CORE CREATIVE & TECHNICAL EXPERTISE
1/ Creative Direction & Brand Stewardship
2/ Hands-On Design & Production
3/ Digital & Multimedia
4/ Creative Operations & Leadership
EDUCATION & ADDITIONAL QUALIFICATIONS
1/ Bachelor of Arts (BA), Political Science & International Relations — University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. All-American Swimmer; Four-Year Full-Ride NCAA Student-Athlete.
2/ Languages: Native English; Conversational / Business Japanese.
.CREATIVE DIRECTOR POSITION
/Cover Letter & Executive Summary
September 27, 2026
Dear Hawaiʻi Community Foundation Selection Committee,
I am pleased to submit my application for the Creative Director position at the Hawaiʻi Community Foundation.
For more than three decades, my work has combined creative direction, brand strategy, and hands-on design across Hawaiʻi and international organizations. I have led visual identity systems, institutional communications, publications, digital experiences, photography, multimedia production, and complex creative projects from concept through final delivery. Just as importantly, I have remained a practicing designer throughout my career.
My recent work with Koʻolauloa Health Center has been especially meaningful to me. It has included brand development and stewardship, community and public-health communications, digital experience, institutional publications, and creative development supporting a multi-million dollar capital campaign. That experience has reinforced my belief that thoughtful design can do more than communicate effectively—it can help institutions build trust, make complex ideas accessible, and strengthen their relationships with the communities they serve.
HCF’s description of the Creative Director as both a senior creative leader and a hands-on member of a lean communications team strongly resonates with how I have worked throughout my career. I would welcome the opportunity to bring that combination of strategic perspective, practical creative execution, and commitment to Hawaiʻi to the Foundation.
Thank you for your consideration. I would be honored to discuss how my experience could contribute to HCF’s mission and communications team.
Sincerely,
Eric Rhodes
PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY
Creative Director and multidisciplinary brand strategist with more than 30 years of experience leading visual identity, creative strategy, and hands-on design across Hawaiʻi, nonprofit, healthcare, financial, and international organizations. Combines executive-level creative direction with direct production expertise across print, digital, web, photography, video, and multimedia. Experienced in brand governance, creative project management, team and vendor leadership, accessibility, institutional publications, donor and campaign communications, and culturally grounded community storytelling from concept through final delivery.
CORE CREATIVE & TECHNICAL EXPERTISE
Creative Direction & Brand Stewardship: Visual identity systems; brand governance; creative briefs; design standards; templates; quality assurance; audience-centered storytelling; inclusive design and accessibility (ADA/WCAG).
Hands-On Design & Production: Adobe Creative Cloud (InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop, Lightroom, Premiere Pro, After Effects); typography; publication design; print production; prepress proofing; color management; press-ready files; commercial offset vendor coordination.
Digital & Multimedia: CMS; SharePoint Online; website redesign and content governance; digital asset management (DAM); HTML/CSS reference code; photography; video editing; motion graphics; audio capture; image optimization.
Creative Operations & Leadership: Project management; workflow and capacity planning; multidisciplinary collaboration; staff, contractor, agency, printer, and vendor coordination; budget-aware production; stakeholder presentations; end-to-end delivery.
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
KOʻOLAULOA HEALTH CENTER | Kahuku & Hauʻula, Hawaiʻi
Brand Strategy & Communications (Consultant) | 2020 – Present
Lead strategic visual identity, communications governance, and digital experience work for a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) serving rural communities across Oʻahu’s North and Windward shores.
Philanthropic & Capital Campaign Creative: Conceptualized, wrote, and personally designed executive presentations and donor collateral supporting the upcoming multimillion dollar Haleʻaha clinic capital campaign, translating complex healthcare needs and financing into clear philanthropic narratives.
Community & Stakeholder Storytelling: Developed culturally responsive and multilingual outreach materials supporting community engagement, patient relationships, and institutional trust across diverse Hawaiʻi populations.
Institutional Publications: Authored and produced high-visibility publications, including the multi-year Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA), supporting federal compliance, grant funding, and stakeholder communications.
Digital Experience & Accessibility: Rebuilt, maintained, and governed patient-facing digital touchpoints, including koolauloachc.org, with emphasis on accessibility, multilingual engagement, service discoverability, and content governance.
Crisis & Public Health Communications: Directed multi-channel visual and written communications during public health emergencies, balancing speed, clarity, cultural sensitivity, and community trust.
METERA BRANDING | North Kohala, Hawaiʻi & International
Principal & Creative Director | 2008 – Present
Lead an independent strategic branding and creative practice developing visual identity systems, institutional communications, investor materials, and multi-channel campaigns for nonprofit, enterprise, and financial organizations. Manage complex engagements from strategy and concept development through hands-on design, production, external partner coordination, and final delivery.
Institutional Brand Systems: Create visual identity systems, brand playbooks, presentation frameworks, digital experiences, and production assets designed for consistent use across organizations and channels.
Capital & Investor Communications: Developed brand systems, pitch decks, investor presentations, and multimedia assets supporting transactions totaling more than $1.5B across NASDAQ, NYSE Euronext, and the Tokyo Stock Exchange.
Place-Based & Nonprofit Identity: Develop culturally grounded brand systems and narrative frameworks for Hawaiʻi organizations, nonprofits, and community-centered initiatives.
Hands-On Creative Execution: Personally execute identity assets, vector marks, typography systems, publication and presentation design, digital experiences, and production files while coordinating specialist contractors and vendors as needed.
ERICK RHODES PHOTOGRAPHY | North Kohala, Hawaiʻi & International
Commercial & Editorial Photographer | 2002 – Present
Direct and execute commercial, editorial, and documentary photography across Hawaiʻi, the Pacific Rim, North America, and Europe.
Directed on-location productions with budgets exceeding $2.2M for global lifestyle and hospitality clients including Four Seasons, Harry Winston, Hilton Resorts, Marriott International, Modern Luxury Media, and The New York Times.
Operate professional camera systems, location lighting, and production equipment; manage image capture, digital color grading, retouching, and print prepress workflows from shoot through final delivery.
XFMEDIA | Hong Kong SAR, Shanghai & Beijing, China
Managing Director – Strategic Branding | 2005 – 2008
Built and led in-house creative and communications functions for a major financial and entertainment media group, directing corporate brand architecture, executive communications, and cross-market creative execution.
Directed visual brand architecture and SOX-compliant investor collateral supporting a $371M IPO on NASDAQ.
Unified 20 acquired regional subsidiaries into a single corporate brand architecture and visual design system, coordinating standards across markets and business units.
Directed and produced the award-winning broadcast opening sequence for China Central Television (CCTV) for the Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics and Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics.
XINHUA FINANCE | Hong Kong SAR
Senior Vice President – Corporate Communications & Brand Strategy | 2000 – 2002
Directed global brand strategy, executive media relations, and corporate communications across indices, ratings, and financial news divisions spanning approximately 1,500 employees in 28 global offices.
Shaped corporate visual and narrative positioning supporting Xinhua Finance’s $30M IPO on the Tokyo Stock Exchange's Mothers market (now the TSE Growth Market).
Coordinated international press conferences and institutional launch events, including a joint FTSE–NYSE bell-ringing ceremony on the New York Stock Exchange.
ADDITIONAL WORK SAMPLES
/Creative Direction & Content Creation
CHINA Central Television (CCTV) is a long time client. Here are just a few examples of the motion graphics and station packaging programs the talented design and production team has created for the CCTV 3, CCTV 4, CCTV 9, and CCTV 11 channels over the years.