Creative Ops Compass

When Everything Feels Urgent, Find the 12 Notes - with Paul Nicholson

“There are only 12 notes.” That's what a professor told Paul Nicholson, a saxophone player who could play anything put in front of him but was terrified of making music u

Most Production Problems Are Actually Alignment Problems - with Roma Ahi

Take the free Creative Ops Assessment at www.InFocusConsulting.net/assessment Show Notes Blown budgets and missed deadline are typically seen as production problems. Ro

Why In-House Creative Leaders Must Stop Waiting for Permission

In this solo minisode, Jesse breaks down a mindset most in-house teams don't realize is holding them back: waiting for permission to change. Jesse discusses "identity-ba

Why AI Makes the Approval Process More Important Than Ever, with Meredith Bailey

Take the free Creative Ops Assessment at www.infocusconsulting.net/assessment Show Notes AI keeps getting better at producing creative content, faster and at higher vol

Why Creatives Are Their Own Worst Enemies - with Jess Abdulnour

In-house creative teams often have no idea how their work is performing. No data, feedback loop or connection between the assets they're producing and the business outcom

The Identity Shift Every Creative Leader Has to Make - with Tyler Mitchell

When your output is no longer the work: that's the shift that defines creative leadership. But most creatives who move into leadership roles struggle to make it. They sti

Creative Hiring Requires Creative Recruiters - with Steve Potestio

Most companies' hiring systems weren't designed for creative work. Internal recruiters don't usually have the creative industry expertise to evaluate tone, craft, or cult

Making RACIs Actually Work - with Elissa Strell

RACIs are one of the most fundamental frameworks in creative operations, but most teams struggle to make them work. In this episode, creative ops leader Elissa Strell bre

People Before Process: Building Creative Ops at DoorDash - with Shannon Duncan

Shannon Duncan, Chief of Staff for Marketing at DoorDash, explains how to build creative operations that scale with hyper-growth without becoming bureaucratic. She shares

Stop Taking Orders, Start Asking Questions: Stakeholder Whispering with Bill Shander

Bill Shander, author of Stakeholder Whispering, explains how to shift from reactive execution to strategic partnership by uncovering what stakeholders actually need befor

What Going In-House Taught Me About Stakeholders - with Jen Perry

Why do creatives assume stakeholders don't care about good work, while stakeholders assume creatives are precious artists who can't handle feedback? That fundamental misu

How To Bridge the IT-Creative Divide and Get the Infrastructure You Need - with Lisa M. Watts

Why do some in-house creative teams thrive while others get caught in an endless cycle of being brought in-house, then outsourced, then rebuilt, then eliminated again? I

How To Make DAM Management Actually Work with Phil Seibel

Why do some DAM implementations transform how teams work while others become expensive digital filing cabinets that nobody trusts? In this episode, Phil Seibel of Aldis

Why Your Failed Creative Ops Initiative Deserves a Second Chance (And How to Know When)

We've all heard the quote about insanity being "doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results." It's often attributed to Einstein, which makes it fee

Setting the Stage: In-House Studios with Lauren Jensen

Most creative leaders think asking for a smaller budget will help them get approval for a studio. They're wrong. In this episode, Lauren Jensen of Provost Studio explains

Embracing Risk with Tim Bradley

Jesse speaks with Tim Bradley, founder of Pennant Video, about why in-house creative teams tend to play it safe and what that caution costs them over time. Tim shares ins

The Great Mandate Debate

In this solo episode, Jesse tackles a question that comes up constantly with in-house creative teams: should there be a mandate requiring stakeholders to work with you in

Navigating Change with Priya Shah

In this episode, Jesse speaks with Priya Shah, CEO and founder of Shah Squared Consulting, about one of the most frustrating challenges for in-house creative teams: getti

Building Agency Partnerships with Joel Kaplan

Jesse speaks with Joel Kaplan, founder of MK3 Creative, about how in-house creative teams can build stronger, more productive relationships with external agencies. Joel s

Trailer

Welcome to the Creative Ops Compass podcast!