Is creativity really compatible with numbers and operations?

Combining creativity with numbers

Will I get to keep all the props later?I want those raver glasses."Is creativity compatible with numbers and operations?" Absolutely.

Yes, absolutely. What I actually liked the most during my time at Playground was that when everyone could tell things weren't going well, it was quite smart of the founder and CEO to explain things to us each quarter, like "Hey,this is what we've invoiced, this is what's left net." It was like, I come from a creativity,I studied Advertising and Public Relations,but I was like, what's all this they're saying about profit and loss accounts, EBITDA?

And from that curiosity to know where the money was going is basically how I ended up in my current position as director at Código Nuevo.

I mean, in the end it was like, wow, we earn so little.

There were loads of creative teams brainstorming formats, and we could easily have been making campaigns for €40–50,000 a week,each team of writer, editor, multimedia and project manager.

How were the numbers not adding up? You make €18,000, I make €20,000...

I mean, and this was every week, and there were five teams.

So where was all that money going?And from that curiosity to understand how the money was organized,that's why I'm here today.

I remember feeling like I'd won the lottery, because at the very end,when Playground was about to shut down, I got a call from Código Nuevo.

And the general director I have now was like my guardian angel, because I went, "Look, I've never even touched Excel,but I do know how to think up creative, sellable formats for brands." He said: "Okay, we'll work together.

I'll teach you the Excel side, you teach me all this creative side." And from there, here we are.

So for me, it's complete coexistence.I always think that working in a media outlet is a privilege,because there aren't that many media outlets in Spain,I always tell the team, "we're lucky that we are the target audience for the outlet we're creating content for,that's real luck." There are people in agencies creating campaigns for a 60-year-old target audience.

We, sorry, it's not as fun.So, being aware of that privilege, like,let's try to do everything right, make the number add up,so we can stay in this side of the outlet that motivates us most.

I must admit that I often miss my previous job,purely as a creative director. And in the end, it's a job, I must say,stressful, but entertaining and fun. But I must admit I've grown fond of Excel, in terms of being able to assess these formats like, "Hey, do we want to create a new format, maybe go and film here with this person?" Great, let's see if it's possible:What resources and people do we need to make this format happen?

Talking to the project manager, the creative director,to also estimate how many hours we'll need in terms of team or production budget, like,great, this comes to this many hours. It's quite an easy tool,because if I can understand it, I always say it can't be that hard.

So, if this role has a salary of X amount,they're going to spend this many hours, it'll cost us that much,factoring in a margin of error there.

In video, we'll need this many hours; in creativity, that many.

In the social media department, X. And that gives us a price, perfect.

What value are we bringing with this format? Is it profitable or not?

So, finding that profitability within creativity is something I must say I really enjoy.

And I think one key point when optimizing operations is also assessing the creativity of these formats.

I mean, do I really need to have all these resources when creating these pieces?

Maybe not, because with less, I can make it and still get something super creative.

So it's also about evaluating how original the work is,regardless of the resources.

As general director, I'd say my main goal isn't profitability.

In the end, it's about finding that balance where the team feels comfortable,enjoys what they're doing, and, in the end,the numbers have to add up, that's obvious.

But that's not the priority, because if I need to bring in extra hands so a team isn't overwhelmed, fine,let's do it that way, because the environment is super important when you're working.

So obviously, if things aren't profitable, they can't be done.

Especially when the job is so tied to creativity.If your team's frustrated, it doesn't matter if you tell them with numbers that there aren't big profits, they won't care,and I won't want to lead a team that isn't happy.