Web Designer

About Atomic Glue Atomic Glue is a digital creative agency in Brookfield, Wisconsin. We build and maintain corporate websites, and a large share of our work is the unglamorous, high-trust kind: taking over sites other people built, keeping them fast and secure, and shipping changes that cannot break. Much of our work runs white-label, under another agency's brand, for clients in cybersecurity and B2B technology. When a client's marketing site is the front door to their pipeline, we are the reason it stays open. We are small on purpose. That means the person in this role shapes how our clients' web identity looks and works, fosters strong client relationships, and pitches in wherever a project needs it, sometimes in the same afternoon. Why this role exists Right now, most design production runs through our Creative Director. As a small agency in an exciting growth phase, we are supporting several large projects at once and taking on more white-label work for partner agencies. That combination means good ideas move slower as we ramp up our production. We are hiring a Web Designer the Creative Director can partner with. You will work side by side on shared projects, own pieces of work on your own, and help raise the quality of everything we make. Together, that lets us say yes to more work without quality slipping. You will work closely with the Creative Director and hand off to our developers. You will not be building the sites yourself, but you will be expected to design things that can be built, and to understand the importance of good designing meeting strong development. What you will do Join client design discovery and listen past the brief. Clients often know what they want before they have the words for it, so you ask the right questions, pick up on what goes unsaid, and turn half-formed ideas into a clear visual direction that brings their vision to life. Design pages, templates, and components for corporate sites, from early layouts to final, build-ready files. Work inside existing design systems and extend them cleanly, adding the components and patterns a growing web identity needs rather than inventing a new style every time. Look for smarter ways to work , such as reusable components, templates, and AI tools, knowing that a faster path only counts if the quality holds. Design within the brand guidelines of clients and partner agencies, matching their standards without friction, even when the work runs under someone else's name. Help expand client design systems and brand guidelines , turning brands often built for print or presentations into a stronger, more consistent web identity. Prepare clean handoffs for developers : HTML files, organized Figma files, defined states, responsive breakpoints, and notes on anything that isn't obvious. Answer developers' questions during the build and review what they ship against the design. Juggle several projects in a week, and speak up early when a deadline is at risk. Present your work and explain the reasoning behind it, to the Creative Director first and to clients when the time is right. Our tools Figma is where most design happens here, and you should be fluent in it: components, variants, auto layout, and shared libraries. You will also use Adobe Creative Suite for image work, graphics, and production assets, and Claude Design for exploring concepts and producing variations quickly. You do not need to code, but knowing how a CMS-driven page is put together will make your work better. What we need to see Two to four years designing websites professionally, ideally with some time in an agency or client services setting. A portfolio of live marketing or corporate websites, with your role on each one made clear. Fluency in Figma and Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign at minimum). Hands-on experience with Claude Design as part of your design process Strong layout, typography, and hierarchy. You can make a dense B2B page easy to read. Experience working within an existing design system or brand guidelines, not only creating new ones. An understanding of responsive design, and of how designs turn into code: grids, spacing systems, component states, and real content. A working knowledge of web accessibility basics, such as color contrast, focus states, and readable type sizes. Comfort filling in the gaps. Briefs here are sometimes incomplete and roles overlap, so you make a reasonable call, flag your assumption, and keep moving. Clear written communication. Much of our coordination is asynchronous and in writing. The ability to take direct feedback, act on it, and come back with something better. Signals we weight heavily We care less about how polished your portfolio looks than about how you think and how you work with others. In interviews we will ask about: A design that changed a lot between your first version and what launched, and why. A time you designed inside someone else's brand or system and had to respect its limits. A handoff that went badly, and what you do differently now. A piece of feedback that was hard to hear and how you faced it head-on. How you keep several projects moving in the same week. Where this role can go This is not a senior role yet, but we are looking for someone who wants to grow into one. Over time, we expect you to: Own the design of whole projects, not just pages within them Help maintain and improve the design systems we run for clients Present directly to clients and partner agencies with confidence Spot problems in a brief or a build before they turn into rework What this job is not It is not a brand or illustration role. While we may do light brand work (i.e. mood boards, brand expansions), the work landscape is mostly digital. It is not a single-product job. You will switch between several clients in a day. It is not all blank-canvas work. Some weeks you design something new, and some weeks you add pages to a site that already has firm rules. It is not a role where you build what you design. Our developers do that, and your job is to help make the whole system run smoothly. Our stance on AI in design We use AI as a tool, not a replacement for people. It helps us move faster: quick iterations at the start of a project, a head start on routine production, and help filling gaps so we can meet deadlines without cutting corners. What it cannot do is replace judgment. Knowing when a layout works, when a design feels right, and when something is ready to show a client takes skill and experience that only people bring. We hire for that expertise in every role and rely on it every day. We do not believe in turning our work, or anyone else's, into AI slop. If you know how to use these tools well and when to set them aside, you will fit right in. Logistics Full time Hybrid, based in the Milwaukee area, with regular time in our Brookfield office Salaried Generous PTO benefits, healthcare stipend, and Summer Fridays #J-18808-Ljbffr