Necessity is the mother of invention

Inspired thinking

Firms are having to come up with new ideas to keep pace with change, so they must understand first how to inspire them.

First published in IN Magazine

IN Magazine asked Ignition’s CEO, Sam Rowe, alongside other leaders in the world of design to share their take on the link between creativity and innovation. In particular, how has Ignition capitalised on creative thought when the pressures of a pandemic have such an impact on the events sector and ways of working.

Below is an extract that includes part of Sam’s contribution.

Looking forward, we hopefully will continue to have the choice for hybrid working with the opportunity to collaborate face-to-face. With the sudden, dramatic imposition of ‘work from home’ back in March 2020, what were the consequences for creative design businesses?
Events and exhibitions specialist, Ignition, a company within the Istoria Group, a collective of creative agencies, proved the proverb: “Necessity is the mother of invention”.
“We work in the events sector so when the pandemic ‘hit’, we had to change our business offer rapidly and radically,” observed Sam Rowe, Chief Executive at Istoria Group. “Working remotely was difficult but we were able to quickly upskill and collaborate using digital tools. By June 2020, we were already introducing new virtual event solutions. We experienced a massive input of energy from our team and did successfully win new business during that time. It was great too that we subsequently received awards for that creativity.”
“It is amazing how adaptable people can be but, ultimately, we benefit from being able to gather in the office again. We go away to formulate ideas but then reunite to develop further.”
“Most of our people feel that they have been remote working for far too long. Natural collaboration always works better in an office environment. It is too easy for people to become ‘siloed’ and myopic within their work function. We are now back in the office for at least two days week.”
“Our studio is intended for designers from all our different businesses. This approach creates greater opportunities for collaboration, knowledge sharing and cross fertilisation from different sectors. We are an ‘ideas’ business – and must convert those thoughts into solutions. We find that it is more productive to get everyone together to problem solve and overcome difficulties.”
“Remote working has a role but interpreting body language and subtle nuances is difficult without being in person.”
An example of Ignition’s ability to adapt within the Covid-19 crisis was the design of a new virtual careers fair to replace the previous physical event. The company’s UK and US teams collaborated to develop the entirely virtual experience. The Junior Achievement (JA) JobSpark in Central Indiana in the US, introduced thousands of 8th grade students to potential careers across eight key industry sectors, represented over 100 potential employers. Additional events were held in 2021 and remains an ongoing project.
Another impressive virtual experience was for Pfizer’s Global Supply Chain. Held over three days, the event’s goal was to communicate the Global Supply Chain Vision 2025 to the company’s 500-strong leadership team in the EMEa region and to encourage delegate feedback to help interrogate, strengthen and refine that vision.

To read the full article, visit IN Magazine