Creative people, creative culture: lessons from Future Decoded 2018
It feels good to be creative, doesn’t it? Whether that means mixing up how you work, collaborating in flexible ways, or tackling challenges on the fly. I, for one, love the feeling of experimenting with new technology and seeing where it takes me.
But this blog isn’t just about me. At Microsoft, we believe that every person has creative potential. And that businesses need to help their employees find ways to flex their creative muscles. This is the inspiration behind our devices. And it’s also a key inspiration behind our annual Future Decoded event.
2018’s event took place at ExCeL, London, on 31 October and 1 November. It provided two days of top level keynotes, breakout sessions, and networking, as well as an action-packed expo. If you joined us, you’ll have explored exciting innovations in healthcare, transport, and fashion. You’ll have watched our digital artist bring portraits to life. And you’ll have danced to the sounds of the Surface DJ. Above all, you’ll have learned how the latest Microsoft devices can boost creative outcomes and make people more productive. Let’s recap.
Modern Workplace
If you joined us, you’ll have also spotted the Modern Workplace area right in the middle of the exhibition space. The idea behind the Modern Workplace is simple: creativity isn’t the preserve of the elite few. It’s there inside everyone, in every business. And it’s not just about being artistic. It’s about having the ability to innovate faster, solve problems in a new way, and make ideas a reality. Enter the Microsoft Surface range. Read on to learn how it can help businesses unlock their creative potential and digitally transform.
Stories from the Modern Workplace stage
The agenda was absolutely packed with great speaker slots, and it would have been impossible to catch them all. I’ve pulled together some of my favourite stories from business leaders who have used Surface to achieve great things.
How Steelcase harnesses the power of space
“To come up with great ideas, you need an eco-system of spaces that help you go through the ebb and flow of the different stages of creativity.” That’s Annemieke Garskamp of Steelcase. Annemieke gave an inspiring talk about how, as professionals, we are making the shift to the workplace of the future. She talked about how creativity is not just for geniuses; it’s a process you can stimulate with the right space and technology.
She talked about the power of co-creation too. “The best co-creation areas have lots of space. Space to walk around and use technology. Space for people to interact with each other,” she explained.
As it stands, though, Annemieke says that 61% of business leaders don’t think their company’s creative enough. It seems like our collective shift has a long way to go.
How Glug enables communal creativity
We also heard from Ian Hambleton of Glug. “Something’s changing in our industry. And it’s down to new tech that’s revolutionising the way people work.” He started off by introducing the exciting new term of notworking. Ian Hambleton dreamed up the term as a way of describing the kind of networking that happens when a bunch of creatives get together in the same space.
Like Annemieke, he talked about how the industry is changing. And he thinks it’s all down to the new technology that’s available. However, he noted that people are putting barriers in the way of their own progress. “People do perceive barriers when purchasing new technology,” he said. “And most of those are down to lack of information and education.”
How Stitch empowers freelancers and employees alike
“We’re seeing lots of companies wanting to create their own co-working spaces. They’re viewing it as a great way to bring creative inspiration to the table.” Fran Danczak took to the stage with fellow Stitch founder Nick Gubbins to talk about the key role flexible technology plays in the modern workplace.
“When people can freelance from home flexibly, companies can take advantage of diverse viewpoints and fresh pools of talent they might otherwise have missed,” Fran said. “Thanks to devices like Surface, being creative is no longer the preserve of ad agencies,” she added.
Fran and Nick also noted how tools like Skype and Teams are fundamentally changing teamwork. And how easy, online collaboration enables spontaneous interactions. Which, in turn, breeds creativity.
How Social Chain recruits the best talent
Alex Ayin of millennial-powered Social Chain shared his views on getting the right people on board for his business. “The technology a company offers can have a huge bearing on the talent they attract.” In his opinion, it all starts with offering up to date technology that lets people do their best work. But it doesn’t stop there. From regular staff recognition, to giving employees the chance to be as creative as they can possibly be, Social Chain knows exactly how to empower its team of 20 somethings.
What’s more, their culture of collaboration comes naturally, be that on client projects or in day to day team communication. It probably won’t surprise you to learn that Alex and his team aim to always be “first, fearless, and ever-changing.” Nor that the Social Chain HQ boasts a jungle room, a train carriage, and a pack of pet dogs.
Advice from our experts
The link between culture and creativity was also a hot topic for our Microsoft speakers. At the event, lots of our own people took to the stage to share insights and advice.
“Over the years, Microsoft has completely changed the way people work. But our transformation isn’t done, it’s continuing.”
Chris Roche, Surface Evangelist
Chris shared his top tips and tricks for turning Surface devices into creativity rock stars. First, he explained how setting up a Surface device for business use is really easy. Then he ran through a few features that can make users more productive. Did you know:
- The Surface Pen can be configured for both left and right-handed users. Meaning you can really optimise individual workspaces from an ergonomic perspective.
- You can save time by scribbling notes down with Windows Ink, then immediately converting them to text. You can even copy and paste them into different documents.
- With the Whiteboard app, people work together with images, links, doodles, and information. Great for ideation sessions and keeping things creative.
- When you don’t have time to make things look pretty, PowerPoint Design Ideas will be your new best friend.
If you didn’t know all of that, now you do.
“When it comes to security, there are two types of culture.”
Nick Lines, Product Marketing Manager for Office 365
Nick knows all about keeping devices and businesses as safe as possible. In fact, he’s of the opinion that there’s no point doing great work if your devices aren’t secure! So, it didn’t surprise me that he chose to share his views on the ideal security culture.
“There are two types of businesses. The first hopes everything will be alright. The second takes proactive actions to avoid things going wrong,” he said. He then went on to explain how security is layered in to all Surface devices.
He also explained how getting technology right is only half the story. Educating end users is the other half. If you want to embed security within your workplace culture, you need to make it easy for them. “Your employees want to do the right thing, but not at the cost of their productivity or creativity,” he summarised.
Learn more
Unlock creativity in your organisation
Did you miss out on Future Decoded? I’ve pulled together another blog about the event, which focuses on how better tech can benefit your business.
Of course, you might also like to take a look at the Surface shop to explore our latest range.
About the author
Sally Elliott is a creative marketer and has worked within Global IT for 20 years. Specialising in productivity and helping organisations understand the future of a modern workplace, she is an evangelist for flexible working and unlocking the creativity within all of us. Sally now leads the go to market strategy for the Microsoft Surface UK Business which sees her helping business understand how to get the most out of their employees; by providing the spaces to inspire them, the technology to enable them and culture for them to do their best work in the way that suits them.
