Who am I?

Well, I’m a creative individual (artist/graphic designer and musician), a proud father of two amazing kiddos—and purveyor of amazing dad jokes, just ask them—an easy-going dude, and a proud Wisconsinite (born and raised) with a strong midwest work ethic, character, and dedication! My folks worked hard to instill humility, honesty, empathy, chivalry, confidence (never arrogance), and a can-do attitude—I was blessed to have amazing parents, dedicated to raising their children to be good human beings.

When I’m not working, adulting/parenting, or coaching softball/baseball, I enjoy being outdoors—fishing, camping, hunting, grilling out, taking in a game, and just exploring the great outdoors. I love fishing! Although I don’t get out as often as I’d like, because life gets in the way…but that doesn’t stop me from spending my hard-earned money on plenty of gear, for when I do get to go.

I am a certifiable music/movie nerd, with a large collection of both, in various formats: vinyl, cassette, CD, digital, DVD, Blu-Ray, and still have the old VHS. I do speak fluent movie quotes, and have retained a stupid amount of music lyrics throughout my lifetime. Yes, I still buy physical music/movies in this digital age! As a creative person/graphic designer, I still cherish the lost art of packaging layout and design—cover art, liner notes, lyric sheets, typography, packaging with special finishes, as well as the look and feel of unique paper/cardboard stock. I enjoy watching movies and different series—especially stupid comedies and ‘80s and ’90s rom coms, drama, old mafia movies, action, suspense and some classic westerns.

What can I do for you professionally?

Please feel free to review my resumé, as that will provide a detailed work history, skills, and education. But, since you’re here reading this now, let me give you a brief sales pitch of what I can bring to the table at your company.

I bring a solid technical background—in design software, print-production file handling, and print methods—as well as, a strong creative background—thinking outside-the-box—with tenacious problem-solving abilities. With a strong understanding of typography, page layout, color theory—with creative blood pumping through my veins—I am an experienced and seasoned graphic designer with 18+ years in the industry. I have a very keen sense for details, and am meticulously organized in workspace, workflow, and file building. I guess you could say, I am both a right-brain designer (creative, intuitive, visual), AND left-brain designer (analytical, organized, verbal communicator). With the ability to think creatively (and productively), from concept to creation—sketch to digital file format—I have worn many hats, as a cross-functional team player. I am always ready and willing to troubleshoot, brainstorm, consult with other team members, or lend a hand wherever I can be of assistance with my many years or experience and skillsets. I take great pride in my abilities to get the job/project done right (the first time), company/client success, and finding efficiencies in workflow along the way. The bottom line is, I get s*** done (and done right) with a long-history of professional success in my many roles, and dedicated work history with past employers/clients.

I am far too humble to toot my own horn very loud, as I have always been more about action than talking about it. But, you don’t have to take my word for it—please, read below some of the testimonials I’ve garnered from some of those I’ve worked closest with over my professional career.

Reviews & Testimonials

  • Mike continues to exceed expectations in and beyond his role as Creative Designer. He continues to contribute amazing work beyond his current role description, focusing on Creative Innovation within challenging budgets, leading design for all tactics he owns in launches—as well as leading and navigating vendor partnerships with the team. Mike continues to be highly skilled in understanding dynamic process and strategic shifts, and does an amazing job flexing to achieve the desired results. Mike achieves and focuses on best-in-class innovative design across many materials and tactics. With the additional challenge of a reduced Retail production role/process on the team, however, he also continued lending his expertise on critical production direction, providing key insights and solutions to help the team fill in the gaps and achieve the desired results.

    M.H. (Manager)

  • In addition to Mike’s incredible talent, one of his most admirable traits is his unwavering commitment to delivering high-quality results regardless of the budget. He consistently goes above and beyond expectations, ensuring that projects are completed on time, within budget, and to the highest standards. His attention to detail and proactive approach make him a valuable asset to any team. For any organization seeking a dedicated and talented professional who can make a significant impact, I wholeheartedly recommend Mike. His partnership, passion, expertise, and commitment to excellence make him a valuable addition to any team.

    L.V. (AG coworker)

  • As a creative designer, Mike was responsible for creating brochures, newsletters, flyers, logos, and many other marketing materials for clients. Using his creativity and strong software skills, Mike easily handled even the most complex projects. Moreover, Mike consistently ranked high in productivity and quality amongst his peers. Mike was trusted with our most challenging projects and high-end clients—a role he took seriously. Mike is very effective at interpreting a client’s goals and developing a piece that meets those needs. Mike is also very respectful of a client’s deadline and budget.

    K.K. (Manager)

  • You employ a high level of strategic thinking with a critical eye to budget conscious execution for all tactics across all launches. Throughout the year you continually looked to streamline layers in tactical execution, and make material shift suggestions to cut costs while retaining a high level of creative excellence. In addition to your expected role as a designer, we leaned heavily on your attention to detail and your background in production in navigating the many parts and pieces we needed to develop and in making sure all the details were captured within our matrices for all launches.

    M.H. (Manager)

  • Mike is always willing to challenge the status quo and pose purpose-driven questions/possibilities to elevate design and strategic approach. He has the knowledge, expertise, and lead-design skills to make our projects successful, and is a great partner and collaborator. Mike’s communication style is transparent, fun, positive and professional, and is highly supportive of our excellent one-team culture.

    M.H. (Manager)

  • Retail projects have many facets, materials, layers, and challenging opportunities to create finessed design within a tight budget. Mike’s level of detail, and execution-savvy design approach, is perfectly suited and proves-out his level of excellence within the Retail Visual team workload. Mike continues to brainstorm innovative design solutions for anything he works on, always with the consumer at heart, with a keen expertise/eye for balancing efficiency with premium quality.

    M.H. (Manager)

  • Mike is an exceptionally talented creative professional whose dedication and creativity have made significant contributions to our team’s success. During the years I worked with Mike on the Retail Design team at American Girl, I relied on his vast technical/structural and materials knowledge on a regular basis. Mike is always willing to lend a helping hand, share expertise, and provide guidance.

    L.V. (AG coworker)

  • Your attention to detail, speed and agility, and flexibility really helped to make this project a huge success. Not only did you manage all of the production files for this job, you also took on some of the design pieces, and followed through all the way to installation as a lead rep on launch night.

    A.M. (Manager)

  • Your work ethic, positive attitude, collaboration, and patience with all of this year's workload have been unparalleled assets to our team. Not only are you professional, but you always bring a fun energy to our team that plays a major part in making our team culture awesome.

    M.H. (Manager)

  • Your attention to the details and drive to make everything the BEST it can be, is a valuable asset to American Girl - THANK YOU for caring so much and getting awesome work done!

    D.C. (Art Director)

  • You take on projects from start to finish with an eye for innovation, attention to consumer focus and usability, and ownership for timelines and deliverables. Your work ethic, positive attitude, detailed expertise in the Retail Visual projects, and your focus on detail/perfection are unparalleled assets to our team. You consistently seek out innovative tools, vendors and inspiration to share with the wider group.

    M.H. (Manager)

  • One of Mike’s strongest assets to our company was his expert knowledge of graphic design software. Mike took the initiative to attend seminars about software upgrades and how they could help him create successful designs for our clients. Mike has a strong work ethic and is completely dependable. Mike is the type of team player that is valued in any organization.

    K.K. (Manager)