So what's with the "life preserver"?

If you haven't figured it out, my initials are SOS. My name? Sean O'Hara Sears.
So by devine design (with a little help from my parents and irish heritage), the initials SOS emerge along with the theme of "help and rescue" — which are too obvious to ignore.
So there you go. I help by design.

My History

I was first introduced to "graphic arts" in college when a designer-friend of mine convinced me to work as a graphic artist designing billboards. I was always drawing and sketching, and my major in college was Advertising/Marketing, so my friend suggested that I work with them. Not great money, but the atmosphere was fun. Now keep in mind, that was "pre-desktop publishing". Yep, traditional pen and exacto blade in hand - as well as creatively using type reels and a photocopier. The real challenge was understanding the clients needs and coming up with a concept that communicated their message - and doing all that in a limited space, with limited attention span by the audience. Think about it, someone is driving their car at 50 mph through town, weaving in and out of traffic - and if you do your job right, your concept catches their attention and you get 1.5 seconds to communicate your message. No small type. No click for more info. No below the fold. Like I said, challenging. But I learned a lot about communicating a message. Hence, my short, choppy sentences.

After graduation, I became the Creative Director for Crystal Communications (1991-1996), a small communications/design fim. I managed all the clients, creatives, and artists. That was a great job and served as my leap into desktop publishing - Photoshop v.1, corelDraw, Freehand, Quark, Illustrator - and I loved it. We did brochures, signs, posters, identity packages, forms, newsletters, and more. We were busy and the clients were good. One of our big clients was Columbia Health Care of Central Kentucky - and after a few years they finally wooed me away to work for them.

At Columbia Health Care of Central Kentucky (1996-1999) I managed all print, collateral, identity and web design for 6 Central Kentucky hospitals and all related product lines. I also consulted in marketing/campaign strategies and advertising media buys. That was a great opportunity, and I loved the challenge. I also maintained many clients on the side, getting more and more into online development.

Then in 1999, a friend of mine in Greenville, SC convinced me to move and start 10Best.com.
As Co-founder and Vice President of Product Development for 10Best, Inc. (1999-2009), I oversaw all product development for the company including design, development and maintenance of the 10Best product across a variety of platforms (desktop, PDA's and Web-enabled phones). I helped build 10Best from the ground up, cultivating it from concept to reality and served as the main UI Guy and Web/Graphic designer for all aspects of 10Best – including 10Best.com and all design and development for our Solutions clients. As is typical with small, fast-moving companies, responsibilities were numerous and ever-changing.

I was also integral in the concept, strategy, design, and development of 10Best’s ecommerce startup, Unaira, which aggregates and delivers transactional products and services. The new product was developed for Amadeus NA and then was successfully launched with Amadeus Global, while working closely with offices in France, Germany, UK, and US.

As 10Best.com has shifted focus, I am now (as of July 2009) self-employed and dedicated to working on a variety of projects. So if you're intrested in working with me (or in me becoming a part of or extension of your team), then please contact me and let's discuss how I can help.

*And if you'd like any references, they're available upon request.