Associate Partner & Design Director

Nick Adam

Nick Adam designs brand identity systems that perform under pressure—driving clarity, trust, and measurable growth across civic, cultural, and visionary organizations. As a design director and associate partner at Span, he leads the strategy and design of scalable systems that turn values into action and design into public impact.

He has led the creation of identities that define how institutions show up and shift culture. Divvy, the global benchmark in bikeshare identity, moves tens of millions annually and helped set a new standard for civic design. Help Stop Hate positioned Illinois as a national leader in addressing hate, turning design into care and accountability. Copi reframed an environmental crisis through a bold renaming and brand to shift public perception.

His cultural and institutional work demonstrates equal impact. First Lady cruises was rebranded as Chicago’s flagship boat, earning Tripadvisor's Best of the Best and the title of #1 Boat Tour in North America from USA Today. The Nature Museum rebrand was a leap forward, aligning a legacy institution with its evolving role as a pioneer in conservation and community-driven science. His identity systems for enterprises within UIC and the University of Chicago strengthened institutional trust, visibility, and long-term investment.

Nick's approach rejects surface-level design in favor of what he calls “identity as infrastructure”—systems that scale, align mission with momentum, and build lasting public trust. Neighborhood heroes transformed into regional icons, The Silver Room, Hot Chi, and Slow & Low, demonstrate his belief that design rooted in belonging drives real cultural and business impact.

His work has been recognized by Fast Company’s Innovation by Design, the Type Directors Club, AIGA 365, the Society of Typographic Arts, and he’s been included in Newcity Magazine’s Design 50. His work and ideas have been featured internationally in Creative Boom, The Economist, Brand New, NPR, Design Week, and Wired.

Nick holds an MFA from RISD, where he has also taught. He previously led brand systems and strategy at Firebelly for social impact leaders and was an associate principal at Thirst. His work is preserved in the permanent collections of the AIGA Design Archives, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Milton Glaser Design Study Center, and the Newberry Library.

He works with visionary organizations to create brand identity systems that scale, perform, and lead transformation.