A Conversation with the Next Generation of Creatives
I have the great privilege of working in highly collaborative, creative environments. I’ve been doing it for over two decades in the advertising industry, and the energy I get from the best of collaborations gives me the fuel I need to stay in the business as long as I have. I love creative thinking, I love creative collaborating, and I love creative humans.
Everyone is inherently creative; it’s really a matter of having the space, role, responsibility, liberty, freedom, and environment to enable us all to tap into our creative capacities.
As I’ve aged in my career, so has the network that surrounds me. It makes sense if you think of organizational structural design, but when I look at the core of the greatest creative environments I’ve been in, I can’t help but look to the next generation of talent that is around me. These are the folks who often have fresh perspectives, but limited space, agency, or experience to create the space to have their voice heard. It’s like they are trying to Double Dutch but struggle to find the rhythm to jump in given the tsunami of opinions and voices of their more confident seniors.
So with no distractions and no competing voices, I spent some time with some very talented young creative professionals who are entering the workforce: Honestine Mbuyenge and Jade Underwood. I had the honor to work with these amazing folks as they took on a summer internship at our agency. This dynamic duo’s fresh perspectives and unwavering enthusiasm were infectious throughout our office.
To all my creative colleagues and fellow employers who are reading this right now, let me take a moment to remove the noise and put their voices center stage as I share a transcript of my recent Q&A with Jade and Honestine in their exit interview from our agency internship program.
Damian Bazadona: You two are part of the next generation of the workforce, and I know a lot of people who will want to hear more about what you want out of your job. So, let’s start there! What excites you about stepping into the professional world?
Jade Underwood: Definitely collaboration and opportunities for learning. It’s been really creatively fulfilling here talking to people and solving problems together. It’s funny, a lot of what we did in school was really preparing us for coming up with these kinds of solutions. It’s so satisfying to see that the lessons I learned in college serve that kind of tangible purpose.
Damian Bazadona: That’s a great answer–no one should ever stop learning! No matter how far along you are in your job. I think that’s one of the most important things a company can offer its employees, those kinds of lifelong learning opportunities.
Jade Underwood: I agree.
Damian Bazadona: So you feel like your school prepared you for what a full-time job would feel like?
Jade Underwood: Yeah, in some ways. I can look back on certain parts of high school and college and see: Oh, we were doing this to some degree all along.
Honestine Mbuyenge: I’m going to disagree a bit! I’ve always been interested in all aspects of the entertainment industry. But taking on an internship that’s focused on the business side of the theater, I really didn’t know what to expect, even though my degree is in performance. And so much of it has been mind-blowing! Like, what? I didn’t know this whole world existed and how fun it could be.
Jade Underwood: That’s true too. College prepared me with a lot of practical tools like networking, presenting, and collaborating. But there’s still a lot to learn here!
Damian Bazadona: Well, we’ve certainly learned a lot from the two of you since your internship began. I’m still thinking about a staff roundtable discussion we had about the launch of Meta’s Threads a few weeks ago. The headlines around the launch told one story but you brought a counter voice to the narrative we were hearing that simply wasn’t buying the hype. As of the date we are having this interview, I think you will have proven to be right… But who knows? What was more important to me, was your ability to engage with a full room of multidisciplinary team members right out of the gate with opinions you were passionate about. Speaking your mind in a respectful and thoughtful way is a huge part of being successful in the workplace as far as I’m concerned. I was quite impressed.
Honestine Mbuyenge: Thanks! Those kinds of collaborative meetings are my favorite. I’d definitely want those kinds of opportunities in a future job.
Damian Bazadona That was actually one of my questions, so let’s build off of that. When you’re looking at job listings, what are you looking for in a potential employer?
Jade Underwood: I’d say I’m interested in companies that care about my voice and what I have to contribute. It’s really about having a sense of humanity with your employees!
I also care a lot about having an open atmosphere with the ability to move around and really get to know the people you’re working with every day. There’s no sense that you’re in competition with your coworkers. You really feel like we’re working towards the same goals.
Honestine Mbuyenge: Completely. I’ll want to stay at a job if I feel like I belong somewhere. Take the unassigned seating here as an example: every day, you’re with a new group of people, a new space. All of a sudden, you’re speaking to everyone, even if you’re in different departments. I really love that.
I’ve also really enjoyed the employee resource groups! Just having access to programs where people can come together, whether they’re a part of the community that the group serves or they’re just an ally. That draws me in because it feels like you’re seen as more than just a worker.
Jade Underwood Working with the social and creative teams was really fun for me. Figuring out how to reach people of all kinds, especially Gen-Z and younger people, getting creative, having fun, and connecting with audiences. It was so rewarding!
Damian Bazadona: What does creativity in the workplace mean to the two of you?
Jade Underwood It’s a bit of a cheesy answer, but thinking outside the box! And then, while you definitely need to use your imagination, you also need to enhance that creativity with research and observation of the world around you.
Honestine Mbuyenge: I completely agree. We had a conversation with Stephanie [Sciandra Smith, VP of Creative] and she said that part of her role is that she uses both her right and left brain, which I really loved. I come from a performance background, so I’m used to using the right side, but it was inspiring to see how you need both sides in this industry.
I also remember this one brainstorming meeting we had for one of our Las Vegas-based clients. It was a full team meeting, and we were told at the beginning that no idea was a bad idea. Everyone was coming up with the craziest ideas–the sparks were just flying in that room. That was really fun!
Damian Bazadona That’s important. Walking into a room, removing all boundaries, and just rolling with it. If you could ask your future self anything about your career journey, what would it be?
Jade Underwood I’d ask: How do you balance your creative life while also supporting yourself? There are so many people here at Situation who come from a creative or performance background, just like us, so I’d want to see how I handle that.
I also want to give my future self some advice! Trust in your abilities. Worry about the problems when they come, not as you imagine them to be.
Damian Bazadona: Okay, I totally hate this question, but humor me: Where do you see yourself in five years?
Jade Underwood: I’d say I want to be reaching a lot of people through stories, working in live entertainment, and using my insight and performance abilities to inspire how other people see the world. And I feel like I gained a lot of that insight through this internship.
Well, that or I’m living in a small town by the lake with my dog, working at a bakery, and writing.
Honestine Mbuyenge: In five years, I will be 28, which is crazy to think about! By then, I would love to be making the change that I want to make in the entertainment industry.
That, or I pivot and go into nonprofit work. It might sound cheesy to say, but I want to change the world!
Damian Bazadona I love it. Last question: Jade, with graduation on the horizon, how would you sum up your feelings about it in a single word?
Jade Underwood: “Nervou-xcited.” Nervous and excited. I’m pretty confident in myself, but there are definitely still some logistics to figure out and questions to answer.
Damian Bazadona: That makes a lot of sense! Honestine, you’ve been out of college for a few months. How would you summarize your feelings now?
Honestine Mbuyenge: Blessed! Not everyone can say that they’re doing an internship like this right out of graduation. I know prior to graduation, everyone was asking me, “What are you going to do? What are you going to make of your life?” But this internship has given me something to say back. It really couldn’t have worked out any more perfectly. I feel like my horizons have been expanded.
Damian Bazadona: I see a very bright future ahead for the both of you. Thank you for taking the time to talk with me and for being awesome humans!
