Senior Designer - DK+

Do you have a bold, design-led vision for books that speak to readers of every age? Are you excited by pop culture, innovative books for young readers, and cultural storytelling? - and ready to shape those lists in fresh and commercially minded ways?

If so, DK Plus is recruiting a Senior Designer to join a talented and collaborative team that produces internationally recognised, best‑selling titles and partners with leading authors, licensors and brands including LEGO, Minecraft, Disney, Warner Bros and The Met to name a few. This is an opportunity to set a new visual direction for DK+, commission top creative talent, and help streamline the studio’s workflow by overseeing and mentoring across a diverse slate of projects. You will report to the Art Director and work closely with them.

Your responsibilities:

• Lead the creative vision—in direct collaboration and alignment with the Art Director—for the Culture, Preschool, and Pop Culture lists: originate treatments, present concepts at project meetings and develop commercially positioned design solutions that translate across print, digital and consumer product opportunities, across both children and adults audiences.
• Commission and brief designers, illustrators, photographers and other contributors; negotiate terms, raise POs and manage budgets and schedules to deliver high‑quality work on time and on budget.
• Oversee multiple projects from concept to delivery, supervising junior and project designers, delegating routine tasks appropriately and ensuring quality at every stage.
• Supervise jackets, spreads and styling; set up templates and maintain technical and brand standards to secure approvals where required.
• Research trends and competitor activity to inform fresh ideas and treatments; work with sales and marketing to support launches, fairs and promotional campaigns.
• Organise studio and location photography for assigned projects and ensure correct asset and metadata archiving on project completion.

About you:

• Strong typographic and visual sensibility with meticulous attention to detail
• Commercial instinct for positioning books and consumer‑facing products in competitive markets
• A compelling portfolio demonstrating exceptional design proficiency across both adult and children's book covers and interiors.
• Proven experience commissioning and managing external talent, e.g., designers, illustrators, photographers and studios
• Well suited to candidates from a non‑fiction background who are comfortable with factual content and design‑led editorial projects
• Packaging experience is a definite advantage
• Licensing experience is not essential; breadth of publishing experience and the ability to translate brand briefs into standout products is crucial
• Experience liaising directly with clients or commissioners (freelancing experience welcome)

While the role will be strategic and collaborative rather than purely hands-on, you should be comfortable stepping into hands-on styling when needed, as well as mentoring others.

This role is office-based a minimum of three days a week. During the onboarding phase, the successful candidate will be expected to work from the office Monday to Wednesday to align with the Art Director’s schedule and ensure close collaboration during initial projects.

If you’re excited to shape DK+ with fresh, inspiring ideas and a new design perspective, we’d love to hear from you.

To apply, please submit a PDF portfolio of your best work, your CV and a short covering letter explaining why you would be great for the role by midnight on Sunday 26th October. Applications without a PDF portfolio and CV will not be considered.

We are eager to see your own unique voice and talent, not the words generated by an AI tool. Please refrain from using AI in this application.

Closing date for applications: Sunday 26th October

We have a range of benefits to reflect our commitment to our people, some of which are:

• 25 days paid holiday entitlement in year one, plus bank holidays
• Generous pension scheme
• Volunteering policy and charity matching
• Employee assistance programme
• 60% discount on company books
• Cycle to work scheme and discounted gym membership
• Flex Fridays (1pm Finish*)
• Shopping discounts
• Up to 30 days remote working from abroad*

And we plant a tree for every new employee to our business

DK is committed to building a diverse workforce that reflects the varied communities that read our books across the world. We encourage applications from all individuals, regardless of age, religion, gender, ethnicity, disability, sexuality or social background. DK is proud to announce that we have adopted The Halo Code.

DK is a member of the disability confident scheme. We guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the vacancy/ies.

DK supports flexible working and has introduced a new ‘smart-working’ policy with a hybrid approach of working weekly from home and in DK’s office.

The Book Trade Charity offers financial support to people looking to enter the book trade, but who may struggle to afford the costs of attending interviews or undertaking internships. For more information, visit www.booktradeentrysupport.org

*Subject to certain criteria being met.

About our Company:

We believe in the power of discovery. That's why we create books for everyone that explore ideas and nurture curiosity about the world we live in. From first words to the Big Bang, from the wonders of nature to city adventures, you will find expert knowledge, hours of fun and endless inspiration in the pages of our books.

We are the world's leading illustrated publisher and a member of the Penguin Random House division of Bertelsmann, creating cutting-edge design and stunning visual books for the whole family. We are passionate about inspiring curiosity and bring people to books through their thirst for knowledge. With a global book loving community of over 800 colleagues in the UK, US, Germany, India, China, Spain and Australia, we produce books in over 100 countries and over 60 languages. Find out more on dk.com.