Nick Merritt
Visual Design Manager, Esports at Riot Games- Claim this Profile
Click to upgrade to our gold package
for the full feature experience.
-
English Native or bilingual proficiency
Topline Score
Bio
Shawn Borsky
Nick is one of those people who brings leadership to a team even when not placed directly in a position of authority. Certainly, Nick brings a tight and polished user experience skill-set and an eye for detail but he is also functions as a proactive content partner for stakeholders and collaborative teams. You can always expect Nick to bring proactive ideas to the table in the form of process and content. During his time at NZXT, Nick was charged with leading the design work on many complex application structures such as our PC Configurator which drives a core revenue stream for NZXT's Direct to Consumer operations: many of Nick's most successful projects at NZXT absolutely HAD to succeed beyond mere operation and bring superior flow and ability embrace the limitations of our new web architecture. This worked needed to give us a leg up on our competitors. Nick was able to work cross-functionally and collaboratively across a variety of teams to help execute this industry-leading interface within the PC hardware space. What may not be visible on the surface is how adept Nick is at wielding his tools to this end - leading extensive use of component libraries and prototyping to make his work far outlast his involvement. To this day, NZXT's promotional email design architecture is flying high based on the system that Nick designed. I would highly recommend Nick for any senior product design or design leadership roles. Not only does he bring a great attitude and expert competency with the modern tools of web and software design he also adds tremendously to team culture. Nick is a joy to work with and keeps a calm-head even in tight or stressful situations and if you need someone to make team gatherings and especially lunch, a special event within your team, he is your man. Seriously, ask Nick about it, you'll enjoy the conversation (and want to hire him).
Edith Esparza
Although Nick was not my direct manager at MIND Research Institute, I had the pleasure of working alongside Nick in the same team. From the moment I met him, he proved to be a smart, talented, and hard working individual and team player. He took our MIND and ST Math brands to the next level with a redesign of both websites, logos, and marketing assets. Whenever I had questions or wanted to learn more about web or email design he had the patience to teach me to improve upon my work. Nick will make an awesome contribution to any team that he is a part of.
Shawn Borsky
Nick is one of those people who brings leadership to a team even when not placed directly in a position of authority. Certainly, Nick brings a tight and polished user experience skill-set and an eye for detail but he is also functions as a proactive content partner for stakeholders and collaborative teams. You can always expect Nick to bring proactive ideas to the table in the form of process and content. During his time at NZXT, Nick was charged with leading the design work on many complex application structures such as our PC Configurator which drives a core revenue stream for NZXT's Direct to Consumer operations: many of Nick's most successful projects at NZXT absolutely HAD to succeed beyond mere operation and bring superior flow and ability embrace the limitations of our new web architecture. This worked needed to give us a leg up on our competitors. Nick was able to work cross-functionally and collaboratively across a variety of teams to help execute this industry-leading interface within the PC hardware space. What may not be visible on the surface is how adept Nick is at wielding his tools to this end - leading extensive use of component libraries and prototyping to make his work far outlast his involvement. To this day, NZXT's promotional email design architecture is flying high based on the system that Nick designed. I would highly recommend Nick for any senior product design or design leadership roles. Not only does he bring a great attitude and expert competency with the modern tools of web and software design he also adds tremendously to team culture. Nick is a joy to work with and keeps a calm-head even in tight or stressful situations and if you need someone to make team gatherings and especially lunch, a special event within your team, he is your man. Seriously, ask Nick about it, you'll enjoy the conversation (and want to hire him).
Edith Esparza
Although Nick was not my direct manager at MIND Research Institute, I had the pleasure of working alongside Nick in the same team. From the moment I met him, he proved to be a smart, talented, and hard working individual and team player. He took our MIND and ST Math brands to the next level with a redesign of both websites, logos, and marketing assets. Whenever I had questions or wanted to learn more about web or email design he had the patience to teach me to improve upon my work. Nick will make an awesome contribution to any team that he is a part of.
Shawn Borsky
Nick is one of those people who brings leadership to a team even when not placed directly in a position of authority. Certainly, Nick brings a tight and polished user experience skill-set and an eye for detail but he is also functions as a proactive content partner for stakeholders and collaborative teams. You can always expect Nick to bring proactive ideas to the table in the form of process and content. During his time at NZXT, Nick was charged with leading the design work on many complex application structures such as our PC Configurator which drives a core revenue stream for NZXT's Direct to Consumer operations: many of Nick's most successful projects at NZXT absolutely HAD to succeed beyond mere operation and bring superior flow and ability embrace the limitations of our new web architecture. This worked needed to give us a leg up on our competitors. Nick was able to work cross-functionally and collaboratively across a variety of teams to help execute this industry-leading interface within the PC hardware space. What may not be visible on the surface is how adept Nick is at wielding his tools to this end - leading extensive use of component libraries and prototyping to make his work far outlast his involvement. To this day, NZXT's promotional email design architecture is flying high based on the system that Nick designed. I would highly recommend Nick for any senior product design or design leadership roles. Not only does he bring a great attitude and expert competency with the modern tools of web and software design he also adds tremendously to team culture. Nick is a joy to work with and keeps a calm-head even in tight or stressful situations and if you need someone to make team gatherings and especially lunch, a special event within your team, he is your man. Seriously, ask Nick about it, you'll enjoy the conversation (and want to hire him).
Edith Esparza
Although Nick was not my direct manager at MIND Research Institute, I had the pleasure of working alongside Nick in the same team. From the moment I met him, he proved to be a smart, talented, and hard working individual and team player. He took our MIND and ST Math brands to the next level with a redesign of both websites, logos, and marketing assets. Whenever I had questions or wanted to learn more about web or email design he had the patience to teach me to improve upon my work. Nick will make an awesome contribution to any team that he is a part of.
Shawn Borsky
Nick is one of those people who brings leadership to a team even when not placed directly in a position of authority. Certainly, Nick brings a tight and polished user experience skill-set and an eye for detail but he is also functions as a proactive content partner for stakeholders and collaborative teams. You can always expect Nick to bring proactive ideas to the table in the form of process and content. During his time at NZXT, Nick was charged with leading the design work on many complex application structures such as our PC Configurator which drives a core revenue stream for NZXT's Direct to Consumer operations: many of Nick's most successful projects at NZXT absolutely HAD to succeed beyond mere operation and bring superior flow and ability embrace the limitations of our new web architecture. This worked needed to give us a leg up on our competitors. Nick was able to work cross-functionally and collaboratively across a variety of teams to help execute this industry-leading interface within the PC hardware space. What may not be visible on the surface is how adept Nick is at wielding his tools to this end - leading extensive use of component libraries and prototyping to make his work far outlast his involvement. To this day, NZXT's promotional email design architecture is flying high based on the system that Nick designed. I would highly recommend Nick for any senior product design or design leadership roles. Not only does he bring a great attitude and expert competency with the modern tools of web and software design he also adds tremendously to team culture. Nick is a joy to work with and keeps a calm-head even in tight or stressful situations and if you need someone to make team gatherings and especially lunch, a special event within your team, he is your man. Seriously, ask Nick about it, you'll enjoy the conversation (and want to hire him).
Edith Esparza
Although Nick was not my direct manager at MIND Research Institute, I had the pleasure of working alongside Nick in the same team. From the moment I met him, he proved to be a smart, talented, and hard working individual and team player. He took our MIND and ST Math brands to the next level with a redesign of both websites, logos, and marketing assets. Whenever I had questions or wanted to learn more about web or email design he had the patience to teach me to improve upon my work. Nick will make an awesome contribution to any team that he is a part of.
Credentials
-
Shaping up with Angular.js
Code School
Experience
-
Riot Games
-
United States
-
Computer Games
-
700 & Above Employee
-
Visual Design Manager, Esports
-
Jun 2023 - Present
Building cool stuff with cool people. Building cool stuff with cool people.
-
-
-
NZXT, Inc.
-
United States
-
Computer Hardware Manufacturing
-
200 - 300 Employee
-
Senior Interactive Designer (Ecommerce)
-
Mar 2021 - Jan 2023
- Responsible for end-to-end design for all aspects of NZXT.com, including UX artifacts, wireframes, storyboards, UI design, prototyping, and all interactive experiences. - Lead designer for BLD Hub, PC Configurator, and Keyboard Configurator. All Interactive experiences that allow users to fully customize their PC, keyboard, and mouse. - Partnered with Marketing, Research, Product, and Engineering teams to collaborate across all projects. - Partnered with Research team to create user surveys, usability studies, and other research initiatives. Provided mockups or prototypes when needed. - Examine user research and analytics to identify pain points or opportunities. - Partnered with Product team to synthesize research into UX artifacts like user stories, user flows, IA diagrams, journey maps, and more. - Created wireframes, mockups, and interactive prototypes to allow for quick testing and iteration. - Created high quality assets to be used across the website including images, iconography, typography, video, and more. - Designed several new web components to give Design more flexibility, make authoring content more simple for Product, and minimize complexity for Engineering. Resulting in higher quality output while increasing efficiency of all teams. - Partnered with Engineering to help lay the foundation for a new design system. And continuously used, maintained, and expanded the design system. - Mentored other designers across multiple teams. - Partnered with Creative and Marketing teams to adhere to and maintain Brand & Identity guidelines. - Led strategic design initiatives to build products that balance user needs with business goals. Show less
-
-
-
MIND Research Institute
-
United States
-
E-Learning Providers
-
1 - 100 Employee
-
Design Manager (Creative Director)
-
Jul 2017 - Mar 2021
- Managed, developed, and mentored my Design team to ensure they were challenged and had clear growth paths. - Led the Design team by elevating production standards, establishing design principles, and improving processes. - Led the team through multiple rebranding initiatives for our organization (MIND), ST Math, and several other products. Includes creating and maintaining Brand & Identity for the organization and its multiple products through the use of style guides and design systems. - Responsible for design and development of all websites and online products including mindresearch.org, stmath.com, mathmindsgames.com, and MIND's Shopify store. - Responsible for design and production of all graphics and media, including digital, web, print, video, social, and collateral. - Art Directed the design of all local and national event graphics including banners, booth layout and design, updated mascot costume, and interactive experiences. - Responsible for developing quarterly roadmaps to ensure alignment on strategy with leadership and partner teams. - Partnered with Content team and SMEs to break down complex subject matter and present it in a simple way through infographics, educational videos, and interactive content. - Presented concepts, storyboards, and creative vision to Leadership teams and stakeholders. - Partnered with Marketing and Research teams to define Personas that allowed us to reach targeted audiences with content unique to them. - Designed and developed all-in-one solution for interactive sales tool for global implementation. - Art Directed video and photoshoots for use across multiple channels, including YouTube, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn. - Led training to develop team competencies in design tools, CMS, and other software. - Balanced team workload to ensure projects were completed on time and within budget. - Oversaw global software go-to-market strategy and program rollout expanding to 4 countries and 2.1 million technology users. Show less
-
-
-
Freelance Designer / Self Employed
-
United States
-
Graphic Design
-
100 - 200 Employee
-
Creative Director / Design Consultant
-
Jul 2015 - Mar 2021
- Met with clients throughout the process to discover needs, review concepts, and present final deliverables. - Consulted with existing design leadership or teams to identify strengths and opportunities for improvement. - Led teams in defining or improving processes to increase efficiency. - Designed and art directed brand identity packages. - Designed and art directed campaigns, including print, digital, video, social, and collateral. - Created brand guidelines or style guides to help teams maintain brand consistency in the future. - Worked with a variety of clients, including ad agencies, corporations, and individuals. Show less
-
-
-
-
Creator
-
Jun 2010 - Mar 2021
Digital Yard Sale is an online resource for designers and creatives. It offers free and premium elements to teach new techniques and make designing easier. http://graphicriver.net/user/DigitalYardSale?ref=digitalyardsale Digital Yard Sale is an online resource for designers and creatives. It offers free and premium elements to teach new techniques and make designing easier. http://graphicriver.net/user/DigitalYardSale?ref=digitalyardsale
-
-
-
-
Contract Art Director
-
Jun 2016 - Dec 2016
-
-
-
Kitbash : Brand Design
-
United States
-
Advertising Services
-
1 - 100 Employee
-
Senior Art Director / UX Designer / Front-end Developer
-
Oct 2013 - Jul 2015
- Met with clients throughout the process to discover needs, review concepts, and present final deliverables. - Designed and art directed client branding and identity packages. - Designed and art directed marketing campaigns, including print, digital, video, social and collateral. - Designed and art directed client websites from concept to completion. - Handled front-end development of custom client websites using Wordpress CMS or Squarespace. - Spearheaded creative campaigns that combined innovative design with visual storytelling. - Led the rebranding of the Kitbash agency. - Developed new processes and workflows to assist in the growth of the young ad agency. - Worked with a wide range of clients, from individuals to national corporations. - For more samples of my work at Kitbash, visit http://getkitbashed.com Show less
-
-
-
-
Senior Web Designer / Art Director
-
Jan 2012 - May 2014
- Art directed and mentored junior design team to uphold quality standards, and foster growth.- Led design for brand & identity packages, print, digital, web, photography, social, and all collateral.- Created design solutions to meet client needs, taking designs from concept to completion, often within condensed timelines.- Synthesized initial client meeting notes into a concise creative brief.- Created and evangelized new vertical marketing strategy to increase revenue streams and client brand awareness through social media offerings.- Amplified the design agency through a rebranding initiative, including new logo, website, and identity package. - Managed multiple ongoing projects and clients simultaneously.- Partnered with developers to drive innovation and adoption of new web technologies and capabilities.- Art Directed marketing campaigns for national brands, including print, web, digital, and email. Show less
-
-
Graphic Designer / Social Media
-
Sep 2010 - Jan 2012
In addition to my web and print design responsibilities, I took initiative to help push Think Webstore into the Social Media Age. I not only created and managed our own social media, I helped the company develop a model and pricing structure so we could offer Social Media Services to clients.
-
-
-
Allison Rodgers Photography
-
Photography
-
1 - 100 Employee
-
Graphic Designer
-
Sep 2007 - Sep 2010
-
-
Education
-
2007 - 2008
The Art Institutes
Graphic Design -
2004 - 2006
Northwest Mississippi Community College
Graphic Design
Community
