I recently spent a lively couple of hours discussing a DAM issue with a colleague. Freedom’s focus is DAM implementation, and because no two clients (and no two DAMs) are identical, we talk a lot around here. As we each posed questions it became clear we were again, quite literally, speaking different languages.
I’m from the creative side. I use most of the Creative Cloud apps + Quark. I’ve scanned swipes, reviewed selects, processed RAW files, and attended more all night press checks than I like to remember. I’ve ordered gobos for runway shows, compiled comps for presentation, and assembled mood boards.
My colleagues regularly throw out terms like these in work conversation: Java, REST, Web Services, Continuous Integration. And phrases like these:
• “Lucene supports fuzzy matching out-of-the-box.”
• “We probably need to tune the JVM settings to improve application performance.”
It’s not unusual for us to exchange docs with “huh?” comments in the margins.
As easy as “left-brain” or “right-brain” labels would be to apply, individual experience is what really dictates the differences in our styles and terminology. As challenging as overcoming and understanding those differences can be, it’s a worthwhile endeavor. Because we know that both sides are crucial to the success of our client DAMs.
There are often multiple solutions to a single issue, and to arrive at the optimal one requires input from the teams using the DAM as well as the ones building the DAM.
Designer, imagine a developer trying to figure out the logic behind Job_Working, Job_Final, Job_FINAL, Job_FINALFINAL, or why you have an entire folder of inspiration scans on your desktop that have nothing to do with any job but have to be available to you. Or that although you have 2,400 images from your last photo shoot and you are using only three, you have to keep the remaining 2,397.
Developer, try explaining to a creative team working 12 hours a day that a “critical severity” issue doesn’t just mean really, really important. Or how tricky field mapping can get with inconsistent inputs.
It’s tough to learn a new language, acquire new skills, and adapt to a paradigm that differs from your own. We’ve invested considerable time and patience spanning the chasm between CreativeSpeak and TechTalk. Freedom can facilitate communications between both sides of your organization to ensure your investment in a DAM actually does make creative work more efficient.
And that leads to a very welcome phrase in a third language called BusinessJargon: while providing ROI for the C-suite.