Inject New Creative Approaches into Your Work for Marketing Teams
Ironically, a difficult challenge faced by creative marketing and content teams is to constantly inject new, creative approaches into their work. This challenge is often seen in consulting work, especially with companies looking to build their internal capabilities. While these companies acknowledge the need for innovative ideas, higher-quality content, better technology, and more precise strategic objectives, the challenge arises because they lack the conscious responsibility, charter, or recognition that their teams can make fundamental changes.
Teams often struggle to respond to the explicit encouragement from leaders to bring new energy and creative approaches. This is due to the belief that they are too busy to change or that they were hired for specific tasks. The creation of marketing content is often viewed as a routine task rather than an opportunity for innovation.
Responsibility to Not Ship the Org Chart
The phrase “Don’t ship the org chart” is a reminder to build offerings to satisfy customer needs without reflecting internal organizational structures. This lesson holds true for marketing content and customer experiences, as shipping the org chart results in disjointed customer experiences and communication.
Steven Sinofsky’s warning, “Don’t ship the org chart,” highlights the need to be aware of organizational silos and avoid reflecting them in customer experiences. However, it is inevitable that organizations will always ship the org chart, as it is intrinsic to their communication structure.
According to computer scientist Melvin Conway, organizational communication structures shape the designs of their systems. Therefore, any change in communication requires a change in the structure of the communication teams.
Transform the Idea Supply Chain
Most marketing and content teams are structured in a linear “creative idea” supply chain. The roles assigned in the org chart limit idea generation and innovation, leading to a lack of empowerment for creativity.
Innovation and creativity are not prioritized in the idea supply chain, and team leaders are often hesitant to introduce new, risky ideas. This results in a reluctance to break the mold or deviate from the existing org-chart box.
Remove Old to Make Room for the New
To make way for new and innovative approaches, teams should consider outsourcing the old, routine tasks and shift focus to higher-level creative aspects. Outsourcing can free up time for teams to dedicate to creative ideation and content innovation.
While it may seem counterintuitive, outsourcing the old tasks and making room for new ones can ultimately lead to more creative ideas, higher-quality content, better-implemented technology, and more precise strategic objectives without the need for external sources.