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Ever since I started working in the design business, I knew learning is a never-ending endeavor. In order to stay current, one must continue studying and be totally proficient in all cultural and business trends and developments.
So it became a second nature for me to study and teach simultaneously.
As a young design director & creative director at Ogilvy & Mather South Africa, I was called to present and train my fellow colleagues. At the time, O&M was running one of the best training programs in the advertising business, called: ”The Magic Lantern”. Each director in the company had to train the rest of the staff in his own area of expertise, and no one was spared. We all came to brown bag breakfasts early on Thursday mornings, and either trained others, or were trained by our peers. Before I knew it, I started to like teaching and training, and found that I am doing reasonably well in that category. And so, with the rapidly approaching age of…well, over 40, I have decided that a separate line of business for me, could be sharing my wealth of experience from years of practice and learning. |
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In 1999, I have approached the University of Chicago, and Ogilvy & Mather at the same time, and offered them to create together the “best damn ad school in the country”. And realistically, what could be better than combining these two authoritative and authentic brands together…
Ogilvy took their time thinking about it (and eventually started their own training program in NYC), but the U. of C. did encourage me to begin the process of formulating marketing and advertising classes for professionals at the Graham School for General Studies. Those continuing education adult learning classes are targeted at practitioners who are already working, and are improving their overall education in specific areas of interest and need.
I invited an advisory board that included some of the most prominent executives in both ad agencies and corporate HQ in the Chicago area. We have formulated 6 courses based on the simple model of teaching advertising and marketing with a team of two teachers: one from an ad agency, and the other from the “client” side.
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