Interview with Knut Maierhofer and Michael Keller

Burkhard Jacob spoke with Knut Maierhofer and Michael Keller, the two founders of KMS TEAM.


Both of you have studied communication design. This was more than 25 years ago. Are you still working as designers in your own company?
Knut Maierhofer: Not any more in performing the work. But all the more in the conceptional and creative process.

Michael Keller: We ourselves don’t design any more but we take the lead in our design team. The design processes have not changed, though they have expanded enormously. In the course of 25 years it was not only new vocabulary such as 3D design or Internet that has come up but also behind the terms new worlds have opened up, which we will have to understand if we want to design them. In this sense we are still designers.

Knut Maierhofer: In the past we designed an annual report or a trade show; today it’s all about activating companies and brands in a comprehensive way. We create whole worlds, and this goes far beyond design. We have to keep an eye on the economic and strategic aspects and, above all, we have to mobilise the staff of the company. In doing so we are challenged by different personalities – by our clients as well as our colleagues. This is not only a complex task but sometimes it is also complicated. That’s exactly why we have grown as a team. Only this way our teamwork reaches a level which could never be achieved by one person alone. This is also part of our formula for success.

You are both very different characters. What do you think are the qualities your staff values most in you?
Knut Maierhofer: I think it’s the safe feeling that we are able to find a solution to any task. On the one hand there is the trust of our colleagues that they can address us with any question. On the other hand there is the certainty that we are committed to quality, that we can assist in pushing ideas through. The staff members especially esteem Michael as a source of inspiration. That’s his outstanding skill. As far as I’m concerned, it’s the ability to obtain a definite result when I’m in search of a solution.

Michael Keller: Interestingly enough our staff always gets identical answers from both of us, even when they ask us independently. Clear concepts, convinced feelings and being able to recognise quality and make it visible to others – these are our core assets. Be it a matter of going into detail or having an eye for the whole, our colleagues just can absolutely rely on us.

KMS TEAM likes to use the term “Tiefendesign (depth design)”. Could you explain in simple words what you mean by it?
Knut Maierhofer: It’s our way of thinking and working based on a holistic perception of design. We do not just design – we analyse, design and activate.

Michael Keller: And we do this not only with brands and companies but above all also with those who are responsible. “Tiefendesign” is always about people who want to be moved and get things moved.

“Tiefendesign” reminds me of the term depth psychology. One of the central ideas of depth psychology implies that below the surface of our consciousness further-reaching, subconscious processes take place in the deeper layers of the psyche that develop a considerable effect on our conscious experience.

Michael Keller: The analogy to terms such as depth psychology or the linguistic concept of deep structure is intended. This concerns the notion that perceivable phenomena at the surface are determined by relations that are not immediately visible, that is to say they are positioned in depth. When I want to sensibly design the outer appearance, I have to attend to the underlying structure. The term “Tiefendesign” also has a therapeutic moment. Eventually we have to know from our client where he or she is at the moment. They really have to tell us everything about themselves. Only then we are able to develop a solution. This requires a phase of coming closer during which we establish mutual confidence. The person who stands in front of us is opening up. Sometimes he or she gets frightened. But then they develop a new self-conception and new strength. Sometimes they dream they could fly. Then we have to bring them back to reality. We support them not only in good but also in weak moments. This is what design means as well.

Knut Maierhofer: In companies there are contacts who have very clear objectives when they approach us. But there are also persons in charge who are in search of something. And there are companies that are simply wanting a “sparring partner”. We have to find our way in these different situations and corporate cultures. We like it – provided that the staff of the companies really cooperate. We want to get things moved. Somebody who is not interested in achieving an aim is at the wrong place here. With KMS MINDSHIFT we directly take up “Tiefendesign”, by improving the staff’s understanding of the brand. Here, the focus is on organizational development as we realise time and again that communicating the meaning of a brand simply requires coaching. Once we have analysed the genetic code of a brand we will be able to create something essential. Then the brand will offer identification, orientation and motivation.

KMS TEAM could therefore also mean “creativity with strategy”?
Knut Maierhofer: There are so many agencies where creativity begins only when the strategic consultation process is already finished. KMS TEAM is different since we simultaneously tackle strategy, creative phase and communication in an integrated process. And therefore we achiee all objectives at the same time. It is not a matter of a creative firework as an end in itself but of authentic, substantiated solutions that actually activate a brand. We keep the balance between creativity and strategy, which requires a very high effort of coordination. But it is justified by outstanding results.

Michael Keller: Other agencies are networking or they represent a structure that has to cover the whole communication.

Knut Maierhofer: Yes, and nearly all these agencies claim that they provide integrated communication. But honestly, who is really capable of doing so? The holistic, integrated thinking requires a skill, which has to prove itself in every single discipline. A view of the whole and the knowledge of the details – that is our “USP” to use an advertising term.

Michael Keller: Our question is rather: Who could be an adequate dialogue partner for managers today? We meet fantastic people who run a company but who, basically don’t have a proper contact person to talk with about the situation of the company. It is our wish to talk directly with the entrepreneur. Then we will be able to create a fantastic design.

How do you decide what kind of design concept matches a client? How can you be sure in advance that the advice you give your customer will be successful in the end?
Knut Maierhofer: First of all, this is a long cognitive process that we start by listening, listening, listening. We have learned to query a lot. With this knowledge we return home and start working. But we also disengage again from what we’ve heard. This is a mixture of thinking and knowledge, experience and feeling and by no means a one-dimensional process.

Michael Keller: That’s really tough work. And we demand a lot from our staff. But there is still creativity and emotion. That is what we also understand by “Tiefendesign”: to develop a solution that has been thoroughly devised.

Knut Maierhofer: And it’s so beautiful when a third person glances at the result for perhaps a few minutes or seconds and suddenly states: That’s fun. I like it. That’s good. Design is an attitude. That’s the ultimate meaning because we always offer an authentic, elaborate option of how to establish or manage a brand.

Michael Keller: This also works on an international level, by the way. Be it in New York, Bahrain or Hong Kong, it similarly leads to the intuitive feeling that attitude and design are consistent, which means that the appropriate brand identity has been found.

How do you succeed in increasing perception and significance of brands? To put it another way: How can you verifiably increase the value of a brand?
Knut Maierhofer: It is definitely measurable. You will get exact figures by experts of companies that have specialized in this issue. Many of our clients register astonishing growth rates throughout the years of cooperation with KMS TEAM. That’s what we care about: We activate the strength of brands and companies; and this leads to success, which will be visible in the financial reports after one or two years. Already at the pitch we emphasise the success that results from activating the potentials of a brand since the success of our client is most important of course.

Michael Keller: Did you say “pitch”!?

Knut Maierhofer: Yes, pitch. I’m afraid, big companies regrettably have to place a bid on certain projects by a pitch – also for their own protection.

Michael Keller: I know that public institutions require three reference offers. I also understand that companies require an offer price. But why do five to eight agencies have to participate in an extensive pitch? How can you find a design solution for a problem if you don’t know how much or how little the client has revealed – whether you have heard the essentials? The best agencies in the world are invited even though some clients don’t even know for themselves what their problem is. Who in all seriousness does believe that this approach will create good results, even rudimentary? Why can’t we try to find out which partner matches by talking with each other? To avoid any wrong impression: We do compete with other agencies. We like hunting as well. And we love to bring home our preys. But we have to change something in this industry in order to achieve higher quality. When I look back we have developed our most successful products together with our clients who approached us with the deliberate intention to work together with us.

Then, why do you take part in specialist discussions so seldom? What you say really carries weight!
Knut Maierhofer: In the past we devoted almost all our time to our work; this was certainly a success factor. But of course, we have got something to say, and meanwhile we are in a position that makes us interesting to others. So we will speak out more often when questions about the future of design arise.

Michael Keller: We are convinced that our ideas are of importance to others. Finally, the point is also to rethink the understanding of clients and designers. Does the traditional separation of branches still make sense? Should the relation between decision-makers, creative professionals and consultants be redefined in principle? These are issues, which we will be happy to discuss in public in the future.

We are curious. Thanks a lot for the interview!

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