Nathan Pieratt

Workshop: Thursday, June 1 | 1 p.m.

"Smashing Silos - How to Change the Marketing vs. Creative Mentality"

The 'Us vs Them' mentality between marketing and creatives has become a serious business problem. Strategy is being developed without synergy between the teams, and creative concepts are being compromised. Campaigns are at serious risk of not meeting business goals. The best work is being sabotaged by preferences, poor processes, and a lack of trust. 

Today's marketing mix will not tolerate this mentality. Now more than ever marketers are expected to create dynamic content in support of integrated marketing campaigns. Success requires strong leadership and healthy relationships between teams. It is a non-negotiable. Of course, this is easier said than done. 

Creative Directors, Jamie Henretta (Lowe's, Dickey’s Barbecue - WVU IMC Class of 2016) and Nathan Pieratt (The Marketing Arm, Epsilon,Impel.io - WVU IMC class of 2013), breakdown this battle royale and provide best practices on how to smash silos and disrupt the disconnect between marketing and creative teams. 

Takeaways:

How to identify the stress points between teams 

How to influence creative synergy between teams 

Tips for breaking down silos 

Team building techniques vs forced fun 

How to leverage performance data for ideation/inspiration 

Bio:

With over 20 years of experience in the marketing industry, Nathan Pieratt has worn all the hats: graphic designer, art director, creative director, head of marketing, office janitor, and Santa Claus for the office party. He has worked on big-budget campaigns with large agencies and major brands like Dr. Pepper, Frito-Lays, and AT&T, and he has been in the trenches with SMB/B2B sales teams and start-up founders, bootstrapping and bulldogging. It's the best job in the world. 

Credentials: Over-educated. MFA in Graphic Design from SCAD MS in Integrated Marketing from the WVU 

Specialties:  Leadership: Team building, leading, motivating, and inspiring 

Creative Strategy: Customer journey, branding, integrated marketing campaigns, touchpoint strategies, user experience, storytelling 

Rolling up sleeves: Proficient in all things Adobe, the production process, copywriting, video, audio production, photoshoots, sourcing vendors  

Teaching: Over 17 years of teaching marketing and design online.