Creative leadership is rewarding in different ways. Your craft evolves - you move from executing individual campaigns to shaping creative vision across teams and projects. Instead of designing and briefs, you guide multiple teams to deliver their best work.
Sphelele with the Affinity by Canva Team.
At Oliver, where we combine talent and technology to help clients reimagine how marketing gets done, creative leaders aren't just directing output - they're elevating creativity while optimising how work flows through AI-enabled systems. That's the shift: from hands-on execution to strategic orchestration and human elevation. We’re still solving creative problems, just at a different scale.
For Sphelele, a personal illustration practice became the thread that kept him connected to his creative roots. And unexpectedly, it opened doors he never imagined.
Sphelele_Affinity V1_9_commissioned piece.
From personal outlet to global stage
"I started my illustration work a couple of years ago simply as a creative outlet," Sphelele explains. "It wasn't for clients. It wasn't strategic. It was just for me."
As he shared his work online, he began experimenting with Affinity, an emerging design platform built for independent creators. He adopted it early, tagged them in his posts, and caught their attention.
Around 2019, Affinity reached out to feature his work. That led to hosting a masterclass demonstrating his creative process, and eventually an invitation to join their global panel of professional users, creators who test features and shape product development.
Then in 2024, Canva acquired Affinity. Far from ending the partnership, it opened a new chapter. Canva invited Sphelele to speak at the Johannesburg launch of its Africa expansion, recognising him as one of the platform's most prominent creative voices on the continent.
"It was never planned," he reflects. "It came from just doing something I enjoyed."
Sphelele_Thundercat Illustration.
Canva event poster.
Why personal creative practice matters
As Sphelele's leadership role expanded, so did the nature of his creative contribution.
"As an artist, you place your value in the physical output of the work you do," he says. "But as you grow, that shifts. Now the output happens through my teams, through creative direction and guidance."
Rather than replacing his creative identity, his personal work preserved it. "You should evolve beyond just putting headphones on and executing, that's growth," he acknowledges. "But you still need something that keeps you connected to why you started."
That connection matters. It keeps instincts sharp, especially in an era where AI can handle workflow optimisation but can't replace the strategic and creative thinking that drives real business impact. It provides space to experiment without constraints. And critically, it reminds you what pure creative passion feels like, the kind that isn't tied to briefs, timelines, or approvals.
Sphelele speaking at Canva event.
When authenticity ppens doors
Sphelele's story reflects something important about modern creative careers: the most meaningful opportunities often don't come from networking or formal strategy. They emerge from work done with genuine passion.
As platforms and brands increasingly seek authentic creative voices, his experience proves that personal creativity and professional leadership don't compete, they fuel each other.
The side quest doesn't replace the main story. It enriches it. And sometimes, when you stay true to the craft, it becomes the story.
For creatives navigating the evolution from maker to leader, Sphelele's journey offers both permission and proof: the work you do for yourself isn't a distraction.
Sometimes, it's what keeps you truly creative.
About Oliver
Established in 2004, Oliver is the world’s first and only specialists in designing, building, and running bespoke in-house agencies and marketing ecosystems for brands.
Oliver partners with over 300 clients in 40+ countries and counting; simplifying the complexities of modern marketing and giving brands back control. Its work has been shown to drive business growth, earn fame and give brands a more meaningful role in people’s lives.
This year, Oliver added to its record of success at the Campaign Agency of the Year Global Awards, as Campaign’s Global Customer Engagement Agency of the Year (Silver), Global In-House Agency of the Year for Unilever’s U-Studio (Bronze), and Global Digital Innovation Agency of the Year (Bronze). It was also named AdGreen’s #1 Superuser for its ongoing work in sustainable production – a testament to Oliver’s commitment to reducing environmental impact and supporting clients’ decarbonisation efforts.
Oliver is part of the Inside Ideas Group (IIG), which joined The Brandtech Group in January 2019 to give its clients access to cutting-edge marketing technology solutions in the AI, AR, and the metaverse space.
The Group includes tech-driven marketing companies: Jellyfish, Pencil (the No.1 generative AI creative and distribution SaaS platform), Fifty-five, Mofilm, Collectively, Gravity Road, Acorn-i, DP6, Mobkoi, Brandtech Media, Brandtech Commerce and Brandtech Consulting.
The Brandtech Group is one of the most prominent marketing industry voices on the prediction and movement to AI-driven marketing, including generative AI. It was named one of the World's Most Innovative Companies 2021 by Fast Company, and by CB Insights as one of the World's Most Valuable Private Unicorns.
