Nick Law on Breaking Down Silos and Fostering Creative Collaboration

On this episode of Tame the Mobile Beast, host Tom Butta dives deep into the challenges of breaking down business silos and fostering creativity with Nick Law, Creative Chairperson at Accenture Song. 

Throughout their conversation, Nick and Tom explore the importance of aligning what matters to customers with what drives profitability for the business. Nick argues that “ You're not making business decisions separate from what's good for the customer, and you're also not making  customer decisions that aren't gonna be good for business.”

Together, they emphasize that a unified approach not only fosters a more cohesive customer experiencem, but also strengthens the organization as a whole. Nick points out that while operating in silos is a natural step of scaling your organization, it can create costly inefficiencies and jeapordizies a collaboration that is rooted in shared vision and principles. 

Drawing on real-world examples from his own career, Nick reflects on how businesses can adapt to technological advancements without sacrificing empathy and creativity. Ultimately, he urges organizations to remember that technology should enhance, not replace, the nuanced human judgment that’s essential for delivering exceptional customer experiences.

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Guest Quote

" The hardest thing is to reverse engineer everything from your customer. Now, it doesn't mean by the way that we surrender to everything the customer wants, but don't run a business. We're always a business. But what you need to align is what's relevant for the customer with what's gonna make you money. There’s an overlap there. It's not a silo. You're not making business decisions separate from what's good for the customer, and you're also not making customer decisions that aren't gonna be good for business. So that's the trick.” – Nick Law

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Time Stamps 

00:53 Introducing Nick Law and the Beast of the Week

01:17 Understanding business silos

02:56 The importance of collaboration in creativity

06:45 Designing effective collaborations

12:46 The role of vision in breaking down silos

18:50 Principles vs. practices in creative work

23:13 Leadership and vision in organizations

26:14 Customer-centric business strategies

29:17 Balancing systematic and empathetic thinking

38:45 The future of creativity and AI

44:59 Rapid Fire Questions

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Links

• Connect with Nick Law on LinkedIn
• Check out Accenture Song
• Connect with Tom Butta on LinkedIn
• Check out the Airship Website