Marc Posch is an entrepreneur and creative director who has shaped companies’ brands ranging from tech startups to international organizations. As the founder and driving force behind Opus Creative Group, he is passionate about applying the power of story, deep industry expertise, and visual design to shape identities, uncover purpose, and ignite sustainable growth. His philosophy is best described as: We thrive on being a team whose spirit of creativity and social responsibility invites and inspires people to work with us.
Owner of Opus Creative Group
Curiosity and a forward-looking attitude are what drives us, not just successes of the past. We create the world we want to live in. His office created branding and design concepts and served over 300 technology companies such as Apple Germany and BMW and numerous start-ups in the world of European and US commerce. Based in Downtown Los Angeles since 2010, the Opus Creative Group (formerly Marc Posch Design) continues to thrive through the collaborative energy of a dedicated team of talents under Marc’s leadership.
How was your University time?
Fun time but not very defining in academic terms
Why did you choose a career in this field?
I learned early that understanding and applying design principles can be a superpower and that our job is not about decor but rather about influencing perception. People really trust printed or digital material, whether they admit it or not. We can manipulate by using language and images.
What was your first job or nuggets from jobs you had that helped you get to where you are today?
Be authentic. Don’t try to be the best at what you do – be the only one who does what you do. Did Picasso try to be better than – let’s say, Velasquez or Michelangelo? Or did Mozart try to beat Johann Sebastian Bach? They all created the unique art that made them immortal. That’s what a true artist does: Learn from the masters but then carve out your own path. Ever since the Second Industrial Revolution, a phase of rapid standardization and industrialization, our entire economic system – and education system – was rebuilt upon creating people with the same skill sets, so they can easily be replaced and won’t cause much friction: that’s why we have standardized testing and standardized education protocols. But those systems will never deliver a Picasso or Mozart – or in today’s terms, a Steve Jobs or Elon Musk. Be authentic, break the rules, go your own way.
Can you provide some book recommendations?
Too many to list all. What I currently have on my nightstand: “Sapiens” by Yuval Harari, “Peak” by Chip Conley, “Enlightenment Now” by Steven Pinker, “Iron John” by Robert Bly… and always “Siddharta” by Herman Hesse, a book I keep reading again and again since I was in teens.
Things are changing very fast in the industry; how do you keep yourself updated. Please list techniques or newsletters, podcasts, events, etc.
I can only recommend stepping out of your industry bubble and look at outside sources for inspiration. In my case, I’m bored to death with design forums. They are all about typographical issues and WordPress problems as if those matters. Look at the arts, study other cultures, travel if you can, and visit unknown places. This is how we grow.
Any advice about CVs?
Keep it interesting. Start with a bold quote or statement. Don’t be nice. Don’t bore with details nobody cares about (worked as a Barista, loves pets, was a good student in high school..) Make it sound so interesting that I want to have coffee with you.
Advice for someone looking for a job?
Life is always about taking risks. No risk – no glory, or how Don Draper from “Mad Men” put it and what I sometimes tell my clients: “You need to decide what kind of company you want to be: comfortable and dead – or risky and possibly rich.” I believe that the greatest enemy in our careers is the Comfort Zone, the place where we end up with our education and/or job experience. This may have worked 100 years ago, but in our fast-paced time and amidst the largest technological revolution, being stuck in a comfort zone can easily leave us in the dust bin of history while the world moves on. Taking risks, learning new things, reaching out to people with a different background than ours are essential ingredients for growth. It’s a principle that has always guided me along the way. Risk-taking is the gateway to growth. The opposite would be stagnation and ultimately fading away.
Why do you think you were selected among other candidates?
Maybe because our messages stand out. I really don’t care so much about how the design looks like (of course, it has to be of great quality), rather what design does, what process it can trigger, and how it can initiate a client’s transformation. This is where things get really interesting. Otherwise, we are just creating shiny objects.
Lessons from jobs that you couldn’t get.
Always aim high and know your limitations – and prepare for (get support, build team, get experts on board). And… sometimes you find yourself in the middle of chaos, and sometimes in the middle of chaos, you find yourself.
Some advice added: Steve Jobs once said, “Create relevance, not awareness.” In other words, relevance matters because it feels useful and applicable. In another time and space, Jimi Hendrix said, “Knowledge speaks, but wisdom listens.” Put the two men together, and we come to see that the number one step toward being relevant is to listen. And once you’ve listened with compassion, your intuition will know how to make your wisdom and truth relevant to the other person.
Also read How I Started My Creative Media Agency: Chloe Smith
