Nearly six months after taking up his role as ECD of Havas Host Australia, Sebastian Vizor recently sat down with Campaign Brief to talk about the team’s shared passion for impactful work, nurturing young talent, future goals and more.
How did you settle into the agency?
It’s been great. I can’t believe it, but I’ve been here for six months. The culture is one of the best I’ve known. Everyone in the Village works together to achieve the best results.
What brought you to Havas Host?
I’ve always looked for places that do things a little differently and Havas Host offers that. The agency has worldwide support but has maintained its independent spirit.
For me, the best agencies are those where the people running them are truly aligned. When I met Gayle (While) and Olly (Taylor), I was thrilled to discover this shared passion for creating work that people notice.
What was the first item on the agenda?
It’s about ensuring creativity is at the heart of standing out in a sea of sameness, driving growth for our clients and strengthening their brands in the marketplace.
It is equally important to ensure that our employees feel inspired – their satisfaction is reflected in their work.
Havas is one of the world’s largest global communications groups. Is it intimidating to take on the creative leadership role in Australia?
I haven’t thought of it that way before, but the fact that Havas has achieved incredible things creatively – winning Black Pencil of the Decade means there’s a precedent for excellence. But with the support of Gayle, Olly and James giving me the resources I need to succeed, I’m really excited about this opportunity.
You’ve worked everywhere from London to Amsterdam to Sydney. What creative projects have you enjoyed the most?
I really enjoy immersing myself in culture and working with amazing people. For example, that was the experience of working directly with Rihanna and building her Fenty brand from the ground up. She knew exactly what she wanted and appreciated the craft involved, so that experience will always be close to my heart.
I also had the opportunity to help WWF create Our Planet, which I found particularly meaningful as it had the power to go beyond traditional advertising and communicate the message to a captivated audience.
You strongly believe in the power of mentorship. What advice would you give to young creative people?
I believe my team has created a list of “Sebinisms,” but the most important principle I have always lived by is, “The more you put in, the more you will get out.”
As creatives, we rely on many different things to move forward. The creative director has to be excited about it, the rest of the team has to support it, and the client has to have enough trust to put it out into the world.
Since we often don’t have control over our creative abilities in everyday life, you should just keep coming up with ideas that you are proud of implementing. The more you come up with, the more successful you will be.
How do you think the industry as a whole can support young creatives?
Whether they realise it or not, the younger generation is naturally creating super-creative content every day. I think we can help by providing this diverse audience with the opportunity to turn their creativity into a career through mentorship, inspirational sessions and accessible awards geared towards showcasing their thinking.
What do you pay attention to when hiring?
Passion. It’s the one thing you can’t manufacture. It’s an innate instinct that leads to great things and encourages a different way of thinking.
Havas Village is a truly unique offering – creative, digital, content, PR, media and partnerships all under one roof. How does this integrated structure work for your clients?
The Village structure provides a huge opportunity for all clients to make the most of. It is set up in such a way that we can grow their business through different channels, using the different specialties we have in the building.
What are you focusing on in the next 12 months?
Havas puts an emphasis on creativity – they really are a champion of it. For me, it’s about getting everything in order and focusing on implementing great ideas for our clients, helping them stand out and avoiding just adding to the ever-growing creative garbage pile.
