Calling All Creative Unicorns

by David Burn

To honor craft is to focus on onething, by definition. You apprentice, applying yourself over and over until becoming competent, then someday your perseverance may help you become good — or even better than good — at one thing.

Honoring craft and working with a singular focus is one way to work. Perhaps it is the old way. Juggling tasks and responsibilities is another way, and this is the framework preferred by many employers.

“Everyone wants a creative unicorn today,” said Brooks Gilley, Managing Director of 52 Ltd.

The mythical unicorn is an interesting word choice here. How realistic is it to expect one person to be designer, copywriter, coder and project manager?

A few years ago, I was having lunch with Kirk Iverson, a Hollywood producer who was working at Wieden + Kennedy at the time. He said he looks for “preditors,” which is a mashup for producer-writer-editor. Iverson said most successful people in entertainment are hustlers who do it all.

With this in mind, client requests for “creative unicorns” are not unrealistic. Many businesses have worked hard to slim down and control costs while boosting income, and that means fewer people doing more tasks. Therefore, there is a great need for master jugglers, those able to tackle projects from a lot of different angles and get things done at a high level.

Yet, where does one acquire this kind of cross training in communications? If you go to Portfolio Center or Miami Ad School, you typically study in a track, like art or copy — not both.

“For better or worse, today’s media requires every creative to learn more than just one skill,” said Dan Goldgeier, a veteran copywriter and Instructor at the School for Visual Concepts in Seattle. “Hence, the rise of hybrid creatives.”

This rule filters down, according to Goldgeier. “Even many senior copywriters and art directors are learning photography, video editing and enough programming to get by. … At the pace of today’s business, clients are looking for quicker solutions and that favors agencies and marketing professionals with a full gamut of skills.”

52 Limited is a digital resource company connecting creative + technology talent with leading brands, marketing and engineering departments, start-ups, design firms, advertising and interactive agencies. If you’re looking for talent or work, visit us at 52ltd.com