Vivi Blog
June 28th, 2024 By Tilona Moore
For out-of-the-box ideas, look to diverse, non-traditional talent
“How did you handle the setup and transportation logistics for a massive mobile activation like Cadillac ELECTRIQ Theater considering all the technology involved?”
This question, asked by an aspiring producer, was one that surprised and delighted us when we hosted the 2024 New York cohort from D&AD Shift with Google.
For those unfamiliar with the program, D&AD Shift with Google is a free industry-led night school program created in partnership with Google and adidas by non-profit advertising and design association, D&AD. It’s a 12-week workshop designed to help self-taught creatives entering the advertising, design and creative industries from outside traditional education to shift their careers by teaching them the skills and confidence they need to succeed. Shifters learn how to respond to creative briefs from participating brands, improve their presentation skills, and learn about the different marketing mediums within our industry. The program is operated in five global cities including London, Sydney and Berlin, and continues to expand.
Jack Morton has served as the experiential agency partner for D&AD Shift New York for six consecutive years and our hosts continue to be impressed by the level of engagement.
We asked Tristan Howard, Senior Manager, Operations & Talent, for his thoughts on this year’s program.
“It’s always a pleasure to host the D&AD Shift crew!” Tristan gladly shares. “They’re certainly curious, and hungry to learn. Always engaged and eager to participate. It’s a great opportunity for our agency to meet with people who might not necessarily know about Jack or the work we’ve done. To get that exposure is invaluable, and to get people interested and applying for roles and internships is a bonus for us.”
Tilona Moore, Senior Manager, Awards and Content, spearheads our agency’s partnership with D&AD Shift and considers it to be a great way to give back and support diverse, local talent.
“When we introduce Shifters to the power of brand experience, the room fills with such excitement and unabashed curiosity. It’s truly infectious,” Tilona shares. “The cohort is very diverse, and the participation rate is always high. The questions they ask during the brainstorm and Q&A session are always so insightful and demonstrate their out-of-the-box perspective. I love that this year’s cohort included producers and that they were involved with producing the D&AD Shift New York showcase.”
A first time host, Jerusha Williams, Senior Account Executive, Business Development for Vivi, Jack Morton’s culture marketing practice, found the experience and the program to be transformative.
“I was thrilled by how interested they were in my personal experience at Jack and by how actively they listened. Many of them reached out to connect on LinkedIn or wrote messages thanking me for speaking with them. I really enjoyed my experience hosting the D&AD Shift cohort. It’s really important that we welcome people and create opportunities for those who didn’t take the traditional route into the experiential industry. Their skills and knowledge are vital and can help shape the future of our business.”
The ages, backgrounds and creative disciplines of the Shifters vary. From strategy and 3D design, to visual arts, copywriting, illustration, and now production. No matter their skill, the one thing that unites them is their passion for creativity.
Cohort participants are people who go home after their workday and immerse themselves in their art. They are people who design bespoke logos and develop marketing plans for small businesses in their spare time. They are people already in the workforce with transferable skills who are looking to turn their side hustle into their main hustle.
As marketers and business leaders, it’s important that we support that transition. By supporting inclusive education programs like D&AD Shift and recruiting non-traditional talent to our workforce, we can diversify our talent pipeline and welcome new faces, new ideas, and new perspectives into our industry. We can turn highly skilled, undiscovered creative dreamers of today, into the award-winning marketers of tomorrow. 