How I Inspire…

Leadership: Building Trust as a Player/Coach

Leaders Eat Last: Cultivating a Circle of Safety

My leadership journey is deeply inspired by the "Leaders Eat Last" mindset, which centers on cultivating a Circle of Safety. My primary role as a leader is to protect my team, clear obstacles, and ensure they have the resources and psychological safety to thrive. When people know their leader has their back, they commit fully, focusing their energy on our shared mission rather than internal pressures.

I consider myself a player/coach – I lead by doing and working through problems alongside my team. It’s about being in the trenches with them, ensuring we're all in the same boat, rowing together, and keeping each other afloat.

  • When I suddenly became a manager at Hitachi Solutions after an acquisition, I inherited 10 new team members, all working as individual contributors in various areas. To bring clarity and structure to this newly formed team, I went back to basics, defining a clear RACI matrix for everyone. This wasn't just about assigning tasks; it eliminated confusion, boosted productivity, and ensured each person understood exactly how their role fit into the larger puzzle and the significant value they brought to the organization. This foundational clarity allowed us to build trust and operate with much greater efficiency from the outset.

  • During my tenure with Hitachi Solutions, my team grew 20% and had a 100% retention rate during my 3+ years with the team.

Strengths-Based Leadership: Unleashing Confidence

While creating a safe environment is foundational, unlocking individual potential requires a different lens: strengths-based leadership. My approach focuses on identifying and amplifying what people do best, believing everyone has unique talents waiting to be leveraged. I truly subscribe to the "Ideal Team Player" mentality of being humble, hungry, and smart. This approach helps me empower my team while I continue to grow and learn myself.

  • During the team transformation at Hitachi Solutions, I strategically paired team members into smaller "crews" based on their strengths and skillsets (e.g., Digital Development, Demand Generation, Editorial). This wasn't just about assigning tasks; it was about positioning individuals where their natural talents would shine, leading to higher engagement, better performance, and consistently delivering award-winning creative.

  • This resulted in faster turn around times on creative projects, reducing production times by 50%. The crew leaders would grow into management roles allowing for career paths and promotional requirements to be defined.

My Approach in Practice: Strategic & Nimble Execution

So, how do these big ideas translate into leadership magic? For me, it's about rolling up my sleeves and diving headfirst into strategic and operational excellence. I love untangling complexity, whether it's crafting a killer brand strategy, understanding market trends, or fine-tuning creative engines.

The Art of Brand Strategy

  • I am truly passionate about brand strategy because it merges understanding human behavior and emotional connections with creativity. Brand identity is foundational, but brand voice and brand personality are what truly bring a brand to life. It's about creating a human connection and telling a compelling story, leading with your 'why'. Branding done right uses visual design and storytelling to connect directly with your target audience.

  • At ModuleQ, I drove the go-to-market strategy, including persona mapping and product growth, which directly impacted our brand's market reputation. I also led a full brand relaunch, developing a new brand identity system in under eight weeks. This involved translating leadership's global brand vision into actionable guidelines that resonated across new, broader markets. Similarly, at Hitachi and Paylocity, I built and launched refreshed brand and visual style guides, ensuring consistent brand identity and elevating their reputation.

Creative Problem Solving

  • My design process is deeply rooted in User-Centered Design (UCD) methodology, focusing on a deep understanding of the user. It's a pragmatic balance of business, technical, and customer requirements to achieve optimal customer experience. My four-phase design process involves: defining the problem, extensive research (sponge mode!), creative execution (starting with sketches!), and iterative refinement through continuous feedback.

  • I'm a design thinker who's passionate about creative problem-solving, even when faced with high-pressure situations or ambiguity. For example, when art directing photographers across the globe for Boeing's Frontiers magazine, my UCD principles guided me to over-communicate needs and provide clear, consistent direction. I've also navigated situations with tight turnarounds, like a last-minute employee communications booklet, by proactively outlining multiple action plans to temper expectations and ensure delivery. I embrace a "sponge mode" when entering new cultures or facing uncertainty, asking questions until clarity emerges and absorbing as much information as possible to find the best path forward.

Data-Driven Impact

  • I am a firm believer that you can’t manage what you don’t measure. I don't just love a beautiful design; I love knowing it's working hard for the business. This means embracing a data-driven approach to campaigns and operations, constantly seeking insights to optimize performance and demonstrate tangible ROI. I lead with a level of strategy that's perfectly balanced with strong, meticulous execution – a combination I've been told is rare for a creative leader!

  • At Hitachi Solutions, I built a robust inbound and outbound marketing engine. At ModuleQ, I significantly increased first-call bookings from 0-1 to 7-11 per month within three months through targeted account-based email marketing. I constantly monitor KPIs like web traffic, CTRs, and conversion rates, and always ensure I understand attribution models to accurately report on my team's ROI. This dedication to continuous improvement and effective tooling (including rolling out nine new MarTech tools at Hitachi) helped us gain recognition as a top Microsoft Partner for Digital Marketing Excellence.