When I joined Snap back in 2017, Snap Ads were still being positioned as “3V advertising.” The three “Vs” (which now seems as ancient as dial-up internet), stood for “vertical video views,” spoon-feeding a format (and mindset) shift to the horizontal, 30-second TV spot marketing community. On top of that, most brands viewed AR as a novelty to make you barf rainbows.

Fast-forward several years (and as Snapchat became all growns up), our creative conversations shifted drastically. Vertical mobile ads became the industry standard, and AR proved to be a creative’s new playground. No longer were we fielding questions about specs and best practices — instead, we were getting asks for big ideas, new products, and AR innovation. Thanks to this growing demand, Snapchat Brand Lab was born, a team whose goal was to bring first-mover ideas and opportunities to key partners.

After successfully launching Snapchat Brand Lab, I had the opportunity to help launch another new team at Snap - Platform Creative Strategy. In short, “PCS” creates scalable packages and strategies for the greater Creative Strategy team to take to clients.

A non-marketing speak way of thinking of it - say Creative Strategy was like Jon Snow, out on the battlefield pitching ideas and strategies to clients. Meanwhile, PCS was more like Sam Tarly, back in the Citadel Library filling the shelves with strategies and packages.

While starting new teams at a growing tech company is a big challenge, it proved to be an incredible growth opportunity. As one of the founding members of both teams, some of my key responsibilities included:

• Team Charter - laying the foundation for the team’s vision

• Strategic Roadmap - prioritizing important work and opportunities

• Creative Programs - brainstorming new-to-market ideas and opportunities for top clients

• Team Goals - staying accountable for team OKRs and benchmarks

• Brand Workshops - helping facilitate collaborative creative workshops with brands