AbsoluteB.com

You’ll undoubtedly notice that I haven’t posted much in the past few weeks, let alone post anything that had any sense or value. Things have been incredibly busy at Bonobos since I opted to take on the ICT Manager role along side my current role as designer/front end developer. The past week or so has been the most busy I’ve ever been as I’ve been working hard to get things the way I want them within ICT, plus learning the ropes and undertaking all the responsibilities of my latest undertaking. Patrick, the manager I’m taking over for, was away for a week and so this was an opportunity for me to get my feet (very) wet. I’ll admit that there are plenty of things I could have done smoother and better, but I’ll be bold enough to give myself some credit for doing the job that I’ve done so far. I’ve certainly had to find the balance between taking the time to design and create my visions and utilizing short time spans to create designs that are “good enough”. I know, it’s such a sin as a designer to do anything that way, but as a manager with responsibilities, I have to decide whether my priorities allow me take the time or to deliver so that we as a company can move forward quicker.

As far as I’m concerned, I will do everything I can to maintain my initial role as designer and front end developer along side my new responsibilities rather than bringing on a new designer. Besides the fact that I believe that only I can carry out my vision better than anyone, I also love designing and every aspect of what it means to me too much. No doubt there will be times when I wonder if I’m trying too much, but I can honestly say that I’ll do everything I can do delegate my tasks so that I can focus on what I love and what I do best; creating beautiful graphics and websites in HTML and CSS.

For now though, I will be taking a break and taking a nice long week away in Hungary with my girlfriend. ROADTRIP! I haven’t been on vacation in years, and now, of all times, I think I deserve it more than any other time.

Holland’s first game kicks off in 10 mins! Dropping everything to go watch it!

EDIT: 0-0 half time… wtf?

EDIT 2: 2-0!!

The story of clients of yore, told oh so well by The Oatmeal, now hangs proudly in my office as a daily reminder that I’m probably on the wrong career path.

It’s been an insane 2 weeks! Since coming onboard with Bonobos, the amount of work has never pilled on as much as it has in the past 14 days.

To start off with, I’ve lately inherited the responsibilities for everything to do with phonebook ads. Everything from their design to their final distribution and communication with the sales department. Besides creating SEO strong and beautiful websites, Bonobos also creates phonebook ads for its clients. Don’t laugh too hard, I chuckled a little too when I thought that there were still people out there who even own a phonebook. But despite the fact that it Is a diminishing market, it remains profitable to be a part of. Despite this, you wouldn’t believe how many badly designed phonebook ads are out there! I think it has a lot to do with companies designing their own ads in MS Paint rather than hiring on a professional design firm to get the most attention necessary out of an ad. Many of the ads cram too much uninteresting information into them and don’t get a clear message across, next to the fact that they’re just really ugly! Not that I care what other companies decide to do with their designs. It just makes my job that much easier, as long as the client doesn’t butt in too much. …read the rest of this entry »

It’s been about a month since I last posted and that’s mostly to do with the fact that I started working at Bonobos so any and all my time has been spent on their projects and on learning and integrating myself into their work flow as much as possible. Not just that, but also looking for ways to streamline the various processes. So far I’ve been more than happy to be part of the organization and being able to work in such a young and dynamic environment. I’ve slowly gotten to know my new colleagues better and they’ve been great in allowing me to feel a part of the team. Since moving into the new building, I’ve definitely been able to work on some great and fun projects; from designing sites to logos and functional widgets and elements. …read the rest of this entry »

From the initial contact to the moment we came to an agreement, it all happened very quickly. I received a message via AbsoluteB, completely out of the blue, expressing interest in my possibly joining Bonobos as a designer/developer. Barely a week later, having had a few conversations and giving the offer some thought, I have initialed, dated and signed my contract to develop and design for Groningen based marketing and media company Bonobos. Ok, so I don’t officially start till next month, but I’m already excited about getting started and am really looking forward to bringing and sharing my ideas in the hope of reaching higher levels of success!

I consider myself to be a versatile and flexible designer. Given the opportunity, I love designing from scratch and being allowed to create what I believe to be the most suitable, functional and most beautiful solution possible. On the other hand, I equally enjoy the challenge of taking strict project specifications and requirements and translating them into a product that a client and look at, experience and touch. I’ve been fortunate to have been able to work on both ends of the spectrum. While I had plenty of freedom designing for clients within NASCAR and Volvo Cars, I have had to follow strict guidelines while designing for clients including the Dutch Ministry of Justice and various Dutch municipal organizations. So when I’m asked about my style of design, I tend to find it difficult to convince people that I don’t really have a main style. Yesterday during my long drive back to Groningen from Den Haag, I gave this element of my skill base a lot of thought. …read the rest of this entry »

AbsoluteB, in laymen’s terms, is all about me. It’s design was aimed purely at getting the answers out there to the question “who is Barry?”. But “who is Barry” can go two ways. On the one hand, I want to convey myself professionally; my work, my projects, my experimentation in design and development methods and techniques. AbsoluteB is that something that will be the initial proof of my abilities before I even get started; my foot through the door so to speak.

And then of course, there’s the other side of me; the person who’s a complete Volvo and automotive enthusiast (read nutcase), the person who’s addicted to Salsa (the dance not the chip dip), the person who has a strong passion for graphic design, the person who has only John Mayer songs in the top 20 of his iTunes most played playlist. Because lets be honest, these personal topics have as much influence on my work and my professional side as anything else. These are the things that inspire me and move me, at and away from work. This is the person, and these are the topics I want to share and get out there as well when asked “who is Barry”. …read the rest of this entry »