About Lauren.
I'm Lauren Alcantara, founder of Bright Sharp.
I combine senior strategy expertise with visual thinking and creative methods to help organisations work through complex challenges, make better decisions and turn thinking into action.
I bring more than 20 years' experience across strategy, policy, reform, organisational change and implementation, including Senior Executive roles in the Australian Public Service.
My experience spans complex policy and organisational environments, major reform initiatives, strategic facilitation and stakeholder engagement, including working with senior leaders, ministers and decision-makers.
I draw on a range of creative and visual methods, including visual thinking and mapping, creative and participatory facilitation, LEGO® Serious Play® and graphic recording. The method follows the problem.
Alongside Bright Sharp, I'm also a practising artist (laurenalcantara.com) and non-executive director. Both continue to shape how I think about creativity, participation and approaching complex problems differently.
How I work.
Every engagement starts with the challenge, not a preferred method. I work collaboratively and pragmatically, adapting my approach to the people, context and outcome.
That might mean conventional strategic analysis and advice, facilitated conversations, visual mapping, participatory methods or a combination of approaches. Creative methods are used when they improve the thinking, participation or outcome, not for their own sake.