You worked for over a decade as a project manager and head of digital – and in 2020 made a surprising pivot to become a producer at a company creating animated series. What sparked that change, and what did that transition give you?
Yeah, looking at my CV, it might seem like a bit of a plot twist – but it made perfect sense for me at the time. I’d been in the digital world for years, but I’ve always had a deep love for cinema. I studied film at university, and that passion never really cooled off.
When the chance came up to join a studio and work on an animated series as a producer, I took it. It was an intense ride – balancing creative ambition with real-world constraints, aligning writers, publishers, and creative teams, and making sure everyone was telling the same story, just in different ways.
What I gained from that time was a sharper sense of how to use storytelling as a business tool – not just for reviewing scripts, but for working with people. It taught me how to bring creative and strategic minds together, how to listen differently, and how to lead without defaulting to process. And I brought all of that back with me when I returned to agency life.
You’ve led workshops on storytelling in film and animation. How does that apply to business conversations?
It applies more than most people think. Storytelling in film isn’t just entertainment – it’s neuroscience. A well-told story triggers dopamine, oxytocin… the chemicals that make us care. And that’s just as true in a pitch meeting or strategy session as it is in a cinema.
In business, if you can tell a good story – one that frames the problem, builds tension, and lands on a meaningful resolution – you’ve got a serious advantage. It helps you inspire your team, align with clients, and drive change. I truly believe that whoever understands storytelling has a secret weapon in business. Because you’re not just managing work – you’re shaping how people feel about it.
Your team brings together web content, performance marketing, and brand portals. That’s quite a mix. What are the biggest challenges – and how do you grow a team like that?
The challenge is to let each team stay true to their strengths, while also creating bridges between them. We do this through shared rituals, transparent planning, and a lot of open dialogue. I don’t believe in one-size-fits-all management – people need different things to do their best work.
So I focus on building confidence, cross-team curiosity, and ownership. Once people feel secure and inspired, they naturally start collaborating and pushing for better solutions. And that’s where growth happens – both for the individuals and the team as a whole.
You’re a certified agile leader (PAL I). How does that influence the way you lead your team?
For me, agile leadership is about building clarity, ownership, and adaptability – not enforcing sprints and checklists. I want people to feel trusted, to have the space to experiment, and to feel like they’re part of shaping how we work.
And we can’t ignore the AI elephant in the room. AI isn’t coming – it’s here. We already use it daily, whether we realize it or not – in email tools, doc suggestions, research, even project tracking. So I don’t think it’s about “introducing” AI anymore – it’s about recognizing that we’re using it and becoming more conscious, confident users.
The great thing is, Admind really gets this. We have a dedicated strategy and a dedicated team focused on how AI can evolve our business. But there’s one thing AI won’t do: lead with empathy. That’s still on us. And as leaders, our biggest job is to understand what our people need, help them grow, and make sure they feel seen – not just managed.