Creating a Culture of Innovation:

How Businesses Used the COVID-19 Pandemic

To Change the Future Workplace

Nicole Pieper

University of Minnesota – Twin Cities

Capstone Project – Spring 2021

M.S. in Scientific and Technical Communication

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Table of Contents
Abstract.................................................................................................................................... 3
Introduction............................................................................................................................... 4
Key Questions ........................................................................................................................... 4
Background and Literature Review ............................................................................................... 5
Methods ..................................................................................................................................10
Discussion ...............................................................................................................................11
Conclusion...............................................................................................................................15
References ..............................................................................................................................16
Appendix 1 ..............................................................................................................................18
Appendix 2 ..............................................................................................................................19
Appendix 3 ..............................................................................................................................21
Appendix 4 ..............................................................................................................................22
Appendix 5 ..............................................................................................................................23
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Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to explore how companies used creativity to adapt to the remote work

environment, due to the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic lockdown. The information in this paper can

help technical communicators understand how audiences have changed the way they are consuming

information, learn how creativity is essential in the field of technical communication, and recognize how

the pandemic has shaped the future workplace – all of which will help technical communicators in

connecting with audiences and performing their jobs more effectively and efficiently. This paper examines

literature on the pandemic’s influence on the workplace, the creativity and innovation process, how

businesses innovated to meet the needs of their customers, personal interviews with employees across a

variety of industries on their experience with the changing work environment, and finally how these

innovations will impact the workplace of the future. My analysis shows that companies got creative in the

way they communicate with employees and clients, which unexpectedly strengthened relationships.

Employees struggled with the new remote work environment, so companies made it a priority to help

employees find a new balance and create virtual socialization opportunities, in order to avoid employee

burn out. My analysis concludes with the argument that companies being forced to work differently during

the pandemic has forever changed the future workplace. The virtual environment has changed the

mindset of businesses in the way they operate with employees and their c lients, spurring creativity and

the start of a more innovative culture. It is important now more than ever for technical communicators to

understand their audiences, to learn how to adapt to a virtual work environment, and to prepare for the

future.

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CREATING A CULTURE OF INNOVATION

Introduction
When the COVID-19 pandemic (“pandemic”) hit and lockdowns first took effect, the majority of

businesses had to rethink the way they operate, to account for an entirely remote workforce. Businesses

had to get creative to engage with their employees and invent new ways to serve their clients. Employees

who had gone into the office their entire work lives now had to pivot to learn how to work from home. The

pandemic forced businesses and employees to think differently about the way they work, which provided

an opportunity for creativity and the start of an innovative culture. The information in this paper can help

technical communicators understand how audiences have changed the way they are consuming

information, learn how creativity is essential in the field of technical communication, and recognize how

the pandemic has shaped the future workplace – all of which will help technical communicators in

connecting with audiences and performing their jobs more effectively and efficiently.

In this paper, I explore how companies and employees have adapted to a virtual work

environment, beginning with a description of my key questions. Next, in the background and literature

review section I examine key research papers and articles related to the pandemic, the creativity and

innovation process, and specific examples of companies using innovation, due to the pandemic. In the

methods section I explain how I conducted personal interviews, in addition to a content analysis. This

section is followed by a discussion of themes that emerged out of the literature review and interviews. My

paper ends with a conclusion of what today’s technical communicators can learn and apply from this

project and how the future workplace has been forever changed because of the innovative thinking that

came out of the pandemic.

Key Questions
How has the remote work environment forced companies to get creative in the way they operate? How

has communication changed between businesses and employees, among teams, and with clients? How

are businesses fostering a culture of innovation in a virtual environment? How are technical

communicators using creativity in their roles? How are these changes affecting the future workplace?
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Background and Literature Review

Increasing T echnology
It’s no surprise that a virtual work environment required businesses to invest in new technology or us e the

technology they already had in a different way. In their 2020 article titled Changes in Digital

Communication During the COVID-19 Global Pandemic: Implications for Digital Inequality and Future

Research, Nguyen et al. state:

During the first months of the pandemic, industry reports showed that digital media use

tremendously increased as people spent more time at home due to coronavirus lockdowns. Such

increases were especially prevalent for social media and messaging apps, but particularly

remarkable was the unprecedented uptake in video conferencing apps and programs. (Nguyen,

et al., p. 1)

In addition to video conferencing technology, social media also saw a large uptick in usage. Over the past

year, the number of social media users grew by more than 13% globally, which equates to more than 15

new users joining social media every second.

Figure 1: Infographic of social media use around the world.

Source: Kemp (2021)
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CREATING A CULTURE OF INNOVATION

In addition to an increase in users, the time spent using social media also increased. In a 2021 article

titled Digital trends 2021: Every single stat marketers need to know, the author wrote

The typical social media user now spends 2 hours and 25 minutes on social media each day,

equating to roughly one waking day of their life every week. Added together, the world’s social

media users will spend a total of 3.7 trillion hours on social media in 2021 – equivalent to more

than 420 million years of combined human existence. (Kemp, 2021, sect. 1)

Because people are regularly using social media, often as their first touchpoint when starting their day,

they are using social media in a new way – to get their news, make online purchases, and conduct

research. According to Kemp, nearly 45% of global internet users now say they turn to social networks

when looking for information about products or services they’re thinking of buying. Businesses must now

take into account social media as a way of reaching customers, whether it’s through advertisements in

selling products and services or through education and branding.

Creativity and Innovation

Navigating a virtual work environment calls for creative thinking. How businesses cultivate creativity and

change the mindset of their employees begins with understanding the innovation process. But first, we

need to understand the difference between creativity and innovation. In their 2020 paper titled How to

Respond to the COVID-19 Pandemic with More Creativity and Innovation, Cohen and Cromwell define

creativity and innovation as follows:

Creativity and innovation refer to 2 different stages of the same underlying process. Creativity

involves producing novel and useful ideas to solve a problem, and innovation involves

implementing and refining those ideas to create a tangible product, process, service, or

technology that an end user can adopt. (Cohen, Cromwell, 2020, p. 1)

Innovation occurs when you take creativity and turn it into action. For the purposes of this paper, I will use

the definitions of creativity and innovation provided by Cohen and Cromwell.

Creating an environment where people feel free to voice their ideas and collaborate with peers is

essential to the creativity and innovation process. An ideation event is one of the ways companies can

provide an environment that promotes creativity and innovation. Ideation events allow employees to test
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new technology, think about pain points in their jobs and how they can do things differently, and

brainstorm ideas with other employees. BrightIdea, for example, is a tool that helps companies facilitate

such ideation events. Used by more than 300 leading global brands such as Accenture, Cisco, GE and

MasterCard, BrightIdea is the leading software for managing employee ideas to cultivate creativity and

spur innovation throughout organizations, in a virtual computer-mediated way that doesn’t stifle creativity.

A virtual environment is ideal for ideation events, as the fear of participating is reduced when people are

able to submit ideas anonymously.

As environment is essential to the creative process, it’s important to know that there are two main

roadblocks to creating an innovative environment: (1) leaders don’t understand what innovation truly is,

and (2) leaders don’t promote the behaviors that are required to create an innovative environment.

Innovation requires playing outside of the rules to change the game and take risks to experiment,

however business leaders generally tend to want employees to follow the rules. In Notter’s article on

building a culture of innovation, he provides concrete examples of how leadership can promote a culture

of innovation as follows:

All you need to do is identify the processes, structures or technologies that could be either

changed or created to naturally push people toward the practices of innovation. If you want more

experimentation, then make that a company priority and start tracking metrics. Have every

manager report up two numbers at the end of the quarter: how many experiments they ran and

what percentage failed (note that if all your experiments succeed, you’re not learning anything

new, therefore you’re not doing them right). (Notter, 2021, paras.10-11)

How T echnical Communicators Use Creativity

Technical communicators use a great deal of creativity through the rhetoric they use and the way

information is presented. They must be creative in seeing through the eyes of their audience to determine

the best way the content will resonate with their audience. Technical communicators must also be

creative in presenting information in a way that makes it appealing and interesting to users. In their 2015

study on creativity in technical communication, Zhang and Kitalong found that technical communicators

were motivated by a desire to invent and address problems creatively with solutions to four components
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of rhetorical invention: (1) thinking like a user, (2) reinvigorating dry content, (3) inventing visual ideas,

and (4) alternating between heuristic and algorithmic processes.

Technical communicators must put themselves in the shoes of their audience in order to produce

quality content. The more technical communicators are able to think like their users, the more original,

useful, and appropriate the content will be for the situation. Part of thinking from a user’s perspective is

also considering all audiences that may come into contact with the information or who needs to know;

therefore, some rhetorical creativity is used in writing technical content so it is stated simply enough that it

can be read and understood by a more general audience as well. Further, the rhetoric must be

appropriate for the communication channel that users and audiences use. For example, technical content

sent in an internal communication will be written much differently than a social media post.

Making seemingly dry content interesting is yet another way technical communicators exhibit

creativity in their daily jobs. Ideas technical communicators should consider when trying to help audiences

connect with technical content include incorporating pop culture into articles, using words that people

generally perceive positively, and personalizing articles with a fun learning experience. Creating visual

aids is another great example of technical communicators displaying creativity and connecting with their

audience. Visual aids can be anything from graphics and photos to the design of an article or even

choosing to use a video message rather than text to communicate information to users.

“Today’s technical communicators are creative because they have the skills to invent original

solutions that address complex communication problems,” (Zhang, Kitalong, 2015, p. 199). Alternating

between heuristic and algorithmic processes is a fancy way of saying that technical communicators are

problem solvers and need to decide which approach to take – heuristic being a unique approach to each

situation and algorithmic being a repeatable model following a step-by-step process. In Zhang and

Kitalong’s study, one participant said she started each assignment by asking herself the same series of

questions, therefore using an algorithmic process by using the same process every time. However, the

question process is iterative and therefore makes it more heuristic. Technical communicators must use a

combination of both problem solving approaches in order to find the correct solution.
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How Businesses Innovated

To prepare for my interviews, I conducted research on how businesses have innovated during the

pandemic. Amazon focused on developing health technologies, such as a fever-screening, and using

voice technologies to provide coronavirus-related information to consumers. Amazon also created Alexa

skills that teach users how to make face masks and how to disinfect surfaces. Similar to Amazon, Apple

also focused on healthcare technology related to the pandemic by partnering with the Centers for Disease

Control and Prevention, the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the White House to bring

symptom-checking technology to voice, mobile and the web. Google continued to innovate to serve its

clients and address new customer needs that have come out of the pandemic. For example, Google

made it easier for its customers to search for local restaurants and stores and for restaurants to

communicate real-time information with their customers, (Wunker, 2020). Google Cloud Research

Innovators is a new program Google developed to help build recognition and credibility within the

research community by helping established—and next generation—researchers maximize their impact

with Google Cloud. The technology seeks to speed up breakthrough discoveries, increase collaboration,

and deepen support for publications, funding, and tenure.

The tech giants certainly invested a significant amount of time and resources to respond to the

global pandemic, but what have small businesses done to stay afloat during such a challenging time? The

New York Times reported examples of small businesses that creatively adapted to the virtual environment

to fundamentally change their businesses for the better. For example, Eric Levitan started a virtual, small-

group strength-training fitness program for seniors, which was conducted live with a certified instructor.

Alexi and Brendan Coffey addressed the surge of interest in indoor plants with a virtual business based in

New York City to help people become successful plant growers. When many small businesses perished,

the businesses that innovated were able to thrive.

According to a recent study of 600 small businesses conducted by OFX, over 71% of small

business owners believe that their business has an opportunity to emerge better and stronger

after COVID-19. Nearly half said that they are expanding, not cutting, their sales and marketing

efforts. Clearly many of these business owners are finding new and creative ways to grow their

businesses. (Curtis, 2020, para. 2)

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Methods
In addition to the literature research I conducted for this paper, I also interviewed innovation and

emerging technology personnel from a variety of industries in small to large companies. Personal

interviews were conducted between March 18 and March 22, 2021 using virtual meeting technology such

as Zoom, Webex, and Google Meet. This research project was reviewed by the University of Minnesota

Institutional Review Board (IRB) under STUDY00012340, and the IRB determined this project as “not

research involving human subjects as defined by DHHS and FDA regulations.” The identities of

participants and the companies for which they work for will remain anonymous, and will be referred to as

follows throughout this paper:

Participant Industry Interviewee Title

One Technology giant Senior Program Manager (IT)

Two Technology consulting/staffing Owner

Three Photography IT Specialist

Four Financial services and consulting Innovation Communications Director

Five Financial services and consulting Technical Editor

Table 1: Description of interviewee participants.

Number Question

Q1 What changes have you seen in your company since the COVID-19 lockdowns first took
effect?
Q2 How has your company been more creative in the way it communicates with employees?
With clients? More creative in general?
Q3 How has your company thought outside the box, specifically in regard to the virtual work
environment?
Q4 How have you changed the way you work?

Q5 How does innovation play a role in your job? In your company?

Q6 What does the future look like in terms of work? Digital transformation?

Table 2: List of interview questions asked for each interview.

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Discussion
Communicating Creatively
The first theme to come out of my literature research and personal interviews was the emphasis on

communicating differently with employees and clients. Businesses quickly innovated to implement new

technology systems, with video meetings being the number one priority. An unexpected outcome of the

virtual environment was that video meetings made employees feel even closer to their coworkers than

they felt prior to the pandemic. Participant One expressed how the virtual environment put everyone on

common ground: “I was remote before the pandemic, so now everyone suddenly was on the same footing

as me. Now everyone is a floating head on the screen, so it’s easier to not be left out and is actually more

inclusive.” Participant Four shared how her workplace used the pandemic as an opportunity to be

inclusive as well, by offering accelerated training programs to everyone in the company in an effort to

digitally “upskill” their people (i.e., teaching them more advanced skills about technology), specifically with

respect to understanding blockchain technology. Her company took what normally would have been an

in-person training course for select employees and instead created an on-demand training program open

to all employees, to take at their leisure. Rethinking the delivery of this training not only invited everyone

to the table but saved the business money by not incurring travel expenses. Participant Four said the new

communication approach for training worked so well that they plan to use the same training model for

future digital-upskilling programs. Participant Four’s company also held ideation events as a way to get

employees to test new technologies, brainstorm and collaborate with peers, and contribute to the

company’s innovation efforts. The ideation events were communicated to the company in a new format,

using an internal social-media platform to post video advertisements from leaders, as a way of promoting

these events in a more interactive way.

Although employees felt more included and had more learning opportunities, and communication

was meeting employees where they were, there was also a clear need for businesses and employees to

communicate regularly about the pandemic, as changes occurred. Participant One said his company got

creative in generating a company thermometer. Employees would submit their “temperature” on a scale

of one to ten on how they were feeling about the pandemic. The COVID thermometer provided insight to

company leaders, so they better understood the needs of their employees and could address them. One
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outcome of this exercise was that leadership realized the financial burden employees were experiencing,

so the business decided to give its employees $1,000 to spend on creating home offices. Participant

Three’s company held weekly company-wide virtual meetings for executive staff to share information on

changes to their business and provide an open forum for employees to ask questions. In addition to

weekly calls, an intranet hub and coronavirus hotline were created internally, which included updates from

the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention regarding procedures for photographers to follow. An

external coronavirus resource hub also was created for clients. Participant Three said:

We proactively reached out to our customers to help the community find and embrace joy and

connections in this time of isolation. We emailed customers and posted links on our website for

tips on how to stay in touch with friends and family, fun indoor activities, work-from-home tips,

and shared uplifting stories submitted by our customers to keep them inspired and connected.

Connecting with Clients

Businesses also changed the way they communicated and connected with clients. Because of this,

Participant Five’s perspective on client relationships evolved. “The pandemic has given us a purpose. We

aren’t just selling our services anymore. There was a crisis that we had to help businesses through and

work together and collaborate because of the urgency,” said Participant Five. The pandemic created a

mass amount of uncertainty for businesses. Becoming an adviser to clients to walk them through the

pandemic was an unexpected need that arose, and Participant Five’s company was ready for the

challenge, developing guides for their clients on the questions companies should be asking and how they

should reevaluate their business, as the COVID-19 vaccine is deployed, the economy bounces back,

customer spending increases, and interest rates rise.

What businesses connect with clients on has changed, but also how they are communicating with

clients has changed. Participant Two said her business always had Zoom video calls with clients, prior to

the pandemic, but what was surprising to her was that her company started texting clients . Texting

allowed for quicker and easier communication with clients, as opposed to sending a formal email.

Because of this communication change, Participant Two said:

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Our recruiters are getting to know our clients and candidates much better and on a more

personal note. You learn more about people and are more open about life right now, as everyone

is learning to be more flexible and find work-life balance.

Participant Four shared a similar example of getting to know clients on a more personal level:

One of our partners started having virtual meetings with clients over meals. He ordered lunch or

dinner to be delivered to his client’s home, as a personal touch and for us to stand out.

Sometimes clients’ families would even join their calls, so they connected on a human level t hat

wouldn’t have happened before the pandemic.

F inding Balance
As employees pivoted from working in a traditional office environment to learning to work from home, it

quickly became apparent that there no longer were defined “work hours.” Many employees found it harder

to disconnect, therefore working longer hours. Participant Four shared that her workdays are now

between 10 and 12 hours long, which has caused her to start thinking differently about her role in the

future. “I’ve realized there is an opportunity to automate the way we work, to save time for work-life

balance. The real question then will be, what people will do with that extra time.” At this rate, businesses

realized their employees were quickly burning out, so they started encouraging employees to take time off

for “staycations,” to take breaks throughout the day, whether these breaks were taking a walk or

exercising between calls, or simply doing a load of laundry or dishes. Businesses have realized the

importance of employees maintaining a healthy work-life balance. Participant Two said:

A majority of the population has liked the flexibility of working from home and we’ve become

better people because of it. Finding balance makes you a better parent, a better spouse, a better

employee, and more innovative. We’re all finding a new balance together, so people are more

understood in the workplace now.

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Virtual Socialization
An unexpected outcome of the pandemic was strengthening relationships between coworkers and clients.

Businesses are going out of their way to ensure employees are connecting with one another not only on

work matters, but socially as well. Companies have been encouraging teams to hold virtual events, such

as team happy hours. Participant One’s company sent employees bubble tea and taco-making kits for

teams to cook together over video, inviting families to participate. Participant Four’s company partnered

with a winery client to host a virtual wine tasting, sending bottles of wine to employees beforehand and

then holding a live video meeting for employees to drink wine together after hours .

Despite the virtual environment, relationships were strengthened between coworkers. Participant

Two said:

I’ve noticed better relationships within our internal team, because people are getting to know

each other on a different level. They are getting to see kids and spouses during video meetings,

and people are understanding that we’re all human. We’re getting to know more personal things

that you wouldn’t share before, and it’s made the team better because of it.

Not only are businesses prioritizing social interaction internally, they are also making such interactions a

priority within their communities. Participant Four’s workplace continued the firm’s stewardship tradition of

helping local communities by dedicating two months to virtual volunteering to help small businesses in

need and connect with youth and seniors, during a time when they needed it most.

Embracing a New Normal

There is no going back to “normal” as before the pandemic. Instead, companies and employees are

embracing a new normal. Participant Four said “The lockdown forced us to pivot, and we’ve proven to

ourselves that we can do it. There’s no going back.” Other participants shared that their companies plan

to offer a hybrid work environment in the future, consisting of both remote and in-office work options. The

pandemic lockdown forced people to change their mindsets when it comes to work. Participant Two said

“Companies are realizing that change is okay.” Businesses have realized that not only can employees

work from home successfully, but they can even work from different states and still be productive.

Businesses have experienced employees moving to different states, or as travel started opening back up,
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CREATING A CULTURE OF INNOVATION

people would travel to different locations to stay with relatives for weeks at a time and still manage to get

their work done.

Figure 2: WordArt of themes that came out of research and interviews.

Source: Created using WordArt.com - Word Cloud Art Creator

Conclusion
Although the pandemic certainly had many negative effects on businesses, it also forced people to think

differently and spurred innovation. This thinking will shape the future workplace into a more inclusive,

collaborative and flexible environment, which will ultimately better businesses and their employees by

creating a culture of innovation.

Technical communicators can use the information in this paper to be innovative in their work, to

understand how users have changed the way they are consuming information so they can adapt content

accordingly, and to change the game by thinking of creative ways to better connect with audiences. The

workforce of the future has forever changed. It is important now more than ever for technical

communicators to understand their audiences, to learn how to adapt to a virtual work environment, and to

prepare for the future.

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CREATING A CULTURE OF INNOVATION
Interview with Participant One
Senior Program Manager (IT) working for a technology giant.
Theme Key Findings
Communicating Creatively
Virtual Socialization
18
Appendix 1
 People were on same footing as me, becoming remote. Now
everyone is a floating head on the screen, so easier to not be left
out – made it more inclusive.
 Pandemic fatigue – submit temperature of 1-10 on how you’re
feeling and one word to get a feel of how everyone is feeling and
leadership uses that and creates a word map.
 Created a workshop to work and lead virtually – training to learn
how to conduct large meetings effectively – use breakouts in
Google Meet, so a few people aren’t dominating the
conversation, then put overall notes in a central Google doc and
facilitator shares notes with larger groups.
 People question why meetings exist – 5 types of meetings –
some are to give announcements, work on stuff, clashes when
don’t know purpose. I do a quick pull at beginning of my meetings
now to ask what type of meeting attendees think it is, which
makes it more inclusive right off the bat.
 Company gave all employees $1,000 to spend on home office, to
help in adjusting to new remote environment.
 Everyone feels isolated so ways to establish human connection –
outside of meetings, virtual events and happy hours – across
entire team; sent out tea kits to make bubble tea at home.
Program manager team in January still had discussion and
activities, taco kits and made from scratch and sent margaritas –
interesting ways to still provide perks, like sending kits.
 I provide more advice and tips to my team on how to work
remotely.
 I realize I need to be more proactive about visibility with my team,
as there are no more hallway conversations, so I need to be
more proactive on checking in with them.

CREATING A CULTURE OF INNOVATION
Interview with Participant T wo
Owner of a small technology consulting/staffing company.
Theme Key Findings
Communicating Creatively
Connecting with Clients
Finding Balance
Virtual Socialization
19
Appendix 2
 Switched over to Microsoft teams before COVID hit, so glad we
did that so we have embraced utilizing teams as overall
communication throughout company – utilize channels and
collaboration and not having so much email. Teams has been big
for day-to-day and project collaboration.
 I’ve really embraced technology this year and have been leaning
on it more than I ever have. It’s been good for the company and
me and to realize the power of technology.
 I love new ideas and thinking of things differently. Staffing is kind
of a burnout industry. I’m encouraging everyone to take a break
to make sure people don’t burn out and to inspire creativity.
Making sure the team knows that I get it. You do need to reset
and come at it a different way. Sourcing for a candidate a
different way or different approach or reaching out to different
organizations and reset.
 Recruiters are getting to know candidates better and you learn
more about people and people are more open about life right now
and what they are looking for in terms of flexibility.
 We’ve always done a lot of Webex meetings, we’ve been texting
with clients now, as we’re all people on the go – our clients are
human too and have things to do so can’t expect them to
constantly be checking email.
 Clients have had to be open to remote candidates and my
company has to be diligent about the remote interview process to
verify who you’re talking to at every step in the process. We’ve
fed this to clients, so we submit a screenshot of Zoom call to see
who we are talking to, as we’ve seen a bait and switch many
times before with SME who does the interview and then someone
else shows up for the job, taking advantage of the virtual
environment so we changed our process.
 I’ve had to find balance this year with having the kids home and
being home – balancing everyone’s stuff – it’s not just me as a
leader of the organization. It’s about what do my employees have
going on in their lives that I need to be aware of and be sensitive
of, and being available to everyone. Balancing my work and
family and realizing its okay to do family things during the day
and work after 5 PM. I’m embracing the new normal.
 A majority of the population has liked the flexibility and we’ve
become better people because of it. Finding balance makes you
better, more innovative, a better parent, a better spouse to have
more balance and flexibility in life. People are more understood in
workplace.
 Seeing better relationships within internal team, people are
getting to know each other on a different level – getting to see
kids and spouse during meetings – people are understanding
we’re all human – getting to know more personal things that you
 20
CREATING A CULTURE OF INNOVATION

wouldn’t share before, but it’s made the team better. You start to
see everyone just teaming more, because they know people’s
personal commitments. You didn’t take the time before to
understand what’s going on – a lot more support and
understanding with what’s going on with each team member.
Embracing a New Normal  I think we’re just starting to see what things are going to look like.
I don’t think we’ll ever go back to how the workforce was in early
2020 – a thing of the past. Through innovation, flexibility and
digital transformation. Companies are realizing that change is
okay, especially in technology. Clients are realizing they can find
better talent if they’re open to remote options. Now they aren’t
settling with the best they can find locally.
 More companies are going to be open to remote and that hybrid
model of remote and in-person. What we’re seeing right now is
here to stay.
 I’m sure we’ll see Zoom and Webex type platforms enhanced
quite a bit in the future because there have also been so many
issues with it – not seeing people, people dropping off, freezing
video.
 We’ll start seeing enhanced technology and it’ll be part of the
norm. Our team uses Skype for interviews – have to work with
what consultants have. We’ll start seeing technology on mobile
devices.
 I think we’ll see a lot more around data protection – individuals
will start paying attention to this more. What browser you use
because they’re tracking you.
 Think about our healthcare – more and more healthcare visits will
remain virtual like wellness visits – training the older generations
on that.

CREATING A CULTURE OF INNOVATION
Interview with Participant T hree
IT Specialist at a large photography company.
Theme Key Findings
Communicating Creatively
Connecting with Clients
Embracing a New Normal
21
Appendix 3
 Created weekly “snapshot” company-wide virtual meetings for
executive staff to share information on changes to our business,
and also allow employees to ask questions.
 Created an intranet online information hub (website) to find
aggregated resources from public health agencies, tools and job
aids for using remote collaboration tools, look up HR policies, and
more.
 Created a dedicated Coronavirus helpline for specific questions
or help.
 Included employee photos submitted of our “new normal” in our
team meetings, to try and stay connected.
 CEO sends weekly Weekend Updates, positive thoughts and
ideas to help employees cope.
 Proactively reached out to our customers to help the community
find/embrace joy and connections in the time of isolation, by
emailing our customers and posting links on our customer
websites for tips on how to: stay in touch with friends and family,
links to fun indoor activities, WFH tips, post uplifting stories
submitted by our customers, post ideas to keep you inspired and
connected.
 Began offering 30 new products, including personalized masks
for children and adults, new puzzles, instant books, photo tiles,
new card designs specific to pandemic etc.
 Photographed school children when they picked up books and
school materials even though schools were closed, hybrid, or
fully remote. Payments from parents accepted online instead of
cash or checks, as was customary in the past.
 Created new “Snaps at Home” photography application for
smartphones for parents to capture their child’s images to then
submit for school yearbook photos.
 Direct quote from CEO during Feb 2021 all company meeting:
“COVID accelerated our ability to work differently.”

CREATING A CULTURE OF INNOVATION
Interview with Participant F our
Innovation Communications Director for a mid-size financial services and consulting company.
Theme Key Findings
Communicating Creatively
Connecting with Clients
Finding Balance
Virtual Socialization
Embracing a New Normal
22
Appendix 4
 Started offering on-demand learning for digital upskilling
programs on blockchain, open to everyone in the company now.
 Held virtual ideation events to spark innovative thinking and spur
brainstorming between peers, using BrightIdea.
 One partner started having lunch meetings with clients and had
lunches delivered using our own clients with him and his admin –
or a wine tasting at 5pm with clients – delivered to the individual’s
home as a personal touch and to have us stand out. Sometimes
the clients’ families would join their calls, as a way to connect on
a human level. As hard as conditions of lockdown were, there
were true benefits. He is an example of a best practice.
 Hours increased – working 10 to 12 hours a day. I’ve realized
there is an opportunity to automate the way we work to save time
and provide for more work life balance.
 This lockdown has obscured the boundaries between work and
home life. There are some significant issues brewing that will
need to be addressed over the next few years. The companies
who figure it out first and best will be the winners who are flexible.
 Minneapolis office partnered with one of our clients to host a free
virtual wine tasting event, open to all employees at the
Minneapolis office. They delivered wine to employees prior to the
event and then everyone hopped on a Webex meeting after
hours to learn about each wine.
 People have realized that productivity doesn’t suffer when people
are working remotely – big change in thinking. These traditional
old school partners who thought we needed to have butts in
seats to get billable hours, now they know it isn’t a prereq to
produce quality work – was an epiphany for our people.
 If we continue to look for ways to automate, the future will be
different and the new question will be what do we do with that
extra time that automating allows us?

CREATING A CULTURE OF INNOVATION
Interview with Participa nt F ive
Technical Editor for a mid-size financial services and consulting company.
Theme Key Findings
Communicating Creatively
Connecting with Clients
Embracing a New Normal
23
Appendix 5
 When you can talk to someone in person, it’s so much more
meaningful – you can use all of your senses during this
exchange, on video calls or phone makes it harder to take their
knowledge and perspective into an article. The final product is
going to be less than it would’ve been if you had an hour with
someone in person. It’s just a feeling you get. The creative
process is harder without being in-person, even though the
collaboration process has improved in the remote environment.
 Had an editorial summit before COVID last year to exchange
ideas – having this summit virtually this year. We are really losing
out on in-person connectivity, but we’ll be able to be really
productive and creative brainstorming will not be affected
because we’ve adapted. Webex sessions over the course of a
week. Idea bank on SharePoint for people to share ideas.
 Ideas are the currency. How can we get that idea so that
everyone can contribute to it and make it something. In general,
the collaboration we’ve been forced to adopt to video calls. If
we’re meeting more, the exchange of ideas is going to be
stronger and more variety in them too. We’ve had to learn to give
leeway to coworkers, and in that sense it applies to idea process
too. In an idea exchange you’re trying to listen, be polite and be
productive. It’s the idea process that’s innovative. Because
people are solution oriented and friendly, we have specialized to
people’s expertise. We’ve come to appreciate where everyone
shines.
 The pandemic has given us a purpose. We aren’t just selling our
services. There was a crisis that we had to help businesses
through and work together and collaborate because of the
urgency.
 I don’t feel compelled to return to the office. Take out drive time.
There is a convenience to working from home, when it comes to
the commute and where quality of life comes into play. When I
was commuting in my last job, it was great thinking time. Maybe
we can find a balance of commuting one day a week. My working
from home situation is good – I’m good, I’m fine. And I can get
my laundry done during the day. This all goes into quality of life. I
think it will be pretty good working from home. It’s important that
businesses realize that this isn’t the case for everyone. I hope
that everyone is able to find the right balance for them.