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Creating a virtual team headquarters to support strategic transformation
Success at a glance
SITUATION
Shaping the future of work
For more than 70 years, Jacobs has been solving the world’s most critical problems, transforming intangible ideas into innovative solutions. With $14 billion in annual revenue and a talent force of approximately 55,000, Jacobs provides a full spectrum of solutions for energy, defense, infrastructure, cities, health, advanced manufacturing, and space and national security.
When chair and CEO Steve Demetriou joined the company in 2015, he had a vision for building a culture of innovation, accountability, inclusion, and continuous learning, and he set that in motion with Jacobs’ 2016–2019 corporate strategy.
Then, in October 2020, in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, Jacobs entered a new phase of strategic transformation with expected benefits of $200 million. Called Focus 2023, the program is accelerating the adoption of digital technology across the organization and pioneering new ways of working.
With everyone working remotely, it’s so important to stay connected. We wanted to create a virtual space that feels welcoming and useful — something authentic and organic that people actually want to use.
Heather Byrd
VP Marketing, Communications & Brand, Critical Mission Solutions
CHALLENGE
How might we create a virtual team headquarters?
When kicking off a new initiative, the Jacobs Transformation team typically works out of a project room with whiteboards, sticky notes, and all the materials they need to strategize and execute on the initiative. This time around, the pandemic made in-person collaboration impossible. Fortunately, Jacobs’ digital transformation effort was already well under way — so the pandemic became a forcing function to accelerate that work.
“The question was, how do we recreate that space in a virtual environment?” said Bo Storozuk, Director, Global Corporate Sustainability — Talent & Culture, who also co-leads the facilitation community of practice at Jacobs. In other words, how could they create a virtual team headquarters, or a collaboration hub?
To solve this challenge, Jacobs needed a way to:
Collaborate and innovate from anywhere
Without a space to collaborate visually, the team had no way to facilitate their usual activities and meetings. They needed a solution that would allow their globally distributed team to brainstorm, strategize, and plan together — both asynchronously, and in real time.
Drive alignment with easy-to-find resources
Resources were scattered across multiple platforms. To eliminate confusion and improve alignment, Jacobs needed a single source of truth where they could quickly and easily access the latest software, files, docs, org charts, and training materials.
Engage collaborators and stakeholders
They needed an engaging, approachable, and inclusive way to communicate. Clunky slide decks, long email chains, and unscalable video calls wouldn’t cut it.
Essentially, before the Focus 2023 team could continue to transform the company, they would have to transform the way they worked together.
SOLUTION
Collaborating from anywhere with MURAL
With its flexibility, ease of use, and ability to scale for the enterprise, MURAL was uniquely positioned to help Jacobs transform the way they work together. Not only did the Transformation team use MURAL to create a collaboration hub for Focus 2023, but teams across the company also use MURAL to facilitate more fun, productive meetings and workshops. Here’s how.
Asynchronous communication
Focus 2023 is a massive undertaking that involves hundreds of collaborators located around the globe, and the virtual project room is the heart of it all. Building the space in MURAL allows everyone, including team members who are onboarding, to easily access the latest information on their own time without digging through various folders, apps, and documents.
Engaging meetings and workshops
The Transformation team is one of many at Jacobs that uses MURAL to collaborate visually during meetings and workshops. “Rather than using a slide deck, our entire meeting takes place in a mural. That way, everyone has the opportunity to contribute, and we have a living record of the meeting,” explained Sabrina Becker, global director of TogetherBeyond, Jacobs Inclusion Program, and a key member of Focus 2023.
Templates
Teams at Jacobs leverage MURAL’s 300+ templates to make meetings more efficient and engaging. Templates help them structure their meetings, facilitate them more effectively, and stay aligned afterward.
Partners in transformation
MURAL offers ongoing support from dedicated success architects and other in-house experts who offer expertise on collaboration design and facilitation. “Meagan at MURAL has been critical in our transformation,” explained Bo. “She has helped us map out trainings, hosted ‘Ask Me Anything’ sessions, and supported us in creating a strategic plan to drive maximum adoption.”
We would not have been able to deliver everything that we have without MURAL. Having a virtual collaboration space is invaluable in this remote working environment.
Heather Byrd
VP Marketing, Communications & Brand, Critical Mission Solutions
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