A computer nerd, designer, and DJ, Cameron “Cam” Adams is the co-founder and Chief Product Officer of Canva, the game-changing online graphic design platform that’s transformed how people create and share visuals. In 2012, Cam co-founded Canva alongside Mel Perkins and Cliff Obrecht, and depending on which paper you read, the company has a current valuation of about US $50bn. As CPO, Cam steers Canva’s product vision, ensuring its tools stay fresh, innovative, and user-friendly. When he’s not changing the world of design, Cam is mixing on his turntables as a DJ, exploring his creative side through music. Cam is also dedicated to making a positive impact on the world through his work with sustainability and social initiatives, including his involvement with Wedgetail, an organization focused on conserving and restoring biodiversity through sustainable investment. During this episode of "Experts Unleashed," Atlassian's Dom Price chats with Cam about why colliding interests can bring out innovation, how to best scale an organization (gracefully), and the responsibility leaders have to leave a positive impact on the world. They discuss how to avoid “innovation theater” by allowing people to explore their interests at work, the personal growth journey of a co-founder, and how AI can help democratize the world. The stories and practice advice Cam shares of his lived experience taking a company from zero to 5,000 people over 12 years will inspire you! They also discuss the "My User Manual" Play from Atlassian's Team Playbook. It's an exercise designed to help leaders share with their teams and teammates HOW they work. Think of it like this: when you buy a TV, it comes with a User Manual. But when you hire a human, there's no such helpful guidance. Cam takes us through his User Manual and shares how he finds balance through the intersection of different interests like design and music. More about Experts Unleashed: The world feels full of thought leadership and frameworks, when we’re actually hungry for lived experience, science, and pragmatic insights. Experts Unleashed seeks out amazing minds from their specialty fields and brings them to you, to unleash their wisdom in a way that will help you put it in action. Each episode aims to educate, provoke, inspire, and then activate… to give you the confidence to try someone new. In this episode: My User Manual Play: https://www.atlassian.com/team-playbook/plays/my-user-manual More about Cameron Adams: https://www.themaninblue.com Cameron Adams LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/themaninblue/ Giving away your Lego article: https://review.firstround.com/give-away-your-legos-and-other-commandments-for-scaling-startups/ About Atlassian: Behind every great human achievement, there is a team. From medicine and space travel to disaster response and pizza deliveries, our products help teams all over the planet advance humanity through the power of software. Our mission is to help unleash the potential of every team. Connect with Atlassian: Subscribe: https://www.youtube.com/@Atlassian Follow Atlassian on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/atlassian Follow Atlassian on Instagram: https://instagram.com/atlassian Follow Atlassian on X: https://twitter.com/atlassian Follow Atlassian on Facebook: https://facebook.com/atlassian Chapters: 00:00 – Introduction 01:50 – Welcome Canva co-founder and DJ, Cameron Adams 02:39 – Finding balance through design and music 05:10 – Finding your confidence as a DJ 06:45 – Intersecting skillsets and innovation 08:49 – How do encourage idea collision 13:13 – Avoiding innovation theater 18:09 – Innovating in a large company 21:30 – AI and intersecting skillsets 24:40 – Scaling gracefully 27:35 – You can’t scale others without scaling yourself 31:10 – Identifying long-term ownership 36:01 – Where does Cam find inspiration? 43:27 – Having a positive impact on the world 46:50 – The role of a leader in making a positive impact 50:37 – The Canva Foundation

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