ep14 // unLearning with George Shepherd – Process vs Creativity

What if strategy process is actually making the work worse? Most modern marketing leans on structure. Frameworks. Defined steps. Shared language. But what if the very systems designed to improve strategy are quietly holding it back? In this episode of brandLingual, we’re joined by George Shepherd, a globally experienced strategist whose career spans VML, BBH, Saatchi & Saatchi, Diageo, Nike, BBC Creative, and Lucasfilm. George has seen the industry at both extremes, from instinctive, hands-on planning to highly engineered strategy systems. And his perspective is clear: Too much process isn’t helping strategy. It’s getting in the way. In this conversation, we explore: • Why strategy process can sometimes weaken creative output • What the original role of planners looked like before systems took over • How “insights” became overvalued, overdefined, and overdebated • Why strategists often spend more time discussing language than doing the work • The tension between instinct and structure in modern strategy • How large organizations fueled the rise of process and why it persists • What today’s strategists may be missing when it comes to real training and experience Along the way, George shares stories from building Red Spider, working across global markets, and contributing to projects like helping Lucasfilm understand the cultural significance of Star Wars ahead of its relaunch. This is a conversation about unlearning. About stepping away from the illusion that more control leads to better outcomes. And about returning strategy to something more grounded: people, creatives, clients… and the work. If you’re rethinking how strategy actually works in practice, or questioning the gap between frameworks and real output, this episode offers a different lens. Because fluency isn’t about using more language. It’s about using the right language, at the right time, to actually get to the work. Connect with George Shepherd https://www.linkedin.com/in/georgeshepherd1/ Learn more about George’s MSc in Creative Advertising at Edinburgh Napier University https://www.napier.ac.uk/courses/msc-creative-advertising-postgraduate-fulltime brandLingual is more than a podcast. Explore courses, tools, and a global community of practitioners at: https://www.brandlingual.co 00:00 — Introduction: George Shepherd (From VML to Lucasfilm) 01:50 — The Question: What Have You unLearned? 03:00 — “Strategy Process Is Counterproductive” 04:30 — The Simpler Model: Consumers, Creatives, Clients 06:00 — When Strategy Was Instinctive (Not Systematic) 07:30 — Real Work vs Process: Early Career Examples 09:00 — How Process Took Over the Industry 11:00 — The Illusion of Control in Strategy 12:30 — Why Strategists Debate More Than They Do 13:30 — The Obsession with “Insights” 15:30 — Do Great Campaigns Even Need Insights? 18:00 — The Language Problem in Strategy 24:00 — Training Strategists: Then vs Now 30:00 — Staying Grounded in the Real World (Not the Industry Bubble) 32:00 — Global Stories: Japan, Red Spider, and Lucasfilm