Careers spotlight: A future in Creative and Digital

Here, we are taking a look at the stories of two people who have done just that; Kerry Hamilton of Springfield Solutions who started in the industry over 20 years ago, and Adam Bell, an intern at Eon Visual Media to find out more about their different journeys in the creative and digital world. We also learn more from Hollie at Eon about their work experience and career development schemes in creative and digital.

HELLO, WHO ARE YOU AND WHAT DO YOU DO?

Adam - I am a computer science student at The University of Hull and I on a year’s internship working for the web development team within Eon Visual Media building and providing maintenance to client websites. Eon Visual Media create inspiring digital content both internally and for clients. The core services they provide include design, video, animation, web and app development and marketing.  

Kerry - I work as a Brand Management Operator at Springfield Solutions working on lots of different projects for Reckitt and our paints clients. My role covers all aspects of the job cycle, including Master layout, repro, colour management, language rollouts, amends, and final outputs.  Some of the work I do includes creating artwork, ensuring the correct colours are used for print, creating GMGs, and text and image editing.

HOW DID YOU GET INTO WORKING IN CREATIVE AND DIGITAL?

Kerry - To start off, I left school in 1999, a while ago I know! While at school I particularly enjoyed Art class and was wanting to look at what sort of future career I could have. My year group all had teacher mentors who would discuss career options and look at courses that may be of interest once we left school. 

My mentor found a course that was run through the college but based at the Reckitt and Colman (now Reckitt) offices down Dansom Lane. It was to do an NVQ level 3 in Graphic Design and you also got to learn some helpful software and play about on a Mac with fonts and imagery.  I started this course in the September along with about nine other students. It was lots of fun and I got to get creative, too. 

Near the end of the course, we were given the opportunity to have interviews at some local graphics companies to do some work-based training where we would be based four days a week and go back to college for the other day. I had an interview and started work as a trainee at Springfield Solutions in May 2000. At first, I was in a small office with Angie and another girl called Lauren and once we were good enough, Lauren and I were sent to the main operator office to sit down with existing repro operators to be shown the process of a job from start to finish. 

After a little training, I was given some simple amends to start off with before learning some of the processes for all the different customers and their jobs and the different ways of printing and the printer specifications. 

Adam - I applied for the role as part of my year in industry for my course at the University of Hull to gain experience. I chose Eon Visual Media because it provided different developer routes for me to try, such as app and website development, which will help me to choose my career when I finish my university course.

WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE PART OF YOUR JOB? 

Adam – I enjoy working together with the team to build the website and learning different ways to improve the code that I write by working with the senior developers. 

Kerry - I really enjoy putting artworks together and seeing projects through to the end, and it’s nice to see some of the different packaging that we have worked on, on the shelf in the shops. 

WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO OTHER PEOPLE LOOKING TO FOLLOW A CAREER IN CREATIVE AND DIGITAL? 

Kerry – My advice would be to look at different software including Illustrator, Photoshop and Artpro and learn the basic tools for these. Also, when training, do not be afraid to ask questions. I still do now to my manager’s delight. Even if it is something that you have just been shown but need a refresh, ask!

Adam – I would say that there is rarely only one approach to solving a problem so trying out different ways is always welcome. Also, don’t be afraid of asking the members of your team for advice to find different ways or to help tidy up what you have written. 

Thank you to Kerry of Springfield Solutions and Adam of Eon Visual Media for their time in telling us all about their journey so far, and for their advice for budding creatives. We wish them every success in their careers and look forward to hearing from them again in the future.

OPPORTUNITIES AT EON VISUAL MEDIA

Thank you to Hollie Toft, Marketing Manager at Eon Visual Media for sharing this information about training schemes and other opportunities at Eon.

ABOUT EON VISUAL MEDIA

Eon Visual Media are an award-winning digital media agency based in Hull. They create inspiring digital content for a diverse range of clients. Their core services include design, video, animation, web and app development and marketing. Whatever the client request, we will always seek to go above and beyond. We can help at every step of your business journey, from creating branding, developing a website, creating videos and animations to putting together a marketing and SEO strategy.  

OPPORTUNITIES

At Eon Visual Media, we offer work experience for students, typically those at secondary school or college level, and internships, typically for those at University level.

At the moment, we offer internship opportunities for computer science students to work within our web development team, as well as digital media internships to work within the creative video and animation team.    

During a work experience week, students can expect to get involved in all areas of our business, from design, video and animation, to web and app development and marketing. It’s a week of learning and hands on experience. We understand the importance of engaging the next generation in the growing digital world, so we take every opportunity to make work experience fun and interactive!   

Internships differ a little in that they are more specific to a business area. Students can come to Eon Visual Media and develop a particular skill, maybe web development or animation for example. They work closely with our team to build skills that will help them in their post-University work life. It’s a great opportunity to have a year in a growing industry and work alongside a passionate team with a range of expertise.    

At Eon Visual Media, there are no specific entry requirements or deadlines to work experience or internships – we only ask that students are passionate, enthusiastic and willing to learn. We maintain close relationships with schools, colleges and universities within our region who often contact us about work experience or internship opportunities. Students wishing to join us for work experience or internships can contact us via our website.