[Interview] Käthe Lisson, ECD, VP Creative DACH, DEPT

Käthe Lisson, DEPT’s Executive Creative Director and VP Creative in the DACH region, is shaping the agency’s next chapter by embedding creative excellence into its DNA from the ground up.

Tasked with elevating DEPT into a creative powerhouse within its global network, she’s championing a vision where technology, data, and creativity work seamlessly together.

Her goal is to show that tech-driven agencies can lead with creativity, developing work that is not only intelligent and efficient but also emotionally resonant. She spoke to Marketing Report.

DEPT has grown rapidly in recent years. How do you see your role contributing to the agency’s next chapter in DACH?

I'm here to establish what creative excellence looks like when it's built into DEPT's DNA from the start. We're building proof that creativity with real impact comes from integration. My role is to elevate DEPT in DACH into a creative powerhouse within DEPT's global network while showing the German speaking market that tech-driven agencies can lead on creativity.

Where do you see the greatest creative opportunity for brands in DACH?

Germans love efficiency, which presents an untapped opportunity: to create work and campaigns that are as smart as they are meaningful. These campaigns would use data and tech to reach people in contextually relevant moments while still moving them emotionally.

How will DEPT’s global reach and tech expertise shape your work in the DACH region?

Having teams across Europe means we can bring global best practices to local challenges. But more importantly, DEPT's tech foundation means our DACH creatives aren't working in a vacuum. They're working hand in hand with media experts, data analysts, and technologists from the start. This isn't about adapting global campaigns, it's about giving DACH clients work that's culturally specific and technologically sophisticated.

With clients ranging from Brother to EA Sports, how will you shape a unified yet distinct creative voice?

In my opinion the way to a distinctive creative voice is finding the human truth at the heart of each brand's relationship with its audience. Whether it's B2B tech, food delivery, or gaming, we need to put people in the center of everything we do. The distinct voice comes from understanding what matters to that specific audience and, with the same level of importance, building teams with the right people and expertise around it.

How do you see the role of creativity shifting in a more tech-driven, data-informed environment?

Data and tech don't diminish creativity. They make it more accountable and more defined. We’re no longer producing content and hoping for the best. We know we're reaching the right people, and we can adjust if something isn't working. That's liberating for creativity, not limiting. The role of creativity is still to entertain, move, and transform perceptions, but now we can do it with precision and prove it worked.

What impact do you hope to make at DEPT and in the DACH creative industry?

I want DEPT in the DACH region to be known for work that proves creative excellence and business effectiveness aren't separate goals. I want us winning at Cannes and at the Effies, showing the industry that the future isn't choosing between art and science. More broadly, I want to inspire the creative industry in DACH to see tech, data, and media as creative tools, not constraints. If we can shift that mindset, we'll have changed the industry.

www.deptagency.com

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