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Grey Worldwide has been 'famously effective since 1917'. Its hottest new campaign is a 'paint' for Volvo - the substance can be sprayed on anything from bikes to dog leads to make them glow on the roads at night. This “creative technology” is Grey's famously effective way of helping Volvo (re)claim its position as the world's safest car.
And a bunch of agency heads are probably thinking, “I want what Grey's having,” right now.
Production company Finch has had Emad Tahtouh since 2011 and he has already won them (and him) a D&AD Black Pencil.
And then there's advertising network DDB, which has had Matt Oxley since 2011. At DDB, a creative technologist is part of the four way that is a DDB creative team.
So you think you want to be a creative technologist? Then you'll probably be interested to know what it takes.
The production company creative technologist: Emad Tahtouh, director, applied technology at Finch:
Ahhhh Creative Technology… It’s such an obscure term. So widely used, and also so sorely misunderstood. I guess one of the best parts about being a “Creative Technologist” is that no one really knows what you do, so you can set your own rules and march to the beat of your own drum… The trade-off to this is that the expectations placed on you are so damn high, that you better deliver.
So what makes a good creative technologist? Versatility would have to be top of the list. The title is obscure for a reason. You’re not an engineer, a programmer, hardware developer, evangelist, creative or project manager - you’re all of those things. The job requirements fluctuate so severely, and are evolving at such a speed that by the time you read this article, it’s probably gone through a few dozen more iterations.
Trying to specialise in any one particular field is pointless. You have to be versatile, malleable, nimble and broad with your skillset. Don’t try to learn everything you can about one particular discipline. You have to learn as much as you can about every discipline. That also applies to specific technologies. If you know absolutely everything there is to know about Drones or VR or iOS development, well done. Is that enough? Hell no. Your skillset will quickly become antiquated and redundant.
My background is rather colourful. I was a network administrator, then a network engineer and project manager. Then I gave it all away for poker.
I was a professional poker player for six years. People would always ask me, “What makes a good poker player”.
I’d say, “In it’s simplest form, poker consists of three fundamental abilities: mathematics, human behaviour and courage. If you’re strong in any one of those three, you’ll probably do OK but if you’re strong in all three, you’re going to do very well. I guess being an effective Creative Tech is pretty much the same.
The advertising agency creative technologist: Matt Oxley, head of creative technology at DDB Group Australia:
What makes a great creative technologist?
Creatives and technologists are generally two distinct personality types. The techies are logical and detail oriented and the creative mind is free and open and not so bound by rules. There are some creatives who are also technologically minded and there are some technologists that are creative but these are the exceptions to the rule. Generally speaking, if you put a tech guy and a creative guy together they wouldn’t necessarily produce great work.
Great technologists are able to see and understand from both sides, firstly the idea and then how to use the technology to bring that idea to life. Technology is nothing without a great idea. There always needs to be a reason for technology to exist. Technology needs a creative vision and dream to bring it to life.
There are instances when the technology comes first – science is littered with thoughts and inventions decades old – and suddenly there’s an idea that can make it relevant or bring it to life. But mostly a creative technologist will straddle the creative idea and the technology and find the balance between what is possible and impossible. It’s about the balance between checking that the idea is feasible and pushing the boundaries. There’s an art to that and more often than not the creative technologist flirts around the edges of the impossible, and makes it happen.
Where the opportunities are
Opportunities are everywhere. I listen into conversations, sit in brainstorms, review work – to influence and support where I can.
Are they hiring them? What agencies want from creative technology and technologists
It completely depends on the agency and the client’s ambitions. I’m in a situation where the UX, creative and the technology experts literally sit side by side, and we service clients that need cutting edge technical and creative solutions. Our industry uses powerful marketing solutions and they’re great, but as a creative technologist we can use the same solutions in an entirely different way – by putting the data, tools and creative thinking together in a way that is bespoke and unique for the specific client problem. And the result is that the client gets a step ahead of the pack by creating something that fits their problem and drives the technical solution. They become leaders not followers.
How do they fit in?
They need to be able to relate well to lots of different people and situations. They need to fit in enough to make things work but not so much as to lose their ability to disrupt.
Literally they fit in between the UX, strategy, creative and the technology teams.
How are they valued?
They’re valued as much as a client and agency values technology and creativity in an agency.
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