Meet Arcadian Adrian

In Melbourne’s vast coffee sipping, city slickin’, Nike wearing, espresso martini drinkin’ landscape we have Arcadian Adrian.

Here at Arcadian Digital, he’s the self-starter, our number one man, the top dog and just recently, a father. We like him a lot.

It takes a lot of grit and grace to start your own company. Many have started and many have folded in, especially on these competitive and trendy streets of Melbourne.

We asked him a few questions about running a business and life for your scrolling pleasure…

Hey Adrian, How did you come up with the name Arcadian?

A semi-long winded explanation, but I believe tech and marketing hinder businesses as it’s often overcomplicated. The digital landscape in business is often tricky to navigate and detracts focus from key business operations so I wanted to fix this by simplifying the digital aspect of a business. I read somewhere that Arcadian means a pastoral paradise and as I always explained tech in business as a digital landscape which is something I wanted to fix, a company named after a perfect landscape seemed fitting. Although describing it 5 years on seems somewhat disconnected 🙂

What’re the biggest changes you’ve seen in the last half-decade in the industry?

I think what is expected from digital service providers has changed from a true outsourced provider to a more of a collaborative effort between two companies. Even as short as 5 years ago there was a big disconnect in what most people understood with digital marketing, web development, and web applications, but the gap is closing. Companies and in-house staff are becoming more aware and require more of an extension of their team along with specialised support rather than purely outsourcing a business function.

Companies are also savvier in their digital budget allocations – the days are gone of massive budgets with no proven returns and fluffy business cases. Companies require a more concrete understanding as to how what they are building will benefit their business. Digital service providers like Arcadian are moving towards becoming digital business consultants rather than traditional digital agencies.

How much time do you spend on things that don’t add customer value?

I think everything adds customer value in some form or another. Working with staff internally, having a coffee with clients about their internal challenges (which we aren’t directly involved in) and even working on Arcadian’s internal processes all add customer value, directly or indirectly. If we optimize a process internally and then six months later a client has a similar challenge I can share that experience, so I think everything we do helps us grow which in turn lets us share that with others.

Same goes just catching up with a client for a coffee, their personal or professional challenge may not directly relate to anything we are doing but understanding how people we work with on a daily basis think and make decisions allows us to understand our industry and business better and provide a better service at Arcadian.

Do you walk the talk?

Haha – I try to. As much as possible. I still code a lot each week and keep up to date with new technologies, although I’m sure the guys here carry me. I keep up to date with marketing trends and results across all of our clients even if I am not the point of contact. I’ll never ask anyone to do anything I wouldn’t do myself both internally at Arcadian and with clients.

I try to lead by example and not be lazy, so generally, if I talk about something I’ve tried and tested it or experienced it through a company we’ve worked with.

If you weren’t running Arcadian what would you be doing?

I wanted to be an accountant. I love numbers – my favourite time of the year is tax time. I’m heavily involved in the stock market and property and I love being able to measure things, so an accountant was always my second choice.

Are you getting enough sleep with a baby boy at home?

Amazingly I think so, which I feel a little guilty saying. My wife Mikayla and I have a pretty good supportive routine with each other so we both get at least 6 hours a day, which is nice. 

Any advice for self-starters out there?

Don’t be lazy and don’t be scared. To do well in this industry is not easy. It takes more than a few weeks to master things in a wider sense of the word, so don’t quit and just keep pushing through. You’ll find that there is a point, whether three months or three years after you start, where you will have that ahhhaa moment and everything will click and come together. It’s definitely worth it and technology will be driving the world forward, so learning and investing in yourself to grow in this space is invaluable.

Thanks, Adrian, we’ll let you get back to work now.