Custom Research Report · Cover Design · Editorial Art Direction
SIA & Glider
Custom Research Report
A custom B2B research report that paired SIA’s research authority with Glider’s new visual direction, moving beyond a standard report template into a more fully branded, graphics-led publication.
Client · B2B Workforce Technology & Research
Custom Research, Built Around the Glider Brand
Staffing Industry Analysts (SIA), my employer, produced custom research reports for B2B clients that wanted SIA’s independent research reputation and co-branding behind their own market-facing content. Glider selected a higher level of that custom-report offering, so the publication could support the launch of its new visual style rather than rely on the more standard SIA interior format.
Glider supplied the primary report content. SIA verified facts and figures and contributed market context where the report drew from its existing research. That relationship mattered: SIA’s name and logo gave the finished publication the added authority of a recognized independent workforce-research firm while Glider retained a strong visual presence throughout the report.
My contribution was deliberately split between hands-on design and art direction. I fully designed the three cover concepts and three supporting graphics used inside the report. An outside freelance designer handled the interior text layout, icon, table, chart placement, and production. On selected content-heavy pages, I art directed the composition to improve visual flow, pacing, and clarity, but I did not perform the interior production work.
- Client: Glider, through Staffing Industry Analysts (SIA)
- My Role: Cover Design, Supporting Graphic Design, Editorial Art Direction
- Project Goal: Create a highly customized B2B research report that aligned with Glider’s new brand direction while retaining SIA’s credibility and research authority.
- Deliverables: Three cover concepts, three custom interior graphics, and art direction for selected complex interior pages.
Selected Work
Cover Concepts, Brand Graphics & Art-Directed Pages
The report extends Glider’s refreshed brand language through offset imagery, layered iconography, paint-swatch shapes, and dotted flight paths. The visual treatment is playful and contemporary without turning the subject matter casual, giving a serious report about AI and candidate assessment a more approachable technology-focused personality.
Cover Exploration
Three Directions. Two Ultimately Used.
Three cover concepts were presented to Glider. Option 3 was selected for the report’s first release. When the report was issued again the following year and the client wanted a different look, Glider returned to the original concepts and used Option 2. Two of the three initial cover directions therefore became published report covers.
Supporting Graphic Design
Custom Graphics Within the Report
I also designed three interior graphics using Glider’s brand guide. Paint-swatch forms, offset image treatments, rounded visual elements, and dotted flight paths echo the company’s updated visual language while giving the report moments of visual relief between denser research content.
Editorial Art Direction
Selected Interior Pages
The freelance designer produced the interior layouts. The pages below are the spreads I art directed where the content needed additional visual organization. My role was to guide composition and flow so complex information could be read more naturally while staying consistent with the Glider visual direction.
