownership - Takes full accountability for team results; never blames or makes excuses
Beyond Excellence - Sets impossibly high standards and inspires team to exceed them
Proactive Curiosity - Anticipates problems, asks better questions, and stays ahead of needs
Mission Focus - Obsesses about client success and team development over personal recognition
RESULTS:
Team Performance
Your design team consistently maintains 90%+ first-approval rate across all designers
Designer retention rate exceeds 85% annually with clear development and career progression
New designers productive at 80% capacity within 30-60 days through your training systems
100% of direct reports show measurable skill improvement quarter-over-quarter
Team operates at 80-90% capacity utilization - productive output without burnout
Quality & Impact
Zero client escalations due to design quality issues or missed deadlines from your team
Agency-wide thumbnail CTR averages 5-10% (significantly above platform benchmarks)
95%+ on-time delivery rate across your entire team's project portfolio
Design workflows, templates, and style guides documented and adopted agency-wide
Your team generates innovative thumbnail strategies that drive agency-wide adoption
Strategic Leadership
Design function viewed as strategic partner by Pod Managers and leadership
Successfully contribute to client strategy with design insights that drive performance
Client satisfaction scores remain >4.5/5 for design quality and communication
At least 1-2 designers promoted or advancement-ready annually due to your mentorship
Leadership views design as a strategic differentiator, not just an execution function
COMPENSATION & GROWTH:
Salary & Benefits
Starting Range: $##,000 - $##,000 USD/year depending on experience and team size managed
Medical, Vision, Dental Benefits (employer-subsidized, starts after 60-90 day trial)
Flexible PTO policy, professional development budget, home office stipend
Leadership development program, quarterly team offsites, and annual strategy summit
Growth Path
Current Role: Lead Thumbnail Designer (managing 5-8 designers, 60-70% leadership)
Next Step (18-24 months): Creative Director (full design function, brand, all creative output)
Future Opportunity (36-48 months): VP of Creative or functional leadership with P&L ownership
Performance Metrics You'll Own
Team Performance: Design Quality Score, First-Approval Rate (90%+), CTR performance
Team Development: Skill progression, promotion readiness, retention rate (85%+)
Operational Excellence: Capacity utilization (80-90%), on-time delivery (95%+)
Strategic Impact: Innovation initiatives, process improvements, client satisfaction (>4.5/5)
LOCATION:
100% Remote (work from anywhere in the United States)
Occasional travel for quarterly team offsites and annual strategy summit (2-4x/year)
WHO WE ARE:
Knwn Local helps America's top real estate leaders (ranked by Wall Street Journal Real Trends) attract more clients and grow their brands through strategic YouTube presence. Our clients manage $30M-$300M+ real estate teams and brokerages.
We're scaling from 55+ to 200+ channels with the mission of helping agents dominate their local markets through long-form video content that builds trust and authority.
Our Core Values: Extreme Ownership, Beyond Excellence, Proactive Curiosity, Mission Focus
YOU'LL THRIVE HERE IF YOU:
Want to build a world-class design team and leave a lasting legacy
See leadership as multiplication (impact through others) not addition (personal output)
Get energized by developing talent and watching designers grow beyond your abilities
Can balance hands-on creative excellence with strategic systems thinking
Thrive in fast-paced, high-growth environments where you build the plane while flying it
Want to be measured on results, not hours, and value autonomy with accountability
YOU WON'T FIT IF YOU:
Prefer being a solo IC without management or leadership responsibilities
Want to manage teams but avoid hands-on creative work (this is player-coach)
Need extensive direction or struggle with ambiguity and rapidly changing priorities
Avoid difficult conversations or can't deliver direct feedback without sugarcoating
Expect stability without growth challenges in an early-stage, scaling environment
Value title and recognition over team development and client success
MAKE SURE YOU'RE COMFORTABLE WITH:
Remote team leadership (building culture and managing performance without in-person oversight)
Rigorous hiring process including portfolio review, leadership case study, design test, and interviews
90-day paid trial period with clear success metrics and transparent evaluation
Player-coach expectations (10-30% IC work even as you grow the team)
High-growth environment (processes evolve, priorities shift, resilience required)
Accountability culture (measured on results with clear metrics and transparent feedback)
TO APPLY:
If you're ready to build a world-class design team and multiply your creative impact 10x by developing others, please submit: https://righteous-chestnut-b59.notion.site/2a1353fd5db581a2a72ef5a9d4919a8b?pvs=105
FYI we primarily look at those who apply using the above site
Pay 42k - 66k+ USD a year
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