Building a Firmwide Q+A Program @ Boulder Associates
Featured Guests
Todd Henderson, Principal at Boulder Associates
Webinar Summary
In Spring of 2016, Todd Henderson attended his first KA Connect conference where he heard a talk given by Jim Martin of Shepley Bulfinch on Shepley’s firmwide Q+A program, #AskFinch.
Todd realized that a Q+A Program on Boulder’s intranet, BiscuitNet, was just the knowledge sharing solution his firm needed. With support from Knowledge Architecture and an idea from the community, Todd and his colleagues successfully implemented a firmwide Q+A program, #AskBA.
Today, Boulder Associates has an average of 8 posts per month to the #AskBA hashtag.
In this recorded webinar, you’ll learn how Boulder Associates:
Established its firmwide Q+A program
Engaged top subject matter experts in knowledge sharing
Adapted a best practice to fit their culture
If you only have a few minutes, we recommend jumping to two highlights: Establishing a Firmwide Q+A Program (15:25) and Year One Results (24:39).
Synthesis Spotlight: Cross-Office Communication @ Shive-Hattery
Featured Guests
Amy Anderson, Marketing Information Coordinator
Webinar Summary
In 2017, Shive-Hattery’s employee survey turned up an actionable insight: Employees were beginning to feel disconnected from their colleagues due to geographical barriers. Firm leadership saw an opportunity to use Shive-Hattery’s intranet, SHare, to reconnect the offices and help fulfill the firm’s One Firm Vision.
Today, all seven offices are sharing news and announcements on SHare, and 30-60% of employees read 1+ office news post weekly.
In this recorded webinar, you’ll learn how Shive-Hattery:
Created a shared vision for change
Supported change agents with analytics
Incorporated change into firm culture
If you only have a few minutes, we recommend jumping to two highlights: Example Posts that Demonstrate a Range of Office Cultures (6:22) and Communicate the Vision for Buy-In (19:53).
Synthesis Spotlight: Improving Project Management @ CTA Architects Engineers
Featured Guests
Fran Quiram, Project Manager + Architect, CTA Architects Engineers
Webinar Summary
CTA's board set a BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goal) to increase the efficacy of their project management function. Fran and her fellow committee members took this challenge on, and the results have exceeded board expectations.
In this webinar, you'll learn how CTA got from BHAG to results by:
Creating a process for continuous improvement of project management tools
Defining project manager roles and responsibilities
Utilizing Synthesis to help project managers across 14 office learn and grow
If you only have a few minutes, we recommend jumping to two highlights: Accountability + Creating Alignment at (7:05) and Gather, CTA's PM Community on the Intranet, at (16:30).
Synthesis Spotlight: Behind the Scenes of DOWL's Operational Excellence Initiative
Featured Guests
Rachel Steer, Chief Administrative Officer, DOWL
Kristin Folmar, Quality Manager, DOWL
Webinar Summary
In 2016, DOWL launched an Operational Excellence (OpEx) program designed to improve project management, enhance client experience, and establish accountability across their 24 offices. DOWL leveraged their Synthesis intranet, The Point, to engage employees across the business in this critical initiative.
In this webinar, you'll learn how DOWL:
Established The Point as the center for content, communications, resources, and training related to OpEx
Developed a user-friendly home for OpEx which includes a graphical landing page linking to key OpEx resources, an OpEx FAQ, and introductory videos
Supported the launch of the OpEx initiative through a series of posts by key executives and project stakeholders
Continued the dialog through posts about new and updated OpEx resources, early wins, and #OpExStories
If you only have a few minutes, we recommend jumping to two highlights: Origin Story of the Operational Excellence (OpEx) Initiative (6:00) and Intranet Tour: The OpEx Community (16:34).
Launching Synthesis @ RS&H
Featured Guests
Jennifer Stutts, VP of Communications, Marketing & Strategy
Krystal Modigell, Marketing Communications Specialist
Webinar Summary
A couple years ago, RS&H was faced with a communications and information access problem.
Many of their 800 employees were struggling to find the information they needed to be effective and to understand what was happening across the business. At the same time, RS&H was preparing to onboard 200 – 300 employees. The management team knew they needed better infrastructure to support their growing workforce.
Today, they are meeting these fundamental business needs for 1,100 employees with Blaze, their Synthesis Intranet.
In this webinar, you’ll learn how RS&H:
- Introduced Blaze as the go-to place for “all RS&H” news and dialog
- Kept employee’s user experience at the center of their design
- Used SMART goals to maintain alignment with stakeholders
If you only have a few minutes, we recommend jumping to two highlights: RS&H’s Knowledge Management Objectives (8:50) and Best Practice 2: Focus on the User (18:40).
Synthesis Spotlight: Online + Offline Learning @ Payette
Featured Guests
Hilary Barlow, Architect and Community Manager at Payette
Webinar Summary
Payette is a design firm that specializes in the healthcare, health science, and academic science markets. Maintaining a competitive advantage in rapidly changing markets means that the Payette team must prioritize continuous learning and development. To maintain a competitive edge, team members must engage in a lot of continuous learning.
In her role as Community Manager for Payette’s Big Science Group, Hilary Barlow has answered a difficult question: What does learning look like for highly skilled professionals, many of whom are already experts in their field?
In this webinar, you’ll learn how Hilary:
- Identifies hot topics and good teachers
- Convenes the Big Science community
- Captures key learnings on Synthesis
- Engages community members in the process
If you only have a few minutes, we recommend jumping to two highlights: Introduction to Payette’s Knowledge Groups (9:00) and Big Science’s Monthly Meetings (14:00).
Launching Synthesis @ Fuscoe
Featured Guests
Jeff Stempson, Director of Information Technology
Brandon Norton, Senior Graphic Designer
Webinar Summary
This month’s Office Hours featured an intranet tour of Fuscoe Engineering’s Synthesis intranet, ARC. Launching a Synthesis intranet in the fall of 2016 was an important milestone in Fuscoe’s knowledge management journey. Highlights of the new intranet include:
- Analog Communities of Practice got a digital home
- Disconnected and siloed key information about employees and projects is now accessible to all employees in a single system
- Employees can now find fundamental information about how work is done at Fuscoe via a single, informative toolbox
In this webinar, Jeff and Brandon give a tour of Arc and share their insights on brand alignment and employee engagement. If you only have a few minutes, we recommend jumping to two intranet tour highlights: Engineering CADD Standards (21:40) and #AskARC (38:45).