Brand strategy and design

Broad experience to help guide big pictures

Over fifteen years of experience delivering quality across the spectrum of design.

  • I have over fifteen years of experience in leading, agency, in-house, contractor and global creative communities with empathy, clarity and creativity.

  • Marketing that does not align with the customer experience can cause more harm than good.

    I help organisations build trust and loyalty with long-term brand strategies that differentiate in market and prioritise your purpose and mission to your business.

  • How brand design foundations are used can either build or break the trust of an organisation’s customers.

    I have created comprehensive design systems and supporting guidelines across the spectrum of brand design foundations, including digital and print templates and libraries, colour palettes, fonts, illustration, photography libraries and graphic overlays

    I am fluent in both bespoke and industry norm brand digital platforms and have led the development of several global brand platforms.

  • As Peter Drucker famously said, Culture eats strategy for breakfast — and operations are the foundation of any team’s culture.

    I have a proven track record of using digital innovations to connect siloed teams and create agile cultures of cross pollination.

A translator across disciplines

I have spent the majority of my career managing heavily regulated brands with rapid innovation and complexity. I am fluent in using the brand values to speak a common language across diverse disciplines.

  • I have a Masters of Business Administration with distinction from University of the Arts London, Central Saint Martins.

    I’ve come to speak the languages of brand strategy, design, entrepreneurship, business strategy, and product development fluently and often serve as the link between complex elements of creative management, such as the intersection of creative and legal IP teams.

    My dissertation explored the remaining barriers among Fortune 500 and SMEs in the transition to net zero. Click here to learn more about the outcome of my research.

  • My passion for creating compelling, high-concept images and experiences was laid many years ago while earning my Bachelor of Fine Arts in Communication Design at Texas State University.

    Since then I have helped brands across many countries and most mediums where brands appear.

  • My most recent Master Classes and certificates are:

    • SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS PRIMER - Certificate - United Nations System Staff College

    • CREATIVE LEADERSHIP Executive Masterclass - Royal College of Art (RCA): My approach of acting as the intersection of empathy, clarity and creativity is a proven technique in leading teams to deliver measurable results. I bring siloed communities together around the common goals of brand values and purpose.

    • HUMAN-CENTERED STRATEGY Certificate (Design & Activation) - IDEO U

    • SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING Intensive Certificate - London College of Communication, University of the Arts London

    • CARBON LITERATE Certificate - Carbon Literacy Project

Driving positive change by staying connected and curious

  • I'm a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, an active alumni at Central Saint Martins and an avid continuing education advocate through both the Royal College of Art and IDEO U programs. This immersion in the creative industry's cutting edge keeps me abreast of coming trends and helps me understand which are ones worth investing in and the most human-centric approach to new technologies.

  • In addition to a close connection with creative innovation, I keep in regular contact to internal ERGs (Employee Resource Groups), Accessibility and Neurodiversity teams, Customer Insight and Heads of Sustainability.

    Keeping an open channel between these functions, unifies the creative work being done with the lived culture of the organization, and creates a common perspective across teams.

    This approach both protects the reputation of a brand and unites creative communities towards authentic ideas that communicate core business values.

  • I’m guided daily by a personal commitment to regenerative practices, and believe that industries that come together through the UN’s 17 Global Goals have the common perspective to radically innovate the circular economy needed for net zero by 2030.

    I'm fluent in the United Nations 17 Sustainable Business Goals and can help guide your brand to define what they mean in your strategy and day to day activities. I'm personally dedicated to:

    12 - Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns

    13 - Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts

    17 - Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development

Colleagues have said:

  • “…She's a valued member of our team and a real leader in our global creative community.”

    — Jon Reidy, HSBC Design Operations lead (at time of quote)

  • “…I also love how passionate she is about D&I initiatives, she really wants to drive positive change and in the right way.”

    — Veronica Cooper, HSBC Design Operations (at time of quote)

  • "Not only can Gwen pull together a Mural board to showcase the end-to-end brand experience in a short time, the output of the acquisition branding proposal she presented to the Singapore CEO was very well received. Her dedication to the programme and her insight on how to resolve a rather complex challenge is very impressive."

    — Robert Hsu, HSBC Digital Accessibility and Inclusive Design (at time of quote)

  • Please visit my LinkedIn page to see more testimonials.

Let’s talk through some case studies together

Due the sensitivity of some of my projects, this section is password protected. Please send through a note about your interest and I’d be happy to set up some time to talk with you about my work.