Oteh says technology goeshand in hand with creativity

AI will not replace creativity. “But it will massively accelerate the distance between those who wield it with intention, and those who don’t.”

This was the reassuring message from Accenture Song’s CEO Ndidi Oteh at yesterday’s session, Applied Creativity, in which she called for organisations to embrace creativity and technology as complementary forces.

Survival in the age of AI will depend on integrating both disciplines, Oteh said, stressing the importance of looking ahead rather than relying on past successes. Businesses must

adapt “fearlessly and relentlessly” to technological change if they want to remain relevant.

“We know that change is hard and we also know that it’s necessary,” she added.

“We know that there are things we don’t always want to do, but we have to do them. We know that if you don’t stand for anything, you will fall for anything and everything.”

Oteh said that companies should not choose between “art and science” or “human and machine”. While AI is transforming industries, it will not replace human creativity. But it will undoubtedly widen the gap between organisations that want to be “a part of what’s next” and those who will be left in the past.

Nick Law, Accenture Song’s creative chair person, echoed those views, noting that many tech leaders agree that creativity, judgement and entrepreneurship remain uniquely human strengths. He also noted that, while businesses invest heavily in technical infrastructure, they largely overlook the need to build “creative infrastructure”.

Law then presented findings from Accenture Song’s newly released report, Applied Creativity And How To Lead It.

According to the research, 81% of companies believe they can generate creative ideas, but only 16% convert those ideas into initiatives that drive growth. However, those companies that do so significantly outperform their peers on metrics including growth, customer attention and operating margins.

The study identifies three pillars for building creative infrastructure: commitment (“Act like it matters”), structure (“Build it to work”) and expertise (“Lead with creativity”).

Commitment involves fostering a culture that rewards creativity. Infra-structure focuses on organisational design and the processes that turn ideas into action. Expertise centres on leadership, particularly the presence of “visible and influential” creative leaders. Law stressed that the three elements are interdependent and that weakness in any one area

can undermine innovation.

Law pointed to Thomas Edison and Walt Disney as examples of the two sides of creativity: the inventive and the expressive. Edison created groundbreaking technologies — the light bulb, the phonograph, the microphone — but was less successful at predicting how his inventions would be used.

He envisioned the phonograph as a productivity tool that could preserve voices after death, yet its most enduring use became music.

“So when inventions collide into culture, the expressive people are the ones that figure out what people care about,” Law said.