Lead Creative Technologist

ESI Design, a NBBJ Studio, transforms places into experiences that drive excitement and create a unique invitation for personal interaction and empathy. We experiment and collaborate to develop new ideas for high-profile, visionary clients. We are a community of makers that design, develop and construct large-scale, novel ideas. As a studio within the highly regarded NBBJ Design firm, we are uniquely positioned within the experience industry. We partner with pioneers like Barclays, eBay, Beacon Capital Partners, the Statue of Liberty Museum, and WarnerMedia to create solutions for tomorrow guided by our vision: we design for life.
                    
ESI Design’s approach to experience design combines the physical, digital and behavioral to create memorable moments. We believe the most compelling experiences are born from interdisciplinary collaboration. As a result, our eclectic team and user-first approach allows us to provide a range of experience solutions and a depth of service that’s unique in the world of design. We don’t do off-the-rack solutions – we create custom experiences that are tailor made for every individual client’s needs. 

The role at a glance:

ESI Design is seeking an experienced Lead Creative Technologist with a range of expertise to work on and/or lead specific jobs depending on the project. We are looking for a Creative Technologist who knows how to design and create functional, beautiful and sustainable work.
 
The Lead Creative Technologist at ESI Design needs to be able to translate concepts from creative ideas into realistic, reliable and efficient executions. The candidate should be able to execute work themselves as well as lead a larger team to success.  The ideal candidate is a generalist who has a wide but deep knowledge of both software and hardware used in digital media design and production. You are good at architecting systems. Recent projects include Real-Time Data Visualizations, Generative Graphic Systems based on user input, interactive and immersive experiences, etc. 
 
For this role, we are looking for someone at a senior level with solid software development and technical system design skills. You should have a robust knowledge of creative code frameworks and should be comfortable with APIs, sensors, data input/output, and related technologies. 

In your new role, you will:

• Working individually or leading teams of developers, interfacing with production, project management and the visual design department from concept to delivery
• Collaborate with the internal multi-disciplinary design team including physical designers, visual designers, content strategists and technical systems designers
• Work on the early phases of a project to research and determine technical execution methods and feasibility
• Contribute creative and technical solutions to projects
• Take the lead on identifying technical project requirements and feature sets
• Coordinate and follow up with other production and tech team members to ensure hardware requirements are met to fulfill the requirements of a project
• Research and recommend the appropriate development platform for a given project
• Take ownership over the technical parts of projects and check in regularly with Project Management and other team members to ensure all aspects of the project are covered sufficiently
• Contribute to and lead on site installation of completed projects
• Write maintenance documentation for completed projects and internal projects
• Work on multiple projects at a time
• Coordinate with Project Management to ensure projects are staffed appropriately and have the correct skillsets
• Software development and oversight of other developers creating software on a given project
• Present ideas and designs verbally and visually; both internally and directly to clients
• Contribute to ideas and development for internal R&D projects
• This job will require travel

What you will need to succeed:

• 8-10 years of professional experience in Experience Design leading teams and delivering projects
• Stellar portfolio of personal and professional work
• Proven ability to plan and execute both traditional media production projects and software applications
• Understanding of physical and pervasive computer technologies and development of alternative interface designs
• Experience in large-scale project planning, management and production
• Understanding of integration of technology into a physical environment
• Deep understanding of different platforms and emerging technologies, coupled with the capability to recommend the right one to meet the creative and strategic need
• Command of industry standard IA documentation, experience in user interface and experience design documentation
• On the ground experience with ALL of the following fields - experiential/immersive, digital design, technology startup, emergent technology and art
• Well versed in the range of software platforms available and how these could be leveraged to advance the Studio’s design work
• A strategic thinker who connects the dots in unexpected ways and champions new ideas and ways of thinking
• Posses a positive attitude, is calm under pressure, is client facing and personable
• Exceptional organization and attention to detail
• Able to handle multiple projects simultaneously
• Excellent spoken and written communication
  

Additional skills that will make you successful: 

• Tools: Demonstrated ability to build projects with professional media tool sets such as Unreal Engine, Unity, TouchDesigner, VVVV, Ventuz, Disguise, Pixera, Cinder or Three.js.
• Software Development: 3+ years of experience in a traditional programming language such as C++, C#, Python or JavaScript.
• System Design: Ability to design and produce documentation for A/V systems at a high level, including selection of hardware components such as LED, Projection, LCD and OLED displays, audio hardware, sensors, media servers, network hardware and lighting equipment.
• Interactivity: Experience designing and building novel real-time interactive systems in the built environment using tools and techniques such as LiDAR sensors, computer vision, frontend web technologies, real-time generative computer graphics and custom hardware.
  

The annual base pay range for this role is anticipated to be between $130,000 and $170,000. Actual compensation for successful candidates will be carefully determined based on a number of factors, including their skills, qualifications and experience.