Omnicom EMERGING STARS
Being Seen
Designing cultural recognition across 1,500 agencies through one shared signal
Client: Omnicom Group
Agency: C Space London
My Role: Experience Design & Creative Director
Scope: Brand Identity, Interaction Design, Internal Brand Experience
Engagement Type: Strategic design partnership for internal cultural programme
In Brief
- The Emerging Stars programme lacked recognition across Omnicom’s network.
- People wanted to feel seen, not just selected.
- We shaped the brand around identification and growth.
- The identity worked across teams, tools, and regions without losing authenticity.
- The brand became a cultural symbol and a meaningful experience.
1. Challenge
The Emerging Stars programme lacked recognition across Omnicom’s network.
The Omnicom Emerging Stars programme offered junior employees the chance to collaborate, pitch to clients, and learn from peers globally. However, it lacked unity, with each year feeling like a separate event.
The programme had a bland brand identity, leaving talent feeling like a number rather than a name for a company of Omnicom’s size.
2. Insight
People wanted to feel seen, not just selected.
We spoke to young creatives from Europe, Asia, and North America. They shared honest, vulnerable stories about wanting to be seen and acknowledged, not just applauded.
The issue wasn’t the programme’s structure; it was emotional. The design had to address that, saying, “I see you. You belong here.”
3. Change
We shaped the brand around identification and growth.
With a basic branding approach, we anchored the identity in three big ideas:
— Identification: A growing “X” mark to say, “I’m here.”
— Recognition: OCR-B typeface, repurposed from machine logic into a human signal.
— Transition: A fluid gradient symbolising growth, momentum, and change.
The result was not just visual, it was cultural. It gave the programme a voice, a mood, and a sense of movement.
4. Delivery
The identity worked across teams, tools, and regions without losing authenticity.
The identity functioned seamlessly across all platforms, from digital invitations to event signage, pitch decks to posters. Born from personal stories, it remained relatable and didn’t need translation.
I led the strategic design and creative direction to ensure adaptability across tools and touchpoints while maintaining its emotional core.
5. Impact
The brand became a cultural symbol and a meaningful experience.
The brand helped the programme feel more like a movement, making it easier to recognise talent, and participants felt proud.
Clients like P&G and PayPal noticed the ideas, energy, and clarity of the experience. Inside Omnicom, Emerging Stars became a model of how creative thinking can shape culture, not just communication.
“Omnicom friends, what an amazing experience! Thank you again for choosing Olay to be your partner in the Emerging Stars Program. The talent, the ideas, the energy and the partnership was amazing. It says a lot about the Omnicom family when you see this type of focus and investment in top talent. Thank you for choosing P&G and Olay to be your partner.”
Leigh Radford
Global GM Skincare
P&G
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