“You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backward.” Steve Jobs
This quote resonates with me deeply, and connecting the dots is something I’ve focused on throughout my career. I lead operations at Elevation Marketing, where connecting the dots is a daily theme in supporting the agency, teams and clients.
Each year, AIGA AZ hosts Phoenix Design Week in the Valley of the Sun. The audience includes the Arizona creative and design community, along with attendees from around the country who come to learn about the latest design trends and educational.
At the recent conference, I led a breakout session on “Connecting the Dots.” The talk explored how structure and creativity work in tandem to bring ideas to life. We examined how past experiences, the right people, and solid operations empower bold creative work. Attendees learned how to reframe operations as a powerful tool for achieving their vision.
My presentation covered three key areas.
Past Experiences & Connecting the Dots
We all have past experiences, and in the moment, we don’t always know how they’ll connect with our present or future.
I recommend mapping these experiences to “connect your dots.” Why? Because it supports critical thinking, innovation and problem-solving by synthesizing disparate pieces of information into a meaningful whole.
Connecting those experiences builds understanding of complex systems, enables better decisions and fosters novel ideas by revealing patterns, relationships and the “big picture” that wouldn’t be apparent in isolated data points.
Your Team & Their Dots
After you connect your own dots, look at your team’s dots. Whether you’re a team of ten or a hundred, everyone brings unique experiences. By understanding your team’s dots, you can spot gaps to fill with additional resources, education and support.
Operations to Bring Your Creative Vision into Reality
Incorporating the connected dots is part of thinking about operations in a different way to bring the creative vision to reality. I believe in looking at operations in the “gray” rather than “black and white.”
Thinking in the “gray” refers to moving beyond rigid choices and processes to embrace complexity, nuance and ambiguity. Instead of seeing decisions as strictly “good” or “bad,” or issues as either “solved” or “broken,” it acknowledges the interdependent, multifaceted nature of modern operations.
By connecting your dots, your team’s dots and solid—but flexible—operations, you can bring your organization’s creative vision to life.
About the Author
Caroline Fuller — VP of Agency Operations
Caroline has 20 years of marketing and advertising experience on global brands in New York, London, Cincinnati and Phoenix. She spent the majority of her career in Account Services at agencies including BBDO, Ogilvy, Digitas, McCann and Elevation Marketing.
A few years back, she pivoted to operations roles for teams, brands and companies. Her passion is leading integration across teams to drive effective collaboration and strategic creative business impact. She enjoys tackling complex situations and making them better, while partnering with others to understand the full view of what’s needed for success. Connecting the dots is the fun of it all.
Caroline is currently the VP of Agency Operations for Elevation Marketing, a global full-service B2B marketing agency in the greater Phoenix area, and also serves as the VP, Volunteering for AMA Phoenix.
