Create Your First Project
Start adding your projects to your portfolio. Click on "Manage Projects" to get started
Project Chrysalis: IDEO COVID-19 Safety Protocols
Project Type
Internal Communications
Collaborators
Core Project Chrysalis team: Chris Draz, Christina Abele, Kim Powers, Bonnie Garland, Lorraine Clark, and Sally Sosa (Workplace Experience), Duane Bray, Laura Patterson, Chris Flesch, Julia Syrek-Jablonowska, and Michelle Lanza (Talent/HR), Matthew Gilman-Smith, Zach Clemente, Danny Baldanado, Jim Forsythe (Technology), Angela Barnes (Legal), Travis Lee (North America Leadership), Adimika Arthur (Communicable Disease Expert), with Zach Hobbs, Jarod Ryhal, and Tynan Collins (Communication Design)
Location
IDEO Global
Date
March 2020 - March 2023
When I started at IDEO as a writer on project teams, I never imagined I'd be penning COVID-19 policies on behalf of the company one day. But there I was, in March 2020, working alongside senior leadership and my global Workplace Experience, Talent, Technology, and Legal teammates, scrambling to figure out new rules, policies, and protocols to keep IDEOers safe as a deadly, confusing virus spread across the world.
One of IDEO's values is "Be Optimistic," which was challenging, especially at the start of the pandemic, but, as the head writer — and eventual project lead of Project Chrysalis (AKA IDEO North America's COVID Task Force) — I knew whatever we designed needed to be both serious about physical and psychological safety as well as optimistic and on brand.
I named our project "Chrysalis" because we were all stuck at home in our "cocoons" and would, hopefully, reemerge one day transformed by this historic moment. To balance out the serious and sober employee protocols, I playfully tweaked IDEO values to be more relevant to the COVID era ("Be Optimistic" became "Be Cautiously Optimistic" and "Talk Less, Do More" became "Touch Less, Wash More," etc.), which we turned into stickers, pins, and in-studio signage.
Cool swag and colorful signs aside, I'm most proud of Project Chrysalis because it was one of the first global, cross-functional creative operations projects IDEO had ever undertaken. It was essential that our Workplace Experience, Talent, Technology, and Legal teams worked closely with senior leadership to protect our employees and ensure business continuity during a critical, uncertain time. Together, we surfaced, synthesized, and shared best safety practices across our US and EU offices, streamlining efforts and reducing the cognitive load on front-line Workplace Experience and Facilities teams.
While I never imagined having to enforce change management solutions like wearing masks, maintaining six feet of distance, or wiping down surfaces, I'm proud of the imagination, heart — and occasional levity — we brought to an otherwise dark and stressful time. Most of all, I'm grateful the pandemic retreated, allowing us to emerge from our cocoons and spread our wings once more.
