Breaking and Entering Advertising Podcast

#538: Inside Canva’s Creative System | Ted Markovic, Global Head of Advertising & Creative Ops at Canva

·30 min·3 clips

Ted Markovic reveals how Canva's in-house team of 150 balances creativity with global agency partnerships.

This episode features an interview with Ted Markovic, the Global Head of Advertising and Creative Operations at Canva. Host Gino Schellenberger introduces the episode as part of the brand-side edition of the podcast, focusing on modern brand operations. Ted describes Canva's brand as intertwined with its product, emphasizing joy and creativity. He details his dual role: overseeing a 150-person in-house creative team and managing agency relationships globally. Ted explains that in-house teams handle complex, brand-immersive projects like events such as Canva Create and Drop Tober, while agencies provide fresh external perspectives for broader creative ideas. He shares strategies for being a good client, including thorough briefing and fostering chemistry with agencies like Quality Meats. Ted recounts his career path, starting in visual effects and moving to advertising, where he built Steelhead, an in-house production facility at Deutsch. He highlights problem-solving as a key skill, citing examples from his work at Walmart, where he streamlined product photography, and Uber, where he managed autonomous vehicle partnerships. The conversation touches on the higher stakes and faster pace of brand-side work compared to agencies. Ted advises listeners to 'make shit' and build reputations through hands-on projects. The episode concludes with Gino summarizing insights on balancing in-house and agency dynamics for advertising professionals.

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