Belen Bilgic Schneider | Services

overview

skillsmap_allSometimes its hard to tell people what I do. With a diverse background in graphic design & development, communications, and performance coaching, working with companies big and small, focusing on challenges in marketing, learning & development, and management, my skills flex to do the one thing you need:
create on-target,  business-savvy solutions to complex, real-world problems.

See how I put it to work:

communications

How can you leverage
my skills?
  • Presentation “spruce-up”
  • Presentation structure, flow & engagement
  • PowerPoint & word templates
  • Asset libraries
  • Process workflows, job aids, & tools
  • Visual solutions for complex data (info graphics)

You need to communicate something critical for your organization or department. The focus, organization, and visual execution of that communication is paramount to your success. And yet, how many bad PowerPoint decks have you been subjected to in “critical” presentations? How many long, tedious documents have you slogged through, hoping to grab a key piece of information quickly?

Presenting information in easily scannable, visually engaging ways enhances your ability to communicate quickly and effectively. Sometimes that involves the creation of info graphics to demonstrate a complex concept, but just as often, it’s about a good layout, consistent use of visual cues, and carefully considering how to distill your information to fit your target audience.

My background is perfectly tailored to meet these challenges. With roots in visual design, advanced expertise in Microsoft Office products, an affinity for information architecture and analysis, and an in-the-trenches understanding of the challenges that face managers and leaders as they communicate big ideas in tangible ways, I can offer help at almost any level – strategic, analytical, template & process development, as well as full production.

 RECOMMENDATIONS
“Belen is an incredibly talented person who I am honored to know. I have never seen anyone bring together the creativity, information architecture and strategic communication skills the way Belen does. She can untangle anything you give her; she understands how to communicate something in a visually powerful, simple and elegant manner while literally keeping things short and sweet. AT A GLANCE Belen’s work makes the most complex concepts clear and easy to understand–which makes her exceptionally good at creating communication pieces for the masses as well as for executives. I would highly recommend Belen to anyone and everyone; she is one of the most intelligent people I know. I don’t use words like this lightly but I can honestly say Belen and her work are INCREDIBLE!”
Reni Gorman, Senior Director, Strategic Engagements
Performance Development Group
October 2012

coaching

How can you leverage
my skills?
  • New manager coaching
  • Change management  consulting for creative  & technical teams facing personnel, process, or event-based change
  • Manager coaching on empowering employees

You’ve seen it over and over in the workplace: change is one of the most unnerving, dreaded, and resisted requests made of an employee, department, or organization. Even if you aren’t facing a major organizational change, it’s challenging to motivate yourself or others to embrace change as part of our evolution…and yet, employees who recognize the impact it will have, identify and build the skills they need to respond to it, and embark on a path of self-awareness, openness, and constant improvement will be more satisfied with their jobs and experience faster career growth.

As a manager, how do you encourage your people to follow that path? It’s a delicate balance of knowing and sharing the objectives they must meet, while empowering them to gain skills and mindsets to achieve those goals in a way that plays to their strengths. To do it effectively, it’s a constant learning curve for both you and the employee because the path looks a little different for each person.

Of all the work I’ve done, I am most proud of my time transforming a creative team through a fundamental organizational change, ultimately resulting in a team brimming with high-performing, satisfied, effective individuals. The work I did with them became my passion, and was something I shared with other managers as they approached our mutual challenge. Today, I apply those same approaches to change management consulting, team communication enhancement, and overall communication and people-management coaching for managers at all levels.

 RECOMMENDATIONS
“When I asked Belen to come over from effectPerformance, I knew that she was a first-rate Graphic Designer and team leader, and I had a hunch there was even more talent underneath that, but even I didn’t anticipate what an amazingly gifted people leader and change agent she would become. As Creative Director, she helped bring about a renaissance within her Media Services functional area, which triggered a cascading effect on the rest of PDG…an effect felt by Instructional Designers, Project Managers, Developers, the leadership team, and consultants of every variety. She accomplished it by caring passionately about people, the work, and the company…in that order. People responded to her sincerity, positive energy, and compassion by performing at high levels and always striving to do better…for her. It was an honor and privilege to see her work her magic.”
Gus Prestera, Executive Director, Client Services (Partner)
Performance Development Group
July 2012
“I’ve never worked for a Creative Director who could identify risks and communicate needs the way Belen did at PDG. She was always 10 steps ahead of the rest of us (I swear she’s psychic), but she never made us feel awkward for our lack of foresight. In fact, Belen’s coaching gently and effectively impelled us to take ownership of our own project challenges. Belen transformed a bunch of misfit artists into collaborating, communicating, risk identifying, project leading, business success driving members of a company in a fast paced industry. Cross-functional collaboration became second nature for us under her guidance. For me personally, Belen’s mentoring accelerated my professional development. She unlocked project leadership, communication, and mentoring skills that I would not have been able to foster on my own. Belen’s ability to articulate processes and collaborative techniques that bring together cross-functional teams in business-centric ways makes her a valuable resource on many different levels. Combine that with her individual coaching and creative leadership skills and Belen is a versatile leader that will drive any professional creative/production environment to the next level and beyond. I would work with Belen again in an instant!”
Joshua Menas, Senior Interactive Graphic Designer
Performance Development Group
October 2012
“I owe a lot of "who I am" as a professional artist to Belen. She came in to our design team, which was full of talented people, and helped guide us to be a more efficient and happier group. She quickly organized file systems, implemented guides and turned projects around, which was a great relief to the team. But she also found out who each person was, and made the most of their talents. Quickly, our team was developing products at a higher quality and far more efficiently. We were a tighter group because of it. Belen also took the time to work with me to develop my Art Direction skills, how to talk to clients, other coworkers and those I had to guide on our team. I continue to use the skills she’s taught me to this day and am so glad our paths crossed because the the knowledge she has given me is invaluable.”
Micah Fegley, Sr. Multimedia Designer & 3D Animator,
Former Art Director @ Performance Development Group
October 2012
“Belen is a creative and strategic thinker that brought a fresh perspective to our team. I had the pleasure of watching Belen transform a small, overworked, somewhat disorganized creative group into an efficient, fun powerhouse of creative solutions. Of equal importance to her direct management of the team was her ability to help guide other departments of the company on how to work with us, assuring that every project had sufficient time and resources to be successful.”
David Darrow, Independent Video Producer/Editor,
Former New Media Specialist @ Performance Development Group
December 2012
“Belen is the leader that you didn’t know you needed. I worked as a part of her team that was being pulled in six directions at once and Belen managed to shape that chaos into something easier for our team to wrap our heads around. And beyond that, and perhaps more importantly, she taught us how to prepare for many types of problems before they had a chance to rear their ugly head. This really helped us focus on our work, instead of all the logistics surrounding it, and led to a better product.”
Tim Allen, Interactive Graphic Designer
Performance Development Group
December 2012

courseware design

How can you leverage
my skills?
  • Creation of instructor-led, web-based, & blended courseware
  • Creation of job aids, tools & other just-in-time resources
  • Creative support for curriculum development
  • Off-shore vendor analysis, screening, selection and integration consulting
  • Production process & efficiency consulting
  • Creative team consulting

 

The Learning & Development industry is a highly rewarding sector for creative professionals. Each day, we are given real-world obstacles to break down and de-mystify for busy people trying to do their job well. Visual and interactive aspects of those solutions can have a huge impact in how well a course or tool is received by it’s audience, and designing materials that meet learning objectives, while considering the end user’s daily plight, product usability, and learner engagement is a worthy challenge.

I’ve been fortunate to ride in many seats in the training industry: I created and taught software classes; provided graphic design for courseware and training materials; managed production resources and off-shore vendors in large courseware initiatives; hired, trained and managed creative professionals who built training materials; and created and implemented processes for creating an efficient, effective, cross-functional production environment. In addition, my own experience managing the professional development of my team and creating blended learning curricula to close our gaps provided me with sobering ground-level experience on both a strategic and tactical level.

 RECOMMENDATIONS
“Belen has acted as the lead graphic artist on a few of the projects on which I have been the lead Instructional Designer. She has an inate ability to “read minds,” meaning she can take what seems to be completely abstact and vague feedback and decipher the true inner desires that the client and I sometimes struggle to communicate. She is extremely detailed, and punctual with deadlines. I have also contracted Belen to do some personal work for me, and she has always exceeded my expectations. I would recommend Belen without any hesitations.”
Alicia Pfaff, Instruction Design Consultant
effectPerformance
December 2008
“Belen is one of the most talented Graphic Artists I have had the pleasure to work with! Her ability to think outside the box, brainstorm creative ideas, and turn those ideas into a high-quality end product is amazing. She is always more than willing to go the extra mile for both colleagues and clients. Working with Belen in all aspects of design and development is always been a great experience. Belen’s positive attitude is contagious and makes for a great working environment.”
Michelle Kirschner, Independent Performance Consultant
effectPerformance & Performance Development Group
October 2012

design & development

How can you leverage
my skills?
  • Design and development of websites, advertising, emails, blogs
  • Logo & branding materials
  • Motion graphics & interactive Flash
  • Print design
  • Implementation of technical solutions – CMS, blogs, carts, etc
  • Copywriting & content generation

Do you want a website and you already have everything planned out? OK – let’s build a website. Do you need help figuring out what technology best fits your needs? OK – let’s evaluate your situation. Do you need a hand putting together a holistic corporate image – new logo, print collateral, website and all? OK – let’s see where you are starting from and what best captures the essence of your company.

For more than 17 years, I’ve been working with clients to evaluate and create effective marketing and design solutions. In that time, I’ve dabbled in a bit of everything, and my clients have reaped the benefits of my jack-of-all-trades knowledge and skills. I pride myself on my talent for listening carefully, thinking critically, and presenting end results that exceed my client’s expectations – whether it is a website, print piece, brand identity, or copywriting that captures the essence of their message.

 RECOMMENDATIONS
“Belen has that rare quality in a contractor — the ability to read minds! Seriously though, Belen takes a project and runs with it. I always know I can turn to her for great quality design, on-time delivery, and conscientious work. She’s an independent thinker who anticipates end-client reactions, and really gets the job done — and done right. She’s the one we can turn to when things get sticky. Great design and a head for business — who could ask for more?”
Christine Robison, President
Conduit Interactive
May 2001
“New customers, potential employees, and the curious call me daily because they found my company on the internet. They tell me they are impressed with our web site, and I love it. Belen held my hand through the process of gathering the information to build our web site. She took the time to thoroughly understand my business so that those who view our site can easily understand us too.””
Michael Bratton, CEO
Avant-Garde Aquatics
September 2002
“Belen’s professionalism and skills continue to exceed our expectations. She is considered a valuable asset to our company and we have highly recommended her to other businesses. Her rates are fair and her timely delivery continue to impress us. We cannot thank her enough for her efforts to ensure we are educated in the website design and marketing arena as well as tailoring the website design to our business image. We continue to get great reviews by our customers and look forward to working with Belen on future developments.”
Kelli Bullington, President
Bull Tactical Outfitters
October 2003

belen in action

What have I been working on recently? Take a look!

Learning Map Architecture & Designin progress

Employees at a Fortune 500 company are overwhelmed with the disjointed array of 600+ mandatory and optional learning opportunities, and the company is seeking to create a streamlined, consolidated view of available learning by role and competency.

The goal is to architect and visualize a proof of concept, offering a snapshot of how this monumental task could be accomplished. Presenting this well is a critical goal for our executive, ultimately resulting in gaining senior stakeholder support for the initiative…and fundamentally changing every employee’s learning and development experience.

Supporting the department’s employees and consultants, I am:

  • reviewing course, role & competency data and analyzing information architecture solutions
  • gathering information on stakeholder goals and end-user needs
  • creating visual models for user flow and information display, utilizing PowerPoint for presentation capability
  • gathering and documenting limitations and specs for data output
  • communicating potential build needs with client’s development team

Branding Packagein progress

A nutrition consultant is beginning her journey through building her business.

I am:

  • consulting on business names and tag lines
  • creating a logo and other branding materials
  • consulting on marketing methods and self-promotion venues

Production Analysis & Direction, Project Management, Art Directionrecently completed

A small development company is strained under the e-learning production demands of a large non-profit organization. The timelines are tight, the course specs are highly interactive, and the team is driven to keep the quality high.

For the development company, I am:

  • analyzing and implementing streamlined processes to maximize efficiency and minimize churn
  • acting as the Point of Contact with the end client, ensuring communication and information flow is pro-active and risk-minded
  • managing project tasks and administration, as well as evaluating, architecting production flow, and signing off on client project plans
  • empowering the team to prepare as much as possible for production, lessening the burden of tight timelines
  • bridging communication between the Instructional Designer and the development team, translating “ID-speak” into “Dev-speak”, and ensuring the development team is employing e-learning best practices
  • providing Art Direction for creative resources
  • wireframing and creating specs for complex interactive activities, ensuring good usability and clarity for the dev team

In addition, the end-client’s production demands were high for all parties involved. In an effort to find viable ways to meet production goals, I am also:

  • outlining production standards that should be applied to all projects
  • leading the coordination of a multi-development-vendor production solution
  • defining a Production Director role that acts as a hub for multi-vendor teams, ensuring consistency, teamwork and streamlined development protocols