What makes a great Creative Director?
Scott Lambert, Creative Director, Superunion Singapore
About Scott
Scott Lambert is the father of a cluster of awards, a typography book, and three patient daughters. He has worked for twenty years in the creative industries in the UK, Middle East and across Asia. He judges awards and contributes to design education.
Questions
Tell us your own path from Designer to Creative Director.
I was first made Creative Director when I was just 30, with only a few years of experience behind me. At an agency called Edge in Vietnam. I loved it. I felt invincible because I was empowered. I enjoyed leading the team, we did heaps of work with Diageo, I met all kinds of interesting people, and experienced fantastic examples of leadership, including someone who really cared about the work in a way I did. Something that up to that point I had not experienced. We still talk now.
I studied illustration at university, my first job was in London in digital design, and I had dabbled in all sorts of creative fields by the time I was CD at Edge. Whilst there what I really found most exciting was the branding projects I had been part of. It wasn’t a tough decision to give up the title of CD and take a Senior Designer position at a specialist branding agency. That didn’t go well and damaged my confidence. From there I drifted through several agencies not quite fitting in anywhere and inevitably freelanced for a while. Not an easy time, but I learned about the business side of design, and did some work I’m still proud of.
Fast Forward eight years and I eventually found a home at The Partners. When we became Superunion it was obvious to me how I could influence the work and shape the direction of the business as Creative Director. By that point, I was eighteen years into my career and had earned each vowel and consonant of the title twice over.
What was the hardest part of the transition from Designer to Creative Director?
Letting go of doing the work myself was tricky. Trusting other people is something that didn’t come naturally to me, but I got used to it, and now find it rewarding. As a CD I help people make the best of their ideas. It’s a careful balance between guiding them and letting them find their own way. Every project is different. Every designer is different. I don’t always get it right and that’s ok.
What specific qualities are essential to become a great Creative Director
I’d suggest 4 things.
i. Passion for the work.
It’s not a job, you have to authentically care about the work — the heart and soul shine through when you do. Great ideas are powerful. They silence the room. They win awards. They win business.
ii. Courage in adversity.
The people you lead expect you to step up in the right moments. Some of the leaders I admire are quick to recognise these adversities and deal with them skilfully. This has nothing to do with being bullish. For example, it may be an insecure client needing reassurance, taking ownership of mistakes, dealing with waning internal ambition, or even helping other leadership around you.
iii. Using the platform.
As a leader, you have a platform. Some use it to talk. Some of the worst use it to talk down from. The best know when to talk, but are more interested in using the platform to champion others.
iiii. The right energy.
Great leaders have great energy — this doesn’t mean putting a positive spin on everything or acting craaaaaazy all the time. It’s about honesty and humility, a relaxed sense of freedom that empowers, enthusiasm and optimism that is clearly genuine. As an introvert, I’m a work-in-progress with this one.
Tell us about some of the pros and cons of being a Creative Director.
Pros: All of my most rewarding experiences have been helping others succeed. Watching them create things they never even thought was possible. Helping them see the value in a nugget of an idea that can grow into something wonderful, beyond even what I could foresee.
Cons: I do attempt to disguise how intolerable aspects of the job are but I’m not sure I always succeed. Rationally, I know many of these things are just a by-product of a group of people working together, or of the industry in general. I focus on the things I can control and breathe deeply.
In your view what are the primary responsibilities of the Creative Director in an agency setting?
Short answer: Creative Excellence.
Long Answer: Comes in three parts as there are so many variables that influence whether creative excellence is attainable.
First, the brief has to be right, this means you have to sit through a lot of meetings, provoke and poke strategists, and sit with client services teams to wrangle through the scope, timelines, and budgets. Picking the right battles is important too, not every project will be outstanding.
Secondly, the people that are doing the work have to be happily uncomfortable. The work is not elevated through people staying in their comfort zones. But having a team that are constantly told to improve things or are overworked is also unsustainable. The key is getting the right balance.
Third, creative culture. (see later question: What tips do you have for building and nurturing a healthy and vibrant creative culture within an agency?)
Describe your management style.
Collaborative, helpful, approachable, honest, with below-average dad jokes. It doesn’t need to be any more complicated than that. I try to give designers space but let them know I’m never far away if they need help. Obviously depending on their skills and experience, how I help and how often varies. I can be really obsessive about getting the work right, which is difficult for others at times, but I see it as a strength.
How long did it take you to feel completely comfortable in your role?
I felt comfortable straight away but I did lose my way. In the beginning, I listened too much to other people and didn’t trust my instincts, as soon as I started caring less what others thought and just got on with what I was good at, I was comfortable. I hope I never get completely comfy in the role — the right discomfort means you’re pushing boundaries.
Did you ever suffer from what’s known as ‘imposter syndrome’? If so, how did you deal with this?
About eight years ago I landed some freelance at one of my favourite agencies, The Partners, who had recently opened in Singapore. The originality, ambition, and craft that was expected of the Design Directors is something difficult to articulate.
The output of a DD was higher than many ECDs I had met could achieve. But no one there was interested in leaving for a better job title, they understood they were part of something special.
Freelancing at The Partners was a baptism of fire. I was an imposter, it wasn’t the infamous syndrome, I genuinely was. There were numerous humbling lessons. I hung on, shut my mouth, listened, learned, and worked harder than ever. I eventually joined The Partners full time and with good leaders around, my confidence grew.
What has been your biggest learning experience as a Creative Director?
Mistakes are where we learn. I’ve unintentionally damaged relationships. I hope I’ve grown from that. I’ve also learned to be careful who I trust.
Is it important to set and adhere to a creative vision for the agency? If so, why?
Absolutely. For Superunion this is set globally, and then each studio has its own interpretation of it and its own way of bringing it to life depending on the local context. Not everyone gets it of course, but we’re approaching four years old and when I look at what has been achieved in that time — I’m proud to be part of it.
Should a Creative Director be hands-on or hands-off?
A CD should be hands-off. In practice, it’s not always possible. At 11pm rolling up sleeves and being hands-on is the most helpful thing I can do for the team.
What tips do you have for building and nurturing a healthy and vibrant creative culture within an agency?
Fundamentally the majority of the time is spent working together, a studio’s culture is the culmination of how people behave. Looking out for each other, being respectful, being creatively ambitious, expressing gratitude, going the extra mile after the extra mile, or laughing at ourselves. Behaviours like these truly unite us and are more impressive in practice than they are calligraphed on a wall.
The annual parties, the fancy coffee machine, well-stocked wine fridge, the crazy hats and impressive cookie jar are important ingredients, but the behaviours that create the culture are where the power is. I’ve seen first-hand if you have a strong culture then processes are less important. Knowing what unites them allows people to be agile, they will intuitively flex together to solve a problem.
What tips do you have to continuously inspire creative teams?
If you’ve got good people who are motivated, ambitious, and confident they’ll inspire each other. I hope I inspire by example: Being passionate and brave with the work. I do it with a smile too as there is already enough pressure. I try to be open about being fallible — if we want revolutionary creativity, people need that freedom to make mistakes.
How do you maintain your own creativity to ensure you remain on top of your game?
Curiosity. If you’re in brand design, the last thing you should be getting inspired by is brand design. Be curious about other things: fashion, theatre, architecture, poetry, comedy, urban planning, street photography, films, wildlife, arts, sports, science, travel. I even do some of those cheesy Linkedin learning courses occasionally. Absorbing the world beyond our industry is critical for originality — and design studios should have a commitment to make sure this is happening.
How do you create a balance between giving your team creative space while maintaining overall responsibility for the creative output?
Set them up for success. First, make sure the objectives are clear. And then be there for them to discuss. I’m always flattered when people come to me with a problem, designers or otherwise, it shows their strength as a person to admit they need help, and also the strength of our culture. I genuinely enjoy sitting down and solving problems with others. Besides, most people already know the answer, they just wish they didn’t.
In your opinion what is the best way to give feedback on creative work?
The ability to improve work, without affecting the confidence of the people making it is essential. It really isn’t an easy thing to get right, everyone is different. I have to trust my instincts when I’m giving feedback but I’m clear that it is never personal — it’s about the work. I’ve been told that makes me come across as cold at times, so while I’m doing my best to sound more mortal in how I communicate, it won’t be at the expense of the standard of the work. I’m often reminded that my job is not to be popular, if I’m popular with everyone then I’m not doing my job. You have to embrace the grit in your shoe from time to time.
How do you defend creative ideas to stop bad things happening to the work?
If I ever find myself defending a creative idea there is a much bigger problem with our culture. There are rarely any surprises as we work closely together internally and with our clients. I feel we do need to be more creatively ambitious — so I’m looking forward to testing this theory.
What has been your biggest success as a Creative Director and why?
Some of the talented people I have found and worked with has been really rewarding. Our collective resilience through working from home was impressive.
We’ve got a pretty awesome pitching record. Some of the long term client relationships we have are unreal. Could do with a few more awards though.
What was the best piece of advice ever given to you as a Creative Director?
“You don’t need to convince them, you’re the expert, they only want to be convinced that you’re convinced” This was regarding presenting an idea to a board of directors.
“Come first or last” This one was advice for a pitch we were working on. Empowering us to do what we thought was right rather than play it safe. We won.
And finally, what advice would you give to anyone who has recently been promoted to the role of Creative Director?
Some eternal wisdom here, literally. “You gotta be greater than the haters.” — Count Dracula, Hotel Transylvania 3
About the author
Graham Sturt is Creative Director / Partner at strategic creative agency, D8.
Originally from England, he lived and worked in London for more than a decade before relocating to Amsterdam to follow his passion for Dutch design.
