Co-creating Co-creation

Post by Anna Johnston
May
06
2022

In April , we held our first Co-Creation event. The goal of this event was to discuss what co-creation really means to us individually but also as a team, and how we can leverage it within our new space. Over the last few months we have been developing the concept of Learning Out Loud, which mirrors our definition of co-creation. Indeed, it is a way of optimising our learnings together, by helping us to overcome boundaries in communication and team dynamics.

Our discussion

As a group we discussed the meaning of Co-creation, and listed the following findings:

  • Collaborating with each other to create valuable material, for ourselves and for our clients.
  • Using our personal creative skills to develop further professionally and to challenge each other’s areas of expertise.
  • Creating an environment in which external and internal events and workshops can take place, and more specifically the processes to achieve our goals within these, such as the development of hard skills, creative thinking, etc.

We explored the different learnings by digging deeper into the ways to implement them in a practical way:

  • It is important to acknowledge what creative activities we take part in professionally and personally, in order to push boundaries and actively explore our creative thinking.
  • We must be proactive in order to create these environments, as co-creation thrives through collaboration, open-mindedness and high energy.
  • The continuation of this co-creation must be managed by investing in further research into the topics explored, and to plan a way for them to materialise. This way, topical research is organic and education is ongoing.

Our learnings

One of the main objectives of our first event was not to simply create a unified vision of co-creation as a concept, but to explore our team members’ personal ambitions on how to make use of the space. Exploring and understanding these thoughts was important for the empowerment of each member of our team.

Our Learn Out Loud approach enabled us to co-creatively gather team ideas and figure out solutions around topical discussions for the future. The ideas and topics that were explored will be materialised in the form of events in the coming months, lead by our team members or guest speakers, industry peers or clients!

This space has been designed for everyone, within and outside of our organisation — Anna Johnston, Event Manager at GANDT

In pairs, we discussed industry topics that we will consider for future workshops, such as:

  • Are we entering an age of Data fatigue?
  • GANDT Tips and Tricks: the do’s and dont’s
  • Understanding the power of Tiktok and Gen Z
  • How to improve B2B brand awareness through social media
  • Current challenges in the SEA universe
  • Understanding the pros, cons and alternatives to GA4

Although we came up with topics relevant to our industry, I thought it was crucial to broaden our vision by brainstorming about soft skill development and other ideas such as:

  • How to influence and build a team culture?
  • How to thrive outside of our comfort zones?
  • How to be more creative in conversations with clients?
  • How to make personal creativity influence our creative minds in the workplace?

Our priority in our co-creation space is to make sure that the value we get from our discussions enriches our work long term. Indeed, we truly believe that these conversations must remain organic so that education is ongoing. By creating these environments in which ideas are explored and used as inspiration for future sessions, we guarantee the continuation of our learnings and diversify the opportunities that this space has to offer. This space is yours just as it is ours, so please get in touch!