About

Skills

Experience

Testimonials

About

Skills

Experience

Testimonials

Senior Lead Designer

Senior Design Lead and Brand Designer with 15+ years of experience architecting visual identities for global technology leaders. Extensive career history includes a defining 11-year tenure at Western Digital alongside experience at Fortune 500 firms including Cisco, PayPal and Adobe. Established the final design direction, which was personally selected by the CEO, for the 2025 Western Digital corporate logo and led the brand identity supporting the new mark.

As a dedicated brand steward, partnered with cross-functional teams and individuals within the industry, collaborating with senior executive staff and technical specialists to deliver high-impact branded materials with a clear, strategic purpose. Maintains a deep understanding of the enterprise storage sector which, for the past fifty years, has evolved one of the most technologically advanced pieces of hardware on the planet. As the design lead for Ultrastar, Sandisk Professional and the most recently, the award-winning Rare Earth Elements Material Recapture Program, provides a unique combination of historical industry knowledge and a laser focus on the latest technological innovations.

SKILLS

AREAS OF EXPERTISE

AREAS OF EXPERTISE

PROFICIENCY

PROFICIENCY

EXPERIENCE

Senior Visual Designer

Nov 2014 — Jan 2026

Western DigitalSan Jose, CA

Brand Identity & Strategic Evolution: Established the final design direction for the 2025 Western Digital corporate logo and executed three enterprise-scale rebrands and one new brand launch including Western Digital, HGST, and SanDisk Professional.
Scalable Brand Systems & Governance: Developed and managed robust design systems, modular template libraries, and global packaging systems to ensure brand consistency across print, digital, and retail platforms.
Integrated Digital, Motion & Product Launches: Produced high-impact multimedia for global product launches, including brand animations and scalable video systems used across web, social media, and streaming platforms.
Global Events & Executive Communications: Designed immersive environments and high-stakes presentations for major industry tradeshows (NAB, AWS, FMS) and C-suite events, including Investor Days and International Technology Summits.
Championed data-driven design and GenAI initiatives for social media and Figma-based B2B email templates to drive engagement for Business Accounts and Pro Rewards.
Served as the primary brand steward for the Ultrastar and SanDisk Professional portfolios, collaborating with senior technical staff to translate one of the world’s most advanced hardware categories into purposeful marketing assets.

Sr Visual Designer | UI/UX Developer

Nov 2011 — Aug 2014

Cisco Systems, IncMilpitas, CA

Led front-end UI design and development for the Cisco SMB Marketplace, an international e-commerce pilot program targeting emerging markets. (China, India, Brazil, Mexico, Indonesia, EMEA).
Managed end-to-end implementation, from initial concept to site enhancements and front-end functionality.
Translated business requirements into high-performance functional prototypes.
Developed responsive partner portals and marketing demos to educate and drive platform engagement.
Produced regionalized creatives and provided team mentorship to ensure seamless UI/UX experiences across diverse international markets.

Motion Designer | UI/UX Prototyper

Sep 2011 — Nov 2011

Barnes & Noble NOOKPalo Alto, CA

Created rapid prototypes and UX exploration for next-generation eReader and tablet products, interactive prototypes, OS emulations, and experimental features to inform product direction and usability research.
Developed multimedia games and animations for the device platform.

Motion Designer

Feb 2011 — Jul 2011

Campbell AlianceSouth San Francisco, CA

Produced animated eLearning content and medical illustrations for pharmaceutical and biotech clients, including Gilead and Genetech, translating storyboards into engaging multimedia courses.

Motion Designer | Prototyper

Mar 2010 — Sep 2010

PayPalSan Jose, CA

As a Motion Designer and Prototyper, supported high-priority web and app projects, rapid prototypes, and user interface designs. Projects included PayPal buttons, x.com, Community Help Center, Business Resource Center, China Union Pay, Bill-Me-Later, Mobile Payments, Financial Innovations and Digital Goods.
Achievements include creating a banking demo for Financial Innovations that landed a top five client.

Motion Designer | Presentation Designer

Apr 2008 — Sep 2008

Peterson Media GroupSan Francisco, CA

Crafted engaging software demos and presentations for Adobe, Cisco, and Motorola.
Managed all phases of design and production, including storyboarding, asset creation, and video editing.
Produced a seven minute-long product launch video for Adobe Acrobat 9 Pro in three weeks, including creating a storyboard with over 100 layered Photoshop files.

Motion Designer | Prototyper

Sep 2007 — Dec 2007

PayPalSan Jose, CA

As UI/UX Production Specialist managed UED spec documentation for PayPal’s Next-Gen Checkout, supporting the Corporate Executive Designer and Product Visual Design team.

TESTIMONIALS

Mark was my "go to" guy when I needed some graphics work done quickly and accurately. I was in charge of marketing the largest product line at Western Digital and when I needed something done right and done right now, Mark was the guy I trusted to get it done. Even if he had other deliverables on his plate, he would squeeze in my projects. I greatly appreciated that and it helped make the company a lot of money. In addition, Mark is a nice guy to work with, always had a smile on his face and was an EXCELLENT and very creative graphic artist.
Victor Nemechek
Product Marketing Manager, Western Digital
I worked with Mark for over 10 years, and throughout that time he demonstrated the rare combination of creative excellence, technical mastery, and dependable leadership. As a senior graphic designer, he brings deep fluency in Adobe Creative Suite, Figma, and modern design systems—but it’s his approach to problem-solving and project execution that truly differentiates him. He manages complex initiatives with clarity and professionalism, navigating shifting priorities and tight timelines with a steady hand. He asks smart, strategic questions, ensuring alignment early and preventing downstream issues. His ability to balance creativity with operational discipline makes him an invaluable partner on any team. I recommend Mark without hesitation.
Loreen K. Hackett
Marketing Program Manager, Western Digital
Mark was awesome to work with as we developed graphics for technical topics! He worked any time of day/night to complete the work and deliver high quality, easy to understand content!
Rhownica Birch
Director, Global Operations Sustainability, Product Lifecycle, Western Digital
Mark and I worked together for over 11 years, starting at HGST, throughout the HGST/WD/SanDisk integration, and after the 2025 WD/SanDisk separation. Mark has always had a unique way of applying conceptual design concepts in his work that brought life and vividness to corporate branding while maintaining its professionalism. I’ve also seen his wide range of multimedia skillsets on display for many undertakings that were well-received and distributed to global audiences. Mark is a valuable player in any team that he’s on and I look forward to seeing what new innovative designs he launches in the future.
Phillip Parin
Senior Manager, Global Sales Enablement, Western Digital
Mark is upbeat and always ready to tackle new and challenging design projects. Spanning an extensive range of high-visibility programs across traditional, digital, and interactive, Mark has designed collateral systems, infographics, data visualizations, digital assets for owned and 3rd party sites, websites, in-arena signage and custom Zamboni wraps in support of an NHL sponsorship, and was a lead contributor to a 2025 global rebrand of the corporate identity.
Karol Frietzsche
Director, Marketing and Brand, Western Digital
I worked with Mark on the same team for several years. Mark has solid knowledge in both design and technology. I appreciated his ability to communicate technical concepts clearly and to use design to support effective storytelling.
Linda Zanchi
Strategic Marketing Integration Director, Western Digital
I worked with Mark at Western Digital and often saw his design work supporting a wide range of corporate and marketing initiatives. He’s versatile and interested in all aspects of the creative process including print, packaging, web, and motion design. Most recently, we collaborated on the 2025 Video Brand Guidelines project, where he supported motion design. I appreciate that Mark’s work always reflected a high level of polish, attention to detail, and commitment to the job.
David Zvi Levene
Senior Creative Video Producer, Western Digital
I had the pleasure of working with Mark at Western Digital where we partnered often on internal communication campaigns. I could always rely on Mark to take my idea, run with it, and produce something better than I envisioned. He would be a great asset to any team!
Ashley Fuoss
Internal Comms Manager, Joby Aviation
Mark is an excellent web designer/developer. I had the opportunity to work with Mark on multiple product deliverables at Cisco Systems. He was always enthusiastic about his work and I was impressed with his creativity. Not only did Mark maintain the user interface on multi-language sites in six different regions, but he was able to come up with an entire new user experience for our recently built partner micro-sites. He easily learned how to make these pages mobile friendly using a responsive web design. Additionally, Mark created our Cisco SMB Marketplace global video which included amazing animations and putting together the final product. Mark would be a true asset for any User Experience related position and I highly recommend him.
Nicole Kilaita
Director, DSP Strategy - Supply, Yahoo
Mark was a pleasure to work with. He was a jack of all trades, front end code, design, video work, etc. Mark was able to provide a tremendous amount of insight to the product team and I often sought his guidance on new product ideas. I highly recommend Mark as a designer and believe he would be an asset to any team.
Chris Hohman
Chief Product Officer, Velocity AI
Mark is an exceptionally experienced designer who is well versed in graphics, web, mobile, and multimedia design. He provided great guidance as senior designer for our team, and was always more than willing to share his expertise to help others grow. He is very knowledgeable and an extremely dependable team player, and I would be happy to work with him again.
Miki Nobumori
Senior UX Designer, PayPal
I work with Mark on the Digital Goods project at PayPal. Mark was a great asset to the team and went the extra mile to do what was right for the project and PayPal. Mark had a real passion for understanding the project. In many cases, he could have just (easily) done what was asked (requirements) and called it a day. But instead, he went the extra mile to understand and make it right. I can't count the number of times Mark burned the 'midnight oil', to hit deadlines. Mark has; great passion, skill, and is a team player. I'd be happy to work with him on any future project.
Gregor Moulton
Senior Vice President, User Experience and Design, Genesys

Mark was my "go to" guy when I needed some graphics work done quickly and accurately. I was in charge of marketing the largest product line at Western Digital and when I needed something done right and done right now, Mark was the guy I trusted to get it done. Even if he had other deliverables on his plate, he would squeeze in my projects. I greatly appreciated that and it helped make the company a lot of money. In addition, Mark is a nice guy to work with, always had a smile on his face and was an EXCELLENT and very creative graphic artist.
Victor Nemechek
Product Marketing Manager, Western Digital
I worked with Mark for over 10 years, and throughout that time he demonstrated the rare combination of creative excellence, technical mastery, and dependable leadership. As a senior graphic designer, he brings deep fluency in Adobe Creative Suite, Figma, and modern design systems—but it’s his approach to problem-solving and project execution that truly differentiates him. He manages complex initiatives with clarity and professionalism, navigating shifting priorities and tight timelines with a steady hand. He asks smart, strategic questions, ensuring alignment early and preventing downstream issues. His ability to balance creativity with operational discipline makes him an invaluable partner on any team. I recommend Mark without hesitation.
Loreen K. Hackett
Marketing Program Manager, Western Digital
Mark was awesome to work with as we developed graphics for technical topics! He worked any time of day/night to complete the work and deliver high quality, easy to understand content!
Rhownica Birch
Director, Global Operations Sustainability, Product Lifecycle, Western Digital
Mark and I worked together for over 11 years, starting at HGST, throughout the HGST/WD/SanDisk integration, and after the 2025 WD/SanDisk separation. Mark has always had a unique way of applying conceptual design concepts in his work that brought life and vividness to corporate branding while maintaining its professionalism. I’ve also seen his wide range of multimedia skillsets on display for many undertakings that were well-received and distributed to global audiences. Mark is a valuable player in any team that he’s on and I look forward to seeing what new innovative designs he launches in the future.
Phillip Parin
Senior Manager, Global Sales Enablement, Western Digital
Mark is upbeat and always ready to tackle new and challenging design projects. Spanning an extensive range of high-visibility programs across traditional, digital, and interactive, Mark has designed collateral systems, infographics, data visualizations, digital assets for owned and 3rd party sites, websites, in-arena signage and custom Zamboni wraps in support of an NHL sponsorship, and was a lead contributor to a 2025 global rebrand of the corporate identity.
Karol Frietzsche
Director, Marketing and Brand, Western Digital
I worked with Mark on the same team for several years. Mark has solid knowledge in both design and technology. I appreciated his ability to communicate technical concepts clearly and to use design to support effective storytelling.
Linda Zanchi
Strategic Marketing Integration Director, Western Digital
I worked with Mark at Western Digital and often saw his design work supporting a wide range of corporate and marketing initiatives. He’s versatile and interested in all aspects of the creative process including print, packaging, web, and motion design. Most recently, we collaborated on the 2025 Video Brand Guidelines project, where he supported motion design. I appreciate that Mark’s work always reflected a high level of polish, attention to detail, and commitment to the job.
David Zvi Levene
Senior Creative Video Producer, Western Digital
I had the pleasure of working with Mark at Western Digital where we partnered often on internal communication campaigns. I could always rely on Mark to take my idea, run with it, and produce something better than I envisioned. He would be a great asset to any team!
Ashley Fuoss
Internal Comms Manager, Joby Aviation
Mark is an excellent web designer/developer. I had the opportunity to work with Mark on multiple product deliverables at Cisco Systems. He was always enthusiastic about his work and I was impressed with his creativity. Not only did Mark maintain the user interface on multi-language sites in six different regions, but he was able to come up with an entire new user experience for our recently built partner micro-sites. He easily learned how to make these pages mobile friendly using a responsive web design. Additionally, Mark created our Cisco SMB Marketplace global video which included amazing animations and putting together the final product. Mark would be a true asset for any User Experience related position and I highly recommend him.
Nicole Kilaita
Director, DSP Strategy - Supply, Yahoo
Mark was a pleasure to work with. He was a jack of all trades, front end code, design, video work, etc. Mark was able to provide a tremendous amount of insight to the product team and I often sought his guidance on new product ideas. I highly recommend Mark as a designer and believe he would be an asset to any team.
Chris Hohman
Chief Product Officer, Velocity AI
Mark is an exceptionally experienced designer who is well versed in graphics, web, mobile, and multimedia design. He provided great guidance as senior designer for our team, and was always more than willing to share his expertise to help others grow. He is very knowledgeable and an extremely dependable team player, and I would be happy to work with him again.
Miki Nobumori
Senior UX Designer, PayPal
I work with Mark on the Digital Goods project at PayPal. Mark was a great asset to the team and went the extra mile to do what was right for the project and PayPal. Mark had a real passion for understanding the project. In many cases, he could have just (easily) done what was asked (requirements) and called it a day. But instead, he went the extra mile to understand and make it right. I can't count the number of times Mark burned the 'midnight oil', to hit deadlines. Mark has; great passion, skill, and is a team player. I'd be happy to work with him on any future project.
Gregor Moulton
Senior Vice President, User Experience and Design, Genesys

ABOUT THIS TEMPLATE

Mark was my "go to" guy when I needed some graphics work done quickly and accurately. I was in charge of marketing the largest product line at Western Digital and when I needed something done right and done right now, Mark was the guy I trusted to get it done. Even if he had other deliverables on his plate, he would squeeze in my projects. I greatly appreciated that and it helped make the company a lot of money. In addition, Mark is a nice guy to work with, always had a smile on his face and was an EXCELLENT and very creative graphic artist.
Victor Nemechek
Product Marketing Manager, Western Digital
I worked with Mark for over 10 years, and throughout that time he demonstrated the rare combination of creative excellence, technical mastery, and dependable leadership. As a senior graphic designer, he brings deep fluency in Adobe Creative Suite, Figma, and modern design systems—but it’s his approach to problem-solving and project execution that truly differentiates him. He manages complex initiatives with clarity and professionalism, navigating shifting priorities and tight timelines with a steady hand. He asks smart, strategic questions, ensuring alignment early and preventing downstream issues. His ability to balance creativity with operational discipline makes him an invaluable partner on any team. I recommend Mark without hesitation.
Loreen K. Hackett
Marketing Program Manager, Western Digital
Mark was awesome to work with as we developed graphics for technical topics! He worked any time of day/night to complete the work and deliver high quality, easy to understand content!
Rhownica Birch
Director, Global Operations Sustainability, Product Lifecycle, Western Digital
Mark and I worked together for over 11 years, starting at HGST, throughout the HGST/WD/SanDisk integration, and after the 2025 WD/SanDisk separation. Mark has always had a unique way of applying conceptual design concepts in his work that brought life and vividness to corporate branding while maintaining its professionalism. I’ve also seen his wide range of multimedia skillsets on display for many undertakings that were well-received and distributed to global audiences. Mark is a valuable player in any team that he’s on and I look forward to seeing what new innovative designs he launches in the future.
Phillip Parin
Senior Manager, Global Sales Enablement, Western Digital
Mark is upbeat and always ready to tackle new and challenging design projects. Spanning an extensive range of high-visibility programs across traditional, digital, and interactive, Mark has designed collateral systems, infographics, data visualizations, digital assets for owned and 3rd party sites, websites, in-arena signage and custom Zamboni wraps in support of an NHL sponsorship, and was a lead contributor to a 2025 global rebrand of the corporate identity.
Karol Frietzsche
Director, Marketing and Brand, Western Digital
I worked with Mark on the same team for several years. Mark has solid knowledge in both design and technology. I appreciated his ability to communicate technical concepts clearly and to use design to support effective storytelling.
Linda Zanchi
Strategic Marketing Integration Director, Western Digital
I worked with Mark at Western Digital and often saw his design work supporting a wide range of corporate and marketing initiatives. He’s versatile and interested in all aspects of the creative process including print, packaging, web, and motion design. Most recently, we collaborated on the 2025 Video Brand Guidelines project, where he supported motion design. I appreciate that Mark’s work always reflected a high level of polish, attention to detail, and commitment to the job.
David Zvi Levene
Senior Creative Video Producer, Western Digital
I had the pleasure of working with Mark at Western Digital where we partnered often on internal communication campaigns. I could always rely on Mark to take my idea, run with it, and produce something better than I envisioned. He would be a great asset to any team!
Ashley Fuoss
Internal Comms Manager, Joby Aviation
Mark is an excellent web designer/developer. I had the opportunity to work with Mark on multiple product deliverables at Cisco Systems. He was always enthusiastic about his work and I was impressed with his creativity. Not only did Mark maintain the user interface on multi-language sites in six different regions, but he was able to come up with an entire new user experience for our recently built partner micro-sites. He easily learned how to make these pages mobile friendly using a responsive web design. Additionally, Mark created our Cisco SMB Marketplace global video which included amazing animations and putting together the final product. Mark would be a true asset for any User Experience related position and I highly recommend him.
Nicole Kilaita
Director, DSP Strategy - Supply, Yahoo
Mark was a pleasure to work with. He was a jack of all trades, front end code, design, video work, etc. Mark was able to provide a tremendous amount of insight to the product team and I often sought his guidance on new product ideas. I highly recommend Mark as a designer and believe he would be an asset to any team.
Chris Hohman
Chief Product Officer, Velocity AI
Mark is an exceptionally experienced designer who is well versed in graphics, web, mobile, and multimedia design. He provided great guidance as senior designer for our team, and was always more than willing to share his expertise to help others grow. He is very knowledgeable and an extremely dependable team player, and I would be happy to work with him again.
Miki Nobumori
Senior UX Designer, PayPal
I work with Mark on the Digital Goods project at PayPal. Mark was a great asset to the team and went the extra mile to do what was right for the project and PayPal. Mark had a real passion for understanding the project. In many cases, he could have just (easily) done what was asked (requirements) and called it a day. But instead, he went the extra mile to understand and make it right. I can't count the number of times Mark burned the 'midnight oil', to hit deadlines. Mark has; great passion, skill, and is a team player. I'd be happy to work with him on any future project.
Gregor Moulton
Senior Vice President, User Experience and Design, Genesys

Mark Johnston

Mark Johnston

Mark Johnston

Senior Lead Designer

SKILLS

AREAS OF EXPERTISE

AREAS OF EXPERTISE

PROFICIENCY

PROFICIENCY

EXPERIENCE

Senior Visual Designer

Sr Visual Designer | UI/UX Developer

Motion Designer | UI/UX Prototyper

Motion Designer

Motion Designer | Prototyper

Motion Designer | Presentation Designer

Motion Designer | Prototyper

TESTIMONIALS

ABOUT THIS TEMPLATE