Speaking the Art of Business: Creatives Edition.
In 1981, America's top CEOs, through the Business Roundtable, put out a statement saying “corporations owe a good return to shareholders, but also real attention to customers, employees, suppliers, and communities”.
In 1997, they reversed it. Shareholders came first.
In 2019, 181 CEOs signed a new pledge "rediscovering" stakeholders. Researchers later found almost none of them changed how their companies were actually governed.
That's not reform. That's a rebrand.
Those of us in marketing and in-house creative roles have been living in the gap. We're asked to build brands around "our people are our greatest asset" while watching talented colleagues get cut after record quarters. Employees see through it. So do customers.
What I've learned in many years across agency, in-house, and consulting: a brand isn't what a company says about itself. It's the culture people experience. You can't have a real brand without real reform behind it.
The good news is that this isn't just a moral argument. It's a business one.
Companies that invest in people keep them. Turnover is expensive, and the knowledge that walks out the door never shows up on the spreadsheet that justified the cut.
Consistent culture creates consistent brands. When employees believe in the company, customers feel it at every touchpoint.
Creative risk drives growth. Companies that only fund what's guaranteed end up looking like everyone else.
Trust compounds. Brands that live their values build loyalty that can't be bought with a campaign.
So what does this mean for marketing and creative teams?
We have to become bilingual. Hold onto the values that make great work possible, and learn to speak the language leadership responds to. Not to play politics, but to translate what matters into terms that get heard.
What that looks like in practice:
Make your results visible. Quiet, faithful work gets overlooked in cultures that reward visibility. Track your wins and share them.
Translate creative strategy into business terms. Don't just say a rebrand will "feel more modern." Show how it supports retention, customer loyalty, market position, or revenue.
Learn what keeps your CFO up at night. When you understand their pressures, you can frame your ideas as solutions instead of costs.
Build allies across departments. Change rarely happens alone. Find the people in finance, HR, and leadership who share your values.
Know your non-negotiables before the pressure hits. Decide in advance where your line is so you're not deciding in the moment.
Being bilingual doesn't mean changing what you believe. It means changing how you say it, so it actually lands.
If you want to build your bilingual muscle…
here are a few of my personal recommendations:
Chris Do and The Futur, for learning to talk about creative work in terms of value, pricing, and business outcomes. While he mainly focuses on independent designers, his information helped me tremendously in navigating the corporate space.
The Angry Designer podcast, for no-nonsense conversations on the business side of design and what it takes to build a career that lasts. A little cathartic, but more like your big brother giving you some tough-love.
James Victore, for keeping your creative courage and voice intact while you do it. He helps you discover your North Star as a creative and helps you stick with it.
Seth Godin, Linchpin, for making the case that the people who bring art and humanity to their work are the ones companies can't replace.
Blair Enns, The Win Without Pitching Manifesto, for positioning yourself as an expert rather than a vendor. A super quick read, but something you can study.
Rory Sutherland, Alchemy, for making the case that the most valuable ideas often don't look logical on a spreadsheet. He also appears on podcasts and panels and helps you think outside the box while inside the box.
