Last week, I was privileged to welcome 72andSunny founder and creative co-chair Glenn Cole to Sydney as our Creative Leadership Forum special guest and chair of the AWARD Awards jury.
It is exciting to have 72andSunny aboard, not just as a member of The Communications Council, but as Australia’s newest agency. We need great agencies. We need great work. And we need to be challenged to higher standards. The Comms Council looks forward to working with 72andSunny as it builds and grows a profitable agency in Australia.
We are all united in the belief that commercial creativity can drive business growth and generate social dividends.
Our ambition at The Comms Council is to make commercial creativity one of the most valued professional services in Australia by 2025.
No matter how good we think we are, we have a long way to go before our industry achieves the standing we need and deserve in the broader business community.
We have four pillars that underpin our work:
- Developing careers
- Championing creativity
- Demonstrating value
- Leading the industry on key issues
Next steps on 457 visas
It seems ironic that while we welcome 72andSunny to Australia our international competitiveness is under threat due to the abolishment of the 457 visa. While it may well have been overdue for an overhaul, the consequences for our industry are alarming.
Under the new Temporary Skills Shortage visa, some of our key occupations have been removed from the list completely, such as:
* Art director
* Multimedia designer
* PR manager
While the majority of ANZSCO occupations we use to import talent have been placed on the Short-term Skilled Occupation List, most notably:
* Advertising specialist
* Marketing specialist
* Copywriter
The consequence of the short-term list is that while it allows agencies to bring in talent for two years with the potential for a two year extension, there is no option for permanent residency.
We have a thriving, internationally competitive industry – regularly punching above our weight on any global ranking. Our home grown talent is the envy of the world. We have Australians performing the most senior roles, in the best agencies and networks on every continent.
But we also have skill shortages that need to be filled. Our ability to attract international talent is largely due to the attractiveness of a healthy lifestyle and wonderful environment to raise a family.
Yet we should be under no illusion as to the implications of these visa changes.
The Comms Council is taking up the challenge on behalf of the industry. As a first step we have lodged a submission to the Government in which we have made them fully aware of the impact and threat to our international competitiveness that the new Temporary Skills Shortages visa represents. We will keep you updated on our progress.
But this will not deter us from fulfilling another of our key pillars:
Developing talent
We have a long and successful history in attracting talent through the Graduate Program and AWARD School.
But we are not as good at investing in their careers and future. We tend to dump them into the industry and see if they sink or swim. There are no recognised pathways, no recognised credentials, no recognised certifications or standards people should attain before moving to the next level.
It is no wonder that our perceived professionalism suffers. There is mystery as to why we rank alongside car dealers and politicians. It is not a coincidence that the top 20 industries by professional reputation all have Continuing Professional Development (CPD) programs.
With the 457 visa developments it is more important than ever that we grow and develop our own talent.
About a year ago, The Comms Council announced our intention to develop an industry-wide CPD program. It is an ambitious project but I am pleased to confirm that we are making good progress.
We have terrific assets to work with – AWARD School, AdSchool plus the locally adapted IPA courses and certificates. On any measure, we grew 30 to 40% in 2016 with a similar trajectory this year.
The need to build proper pathways is so obvious to anyone who attends, lectures or tutors the budding talent. Their enthusiasm to learn is infectious.
We have already sold out courses in July and August. Our grassroots events have never attracted more interest. The Account Management group recently presented ‘The Work Behind the Work’ where nearly 160 people crammed in to hear the teams at Clemenger BBDO, TBWA and BWM Dentsu revealed secrets behind how they managed to get ‘Meet Graham’, ‘Pocket Money’ and ‘Chadstone Tailor Made Store’ from brilliant ideas to actually appearing in market.
And more specifically, AWARD School 2017 might just be another vintage year as students vie for the honour of flying to New York to share their portfolio with David Droga who famously won AWARD School 30 years ago – and still has his winning portfolio to share with this year’s top student.
Warren Brown chaired a hugely successful pilot Emerging Creative Directors course last year, and we have already seen some of these creatives take that crucial step towards leadership. I am pleased to confirm that we are running two this year – one in Sydney and one in Melbourne. More details will be announced over the next few weeks, as will plans to re-introduce AWARD Craft courses.
Championing creativity
Creativity and effectiveness of course go hand in hand, and one of our most successful programs in ‘Demonstrating Value’ is our work around proving the effectiveness of marketing campaigns. In August we will again build lots of activity around the Effie Awards. For Peter Field fans, you will be pleased to learn that we are bringing him out to Australia again this year. Other exciting developments will be announced in due course.
And finally to our fourth pillar – Championing Creativity. The AWARD Awards, which took place last Friday, play a very important role. As Glenn Cole himself said recently, it is not just about recognising smarts and creative ingenuity, it is also important to give the winners and the agency the ‘swagger’ you need to be innovative. We congratulate all of this year’s winners and look forward to seeing more of the exciting, challenging work that makes our industry such an exciting one to be part of.