It’s very clear that AI is top of mind for everyone in the creative operations space. Regardless of whether you are a marketer or photographer, project manager or producer, AI is already having an impact on how creative is produced.
We were at HS Creative Operations in NYC this month and gained a ton of insight into the fast-evolving world of creative operations. Along with the many great talks, some topics consistently showed up throughout our conversations. A lot of talk focused on AI, not just on the tools, but on its impacts on the organization, the positive and the negative, and how to build a more resilient culture.
Tech to Make Us More Human
Unlocking Human Brilliance Through Technology – Guido Derkx, Storyteq
How much time are you spending on tedious tasks? For every creative operations person (or marketer) out there, the explosion of channels and tech have led to a nearly overwhelming challenge to deliver content at scale. Content production and scaling is a huge bottleneck, preventing teams and organizations from achieving their goals.
Technology is, can, and will fill the gap, but in the process, we will go through a few stages.
In the immediate term, content is easier, faster, and cheaper to create using Gen AI – and can be created by anyone. This content explosion will create greater competition in the attention economy. And this will ultimately lead to increased content cynicism, where quality content will have a greater audience.
To get to that level, the objective of every forward-looking organization is to have a connected content ecosystem to deliver quality (and personalized where relevant) content.
Adopting AI
A Practical Roadmap to Harnessing AI In-House – Dax Alexander, Oliver
Among the many great ideas covered in this talk, these ideas on 8 pitfalls to watch for when adopting AI seemed highly pertinent.
- It’s easy to overestimate AI’s capabilities.
- It’s also easy to underestimate the importance of data quality.
- Too many start without having a clear AI objective.
- It’s critical to overcome the fear that AI will replace people.
- The organizational challenges surrounding change management need to be addressed (AI will change things).
- Without internal technical expertise (likely due to a lack of training), there will be an inability to execute properly.
- Don’t try to do too much (AI) too quickly.
- You can’t Ignore the ethical considerations in adopting AI.
Implementing AI
Harnessing Generative AI through Strategic Agency Partnerships – Travis O’Neal, Aquent
Travis identified the key strategic questions that need to be addressed for adopting GenAI for an in-house agency:
- How do we develop core competencies and expertise with the ever-expanding list of GenAI tools?
- How do we do it without a big budget?
- How do our teams make time to test and learn when they are already overextended with their current workload?
- How do I make a compelling business case for the required investment?
- How do we set the vision of empowerment rather than replacement?
Then using a number of case studies on how they worked with GenAI tools in multiple campaigns, Travis showed that a common approach requires a focus on 5 key areas:
- Clear vision for AI adoption and change management.
- Test and learn strategy with clear goals and measurements.
- Managing executive expectation of better, faster, cheaper.
- Building expertise and competencies with a basket of GenAI tools.
- Engaging and collaborating with an external partner to help you get there faster.
Preparing for Change
Mastering Change Management: A Guide for Creative Operations Leaders
Moderator Clair Carter-Ginn, Panelist Kate Schmieding, Office of General Services Hoon Kin, Airbnb, Brianne Gallagher, Wayfair Daniel Sergile, Pat McGrath Labs Thomas Stilling, Digital Transformation & Technology Leader
With the pace of AI’s advancements comes the need to manage change. Not only to manage change, but to embed a culture of change within an organization. If you are competing in a space that moves as quickly as the creative or marketing space, change is rapid and inevitable.
Change management has to be a priority, perhaps a role that HR or operations takes on with intention.
One idea was to identify where people in your organization have other complementary skill sets. One presenter shared that during covid, when faced with the prospect of mass layoffs, they instead figured out what their teams’ untapped skills were and managed to work around that.
As one presenter summed it all up quite nicely with this quote:
“It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is most adaptable to change.”
Charles Darwin
Sustainable Production
Ripple Effect: Why Every Production Should Be a Sustainable Production
Jemma Gould, IPG Chris Butler, Uber, Lora Schulson, 72andSunny, Steve Cooper, Craft Worldwide
The biggest environmental impact on a production is travel. Air travel is a tremendous emitter of greenhouse gas per passenger mile.
Covid showed us what we can do with remote production teams. We have the technology to manage with fewer people having to be on set.
Chris Butler from Uber shared how they did a global shoot across 12 locations, using entirely local DPs, and in the process not only supported local talent and saved on travel budgets, but also avoided unnecessary pollution.
To get to a more sustainable production, start with a good brief, think about micro productions, and focus on client-friendly collaborations.
Scratching the Surface
These are just a few snippets of the diverse range of presenters. Many of the best conversations happened at our booth, at the networking events, and at the speakeasy drinks. Ultimately while there’s an undeniable tension with what comes next with AI, there’s an overall sense of optimism within this strong community.
