With a decade in his role with NOW Digital and a background in coding, Tony, in his role of Head of Strategy, is well-placed to facilitate digital discovery for new and on-going clients. We ask Tony some questions relating to his role.
What does your typical day involve at NOW Digital?
A typical day is unpredictable in that in the morning you might be leading a workshop aimed at defining the next version of a retail commerce journey, which might be followed up with a sales presentation pitching a multi-year digital transformation; with the day closing out in research or planning mode for a discovery project that is starting soon.
With an ever-expanding portfolio of clients and team members, we are always looking at ways to enhance and improve.
A big part of my role at NOW is to be on top of what all of our clients are dealing with and how we can support them. It is really important for NOW as a client partner, to be proactively researching and understanding trends and bringing these personalised ideas to our clients.
Discovery workshops are integral to plan solutions. How do you ensure participation and great outcomes?
The discovery workshop really is an opportunity in which you can set, communicate and agree on the direction everyone will be taking.
The key is to make sure the right mix of people are in the workshops.
There is a chance that you do not get that engagement with participants – which makes my job tougher – but this is where your experience really comes to the fore, to be able to ask the right question at the right time.
It is always amazing to see when people start asking your questions for you and it really is an art form to know when to interject and when to stay silent and let the conversation evolve and grow.
You can see they are learning something new and important just by being able to talk to colleagues they may not have any dealings with.
How do you maintain a competitive edge with your strategies?
Knowledge is key.
The edge that we have (on the benefit we can provide) is first-hand exposure to a variety of clients who work across a broad set of industries.
I really believe that organisations are in ‘competition’ with the experiences that ALL customers (and users) are having with ALL brands – not just your own or one that is entrenched in similar industries.
Take the learnings (and the mistakes) that have come before you and iterate – tailor them to the opportunities on hand and continue to make them better.