How I manage large design files in monday.com as a creative agency
Key takeaways
- Where should a creative agency store design source files?
- Layered source — PSD, AI, INDD, Figma exports — belongs in dedicated creative storage or a DAM. monday.com holds a compressed visual of each deliverable and a link to the master.
- What goes on the monday.com board then?
- One compressed export per deliverable: a medium-compressed JPEG or a structurally optimized PDF that a client or creative director can review and comment on.
- How is compression handled?
- A File Compress automation on the deliverables column compresses images and PDFs as they are uploaded, so the board never accumulates full-resolution exports.
- Does this slow the creative team down?
- No. They export as they always do. The automation shrinks the board copy; the master they hand off for production is untouched in storage.
Creative agencies produce the heaviest files of any monday.com user I have seen: 300MB layered PSDs, 40-page brand books, 4K animation frames. monday.com is not built to be an asset store for those, and treating it like one makes every board crawl. Here is the split that works.
Source of truth vs. tracking surface
The core decision: monday.com tracks the work; it does not store the masters.
| File | Home | On the board |
|---|---|---|
| Layered source (PSD, AI, INDD) | Creative storage / DAM | Link only |
| Print-resolution export | Creative storage / DAM | Link only |
| Review copy | — | Compressed JPEG / optimized PDF |
| Final deliverable bundle | — | One ZIP at handoff |
The board holds the smallest thing that still lets a director or client review and approve.
Why a link beats an upload for source files
A 300MB PSD on an item does nothing useful in monday.com — it will not preview, it makes the board heavy, and it is a worse copy than the one in your versioned storage. A link takes the reviewer straight to the real file when they actually need it.
Compression on the board
For the review copies that do live on the board, a File Compress automation keeps them small:
When a file column changes on Deliverables, compress images and PDFs from Deliverables, save in place, medium.
Loop prevention makes replace-in-place safe. PDF optimization is lossless, so multi-page decks and brand books shrink without any visual change.
Handoff
At delivery: link to the production master in storage, and run the Zip Files action to give the client one archive of the approved review deliverables for their records. See how I manage client deliverables in monday.com as a web design agency for the full handoff flow.
The short version
Keep design masters in creative storage, put compressed review copies and a link on the monday.com board, automate compression on the deliverables column, and clean legacy boards with a one-time high-level batch run plus per-project zips. See the setup guide.
Frequently asked questions
- Can monday.com preview a PSD or AI file?
- Not usefully. That is another reason to keep source files out of the board and upload a flattened JPEG or PDF preview that monday.com can actually display.
- What compression level for creative review copies?
- Medium is right for most review. Use low when a client is reviewing color-critical or print work and needs to see fine detail.
- How do we deliver the final production files?
- Link to the master in storage, and use the Zip Files action to bundle the board's approved deliverables into one archive for the client's records.
- Is PDF compression safe for a design deliverable?
- Yes. File Compress optimizes PDF structure and strips metadata without downsampling images or changing layout, so the pages are identical.
- How do we clear years of old project files?
- Add a status-triggered File Compress recipe at the high level to each archived board, fire it across the items with a batch status change, then zip each completed project into a single archive.
Zack
File Compress Developer at ColumnMate. Writes about file management, storage, and automation inside monday.com.
Related reading
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