5 Minutes with... Matthias Piskernik
Nearly two decades after Matthias Piskernik first stepped into the Serviceplan Vienna building, he takes on his new role as creative managing director, bringing 17 years of industry experience.
As the new CMD, Matthias will now lead the creative vision for Serviceplan Austria, the Vienna branch of the Serviceplan Group. Serviceplan is one of Europe's largest independent advertising and marketing agency networks, combining a wide range of marketing and communication disciplines under one roof.
LBB’s Aysun Bora sat down with Matthias to find out about how he got into the creative industry, what inspires him today, and his aspirations to attract more creative talent.
LBB> If we start at the beginning, what kind of child were you? Were there any clues of your career path?
Matthias> Just before I was born, my mom got the book ‘My Child the Aquarius’ as a gift. And believe it or not, working as a copywriter is one of the possible future professions. So, I think we can count this as a clue.
My parents later moved to Vienna with me, which is now my hometown. And my mom studied art history, so she accordingly celebrated and encouraged every creative thing I came up with, including my graffiti phase. Everything was text-based, with words written on it, and eventually, making rap music got me into writing. My father, on the other hand, was always kind of the analytical business minded one. So, advertising felt like a natural conclusion for me, the best of both worlds. Besides that, the commercial break was always kind of my favourite part of television.
LBB> So, that is how it started… Where does the story go from there? How did you get into advertising?
Matthias> Actually, it was quite a cool coincidence. After finishing school, I was unsure about what to do with my life. Half a year of studying law showed me exactly what it did not want to do. So then I stumbled upon the book ‘99 francs’ by Frédéric Beigbeder, and read the book in a single night. And even though the story actually aims to criticise the industry, it made the idea of working in a glamorous advertising agency like this and selling ideas absolutely fascinating to me. Then I applied to different universities and ended up at the Werbeakademie in Vienna. And from there, I started here, at Wien Nord, so taking on the role as CMD of Wien Nord Serviceplan is a full circle moment for me.
LBB> What are your most exciting plans for the agency, especially with your new role as creative managing director?
Matthias> Since our industry is not that kind of talent magnet that it used to be, I want to make our agency the go-to place for young talent here in Austria. I think Serviceplan is by far the best place for them to start their careers. For us, it is important that people from different disciplines and different experience levels work together on a single brief. That is a fantastic way to create like-minded ideas that reflect the spirit of a time and produce excellent work. So, if you're out there and read this, and you're interested in working with interdisciplinary teams in a family-like environment, backed by an international creative powerhouse, just hit me up.
LBB> Are there any lessons that you wish you'd learned earlier?
Matthias> Quite a few. First of all, people can handle the truth much better than you think. As long as you say it eloquently, as long as you say it nicely, they can handle it. Also, no person out there ever waited for a campaign to air. So, as a creative, you have the privilege and opportunity to entertain people with the things you do, the things you love, so make use of that. And a third thing, we are not saving lives here, so we shouldn't take ourselves too seriously. Pressure is a privilege, so try and have fun.
LBB> Outside of work, what's inspiring you right now?
Matthias> What inspires me the most right now is the unstoppable and ever-evolving creative talent of my six-year-old daughter. Her way of thinking is truly remarkable to me. It's the purest and direct way of finding solutions I've ever seen. I'd really love to work on a creative brief with my experience, but through her little head and see where that takes me.
LBB> What keeps you going in the industry, and how do you find motivation in the day-to-day?
Matthias> I'm still a kid in my head. I find motivation in every idea. My motivation swings from idea to idea. So I have an idea, then I think I am the king of the world, then that ebbs, and I find another idea to excite me. This always keeps pushing forward, having idea after idea. I don't know which idea is coming to my table tomorrow, and that's what I love about this job.
