Hacking the Future of Creativity

Les Joynes | Creativity Coach

Culture hacking is the art of shifting perception — using creativity as a system disruptor. As an innovation and creativity coach Les partners with creative teams and founders to translate provocation into agile strategy, engage systems thinking as a tool for creative disruption, design interventions that blend art, narrative, and tech, and prototype projects that engage collective imagination.

In a world driven by generative AI, immersive media, and cultural reinvention, creative leadership is no longer optional — it’s essential.

My time at the Bauhaus was pivotal as it showed me what we can accomplish across culturally diverse teams with different skillsets. I learned that it was possible to build teams that expressed multiple voices and energies. From leading Fulbright research and producing museum exhibitions in Asia to coaching founders at New Inc and the Columbia Startup Lab, my work connects art, technology, and transformation. Originally from Santa Barbara, California I studied art in London and Tokyo and later led cross-cultural projects in South Korea, Singapore, France, as a Fulbright Scholar in India, China, and Mongolia. Today, I coach at the intersection of imagination + innovation — partnering with creative teams to design futures that are visionary, resilient, and human-centered.

As a research scholar I hack knowledge across disciplines to build relational knowledge. Relational knowledge refers to understanding how concepts or systems relate to one another, rather than just memorizing facts within a single domain. It’s about connections — seeing how an idea in one discipline can illuminate or transform understanding in another. For example: seeing how entropy in physics relates to information theory or organizational decay in sociology or understanding rhythm in music as structurally analogous to periodicity in mathematics or pattern in visual design. This is metacognitive and integrative knowledge — where we can see relationships among frameworks, not just within them. In the arts I studied multimedia sculpture at Central Saint Martins and Musashino Art University Tokyo as well as contemporary art at Goldsmiths in London.

During my PhD and post-doc I examined cross cultural collaboration at Leeds Metropolitan University and the School of Art and Communications at University of São Paulo, Brazil. I also trained in global strategy during my M.Sc at Boston University and MBA at California State University. Coaching and mentoring was a way to draw together my experience in the arts and management and I trained in coaching at New York University and trained as an Entrepreneurship Mentor at University of London.

in the late 1990s in London I created FormLaboratory (FormLAB) as a collective - and collaborative space that generates ideas, possibilities and experimentation in and outside the studio. At the Bauhaus in 2008 I turned the studio inside-out and established FormLAB as a nomadic series creating project teams to ideate cultural hacks in museums and public spaces. This led me to create projects in Singapore (2009), France (2010), South Korea (2012), Brazil (2012-2013), Mongolia (2014-2016), China (2017), Russia (2019), India (2022), New Zealand (2025) and upcoming Bhutan (2027).

“Les is a phenomenal coach who influences how I think, plan, and act, to achieve my ambitions and maximize my potential. His methods combine creative and strategic problem solving techniques that ensure that the paths I define and choose simplify complexities and focus on the most important outcomes…” - Peter Sun | Consultant, McKinsey & Company

“Through our coaching sessions, I gained strategic tools to build professional clarity, set meaningful career and life goals, and cultivate a growth mindset—skills that are essential for the evolving future of work in the pharmaceutical industry…Les is an exceptional coaching partner. He asks insightful questions, listens with intention, and creates a thoughtful space for reflection and visioning...” - Cathy Chuang, US Marketing, Alzheimer’s Disease, Eisai Pharma, former Bayer AG.

“As a Creative Leadership Coach, Les understands how to effectively engage clients on their unique professional journeys. Each session is filled with "a-ha" moments of insight where I felt inspired and prepared to progress (with actionable steps and insights to reflect on) to achieve a range of creative professional projects and goals…"  - Dr. Chelsea Coon | Author Performance as Transformation through Endurance (Rowman & Littlefield)

“Coaching is recognized today as a value-add resource for international organizations, diplomatic communities and government working in multi-cultural environments. It is my pleasure to recommend Les as an experienced and thoughtful leadership coach. Experienced across thirty-five countries, Les works alongside leaders and teams to build strategic goals, team effectiveness, mission focus, and maintain work-life balance”  - Anthony Diaz | Chief, Political and Economic Affairs, U.S. Department of State and Political advisor to the US Mission to the United Nations

“As a venture capital professional, it's easy to get caught up in a daily routine and relegate career development decisions to our "someday" to-do list. A leadership coach, Les engaged unique approaches to align my professional and personal goals and work-life balance.” - Hugues Dongmo | Vice President, XBTO Humla Ventures, New York

“An active listener and coaching partner he demonstrates a unique ability to engage clients not only with coaching frameworks but also with a creative mindset which gives executives and leaders a vital edge in decision-making and planning.” Karsten De Clerck, Chairman, Free University of Brussels (VUB), Global Senior Partner Egon Zehnder