Summary
How can you recognize and harness all forms of leadership within a team operating in a fast-paced environment? This talk will explore the strategies to identify and leverage both visible and invisible leadership in teams formed quickly to deliver high-impact work. Using the example of the Photoshop AI team, which developed the Generative Fill feature just months after being assembled, Briana will discuss how to cultivate a culture that elevates all contributors. Learn how to foster and sustain an environment where every form of leadership is valued, leading to extraordinary transformations in your organization.
Key Insights
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Silent leaders drive impact through action and intimate advocacy, not always vocalizing in large groups.
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Understanding individual team members’ strengths and working styles fosters an environment for high-quality work.
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Comparing product design to a restaurant kitchen highlights the behind-the-scenes coordination essential for successful outcomes.
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In fast-evolving fields like generative AI, having a clear mission and list of 'don’ts' prevents chasing shiny objects.
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Collaboratively building a team mission helps ground efforts and align multi-disciplinary stakeholders.
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Design leaders can embody metaphorical roles (gardener, farmer, forger, delivery driver) to contribute uniquely to team success.
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Protecting focused work time while encouraging collaboration is critical in fast-paced innovation projects.
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Amplifying diverse leadership styles within a team cultivates growth and results in world-class products.
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User trust is maintained by enhancing existing workflows and providing creative control without disruptive changes.
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The Photoshop AI team’s work influenced broader Adobe product strategies by establishing core UX principles for AI integration.
Notable Quotes
"Silent leaders prefer action over words and advocate in more intimate settings."
"Product design and development can often mirror what happens in a chef’s kitchen: lots of coordination and spinning plates behind the scenes."
"We had no recipe, no formula, just vibes, and some mystery box of ingredients."
"I simply asked the team about their strengths and needs instead of figuring it all out on my own."
"We decided to let it rip with clarity about who we were as a team and what we wanted to achieve."
"Dana and Davis weren’t seen on stage at Adobe Max, but you felt their impact throughout the experience."
"Michael became our farmer maintaining a steady flow of the team; Dana was our gardener cultivating quality work."
"As the delivery driver, my role was connecting the dots, getting briefs, and sometimes saying no to lofty requests."
"We didn’t chase shiny objects; we gave creatives access to tools to inspire the future of creativity."
"The Photoshop AI design team fundamentally changed how Adobe products incorporate AI technologies."
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