Ruth Mckinney Email & Phone Number

Greater Los Angeles Area

Account Director & Project ManagerBuilt pro bono teams and provided leadership to successfully develop marketing programs including Key Messaging and Brand Strategy for Educating Young Minds and Annual Reports for Outfest and The Soldiers Project, and Strategic Plan Prep for Young Storytellers. Interfaced with Executive and Board members, remaining sensitive to their time constraints while being responsible for all timelines and team performance. Received the Volunteer of the… Show more Account Director & Project ManagerBuilt pro bono teams and provided leadership to successfully develop marketing programs including Key Messaging and Brand Strategy for Educating Young Minds and Annual Reports for Outfest and The Soldiers Project, and Strategic Plan Prep for Young Storytellers. Interfaced with Executive and Board members, remaining sensitive to their time constraints while being responsible for all timelines and team performance. Received the Volunteer of the Quarter Award from The Soldiers Project, and the Taproot Los Angeles Golden Root Award for 2015. Show less

Los Angeles, Ca

Partnered with marketing, publishing, and design/production firms to augment their in-house resources and facilitate the completion of strategic projects. Client list includes Book Tech, Octavo Design, Medical World, JDA Software Inc., Shell Oil, Artecnica Inc., The Fontana Group, Joe Produce, The Art Gallows, and Nu Skin.• Managed the development of websites to better serve the needs of the end user.• Expanded client’s exposure, partnering with president of branding/marketing… Show more Partnered with marketing, publishing, and design/production firms to augment their in-house resources and facilitate the completion of strategic projects. Client list includes Book Tech, Octavo Design, Medical World, JDA Software Inc., Shell Oil, Artecnica Inc., The Fontana Group, Joe Produce, The Art Gallows, and Nu Skin.• Managed the development of websites to better serve the needs of the end user.• Expanded client’s exposure, partnering with president of branding/marketing company on all design and print phases of products, including Art Direction and Production Management for television show, logos, and marketing packages. • Directed product development of designs for gifts and home decor company, working with designers, manufacturers, and printers in the United States, Europe, and China to foster creativity, ensure quality, increase productivity, while meeting challenging deadlines and budgets.• Advised on bidding for textbook projects; coached design teams to increase understanding of textbook design; made recommendations to small design/production firms on expanding their client base; shared knowledge with start-up magazines in design, production, and resources for advertising.• Lead customers in the development processes that effectively support database driven applications, enabling final Quark and In Design multi-versioned weekly store advertisements to be auto-generated. Show less

Los Angeles, Ca

Manage a 15-member department, plus volunteers and interns, overseeing day-to-day operations including strategic, budgetary and personnel issues. Supervise all publishing and projects while analyzing and assessing workload to align with company goals. Negotiate contracts, establishing job costs, schedules, and work flow.• Created production schedules to track, monitor, and route projects, instituting weekly status reviews that resulted in meeting deadlines previously missed. Put systems… Show more Manage a 15-member department, plus volunteers and interns, overseeing day-to-day operations including strategic, budgetary and personnel issues. Supervise all publishing and projects while analyzing and assessing workload to align with company goals. Negotiate contracts, establishing job costs, schedules, and work flow.• Created production schedules to track, monitor, and route projects, instituting weekly status reviews that resulted in meeting deadlines previously missed. Put systems in place to input and track budgets, generate reports, and meet department budget and time line goals.• Brokered discounts with major publishers of books and distributors of toys to be included in the Special Collection Catalog, a Braille literacy program, reducing costs by 40%.• Developed Top Dot,TM a line of multi-sensory kits encouraging early Braille and social literacy. First kit was chosen as one of five books to represent the U.S. in an international tactile graphic competition.• Selected by the American Museum of Natural History to consult on their exhibit on the brain, overseeing creation of the display depicting how the brain processes Braille.• Leader of the Early Literacy Strategic Plan Committee and member of the Technology Strategic Plan Committee to develop a five-year strategy to expand the footprint of each. Appointed to represent Braille Institute on BANA (Braille Authority of North America), the group overseeing Braille standards. Show less

Managed the migration of bank proposal library into a database driven format that allowed sales to quickly build winning proposals to pitch commercial clients.• Partnered with marketing, sales and legal to understand their needs and create copy for 500+ concise documents tailored to their customers. • Created and ran production schedule to include writing, editing, and a five tiered approval process that met the deadline for implementation.• Designed the Word template… Show more Managed the migration of bank proposal library into a database driven format that allowed sales to quickly build winning proposals to pitch commercial clients.• Partnered with marketing, sales and legal to understand their needs and create copy for 500+ concise documents tailored to their customers. • Created and ran production schedule to include writing, editing, and a five tiered approval process that met the deadline for implementation.• Designed the Word template for the proposals populated by the new database to match the Union Bank corporate style.• Trained the sales team to use the database to create successful proposals. Show less

Managed department of 30, overseeing workflow from design through production and prepress while working closely with editorial, upper management, marketing and sales to meet pedagogical standards for state adoptions. Oversaw program budgets from $100,000 to $5,000,000 per project. • Saved $4,000,000+ over four years by locating competitive resources, training staff in best practices in production, paying attention to schedules, and making timely adjustments to avoid rush… Show more Managed department of 30, overseeing workflow from design through production and prepress while working closely with editorial, upper management, marketing and sales to meet pedagogical standards for state adoptions. Oversaw program budgets from $100,000 to $5,000,000 per project. • Saved $4,000,000+ over four years by locating competitive resources, training staff in best practices in production, paying attention to schedules, and making timely adjustments to avoid rush charges.• “Hit the ground running” to turn around a struggling program that was six months behind schedule; successfully put design on track for approval, while cutting projected costs, meeting deadlines, and winning design award within the industry.• Developed and led a cohesive team, expanding the department from 15 to 30 designers, production coordinators, compositors, proof readers, and photo editors, leading to greater productivity while fostering a cooperative, supportive, and creative work environment, leading to high staff retention. Initiated training materials, use of templates, and style manuals to ensure consistent quality.• Increased sales by developing and mentoring a creative team, bringing fresh designs to elementary through college-level textbook and ancillary material, meeting growing market needs and exceeding set standards.• Created collateral tailored to the specific needs of educational marketing enabling sales to easily navigate through a program to demonstrate its strengths.• Improved quality and schedules by expanding vendor base for all phases of growing product load, negotiating pricing for design, production, photo, illustration, and prepress, while cutting costs from the established McGraw-Hill pricing grid. Show less

Managed all large in-house and freelance projects while creating solutions for new product concepts including producing the Masterwork and Alfred’s Basic Piano videos. Developed innovative advertising, marketing, and editorial material to insure the success of the debut of Accent on Achievement, Alfred’s High School Band Method. Created exceptional editorial and promotional material including ads, print collateral, point-of-sale display, and packaging while coordinating vendors including… Show more Managed all large in-house and freelance projects while creating solutions for new product concepts including producing the Masterwork and Alfred’s Basic Piano videos. Developed innovative advertising, marketing, and editorial material to insure the success of the debut of Accent on Achievement, Alfred’s High School Band Method. Created exceptional editorial and promotional material including ads, print collateral, point-of-sale display, and packaging while coordinating vendors including photographers, illustrators, designers, and prepress. Managed site development of major annual music convention including design of booth and displays, and supervision of installation. Developed and managed digital archive of all editorial, marketing, and advertising content. Show less

Bfa, Advertising Design

Activities and Societies: President: Student/Faculty Liaison Committee/School of Art

Bfa