Designing an internal product platform for a global innovation network
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Overview
Innovators Studio
A global internal product platform connecting intrapreneurs to share knowledge, standardize practices, and drive growth initiatives across the enterprise.
The problem
Innovation efforts were trapped in silos, buried in jargon, and disconnected from the people they needed to reach. Without a shared design system or a shared platform to gather on, internal audiences felt the work was meant for someone else, and intrapreneurs across the network struggled to find each other.
The solution
I led the design of Innovators Studio: a unified design system, a content template library, and an internal product platform that translated abstract concepts into human narratives. People stopped feeling like outsiders looking in. The system gave the network a shared sense of belonging, and made it easier for ideas to find one another.
The digital ecosystem
An internal product and brand system for the innovation network
I led the design of this system in collaboration with a marketing manager and production designer from the market insights team.
Visual identity
Recognize
Storytelling
Translate
Campaigns
Mobilize
Studio portal
Sustain
Visual identity
Before any of the work could spread, the audience had to recognize where it was coming from. We built a confident, distinct visual system of branding, illustrations, and badges, with reusable components anyone in the network could apply. The illustrations turned abstract concepts into scenes people could see themselves in, and the badges turned individual progress into something worth showing off. Every surface signaled belonging the moment anyone encountered it.
Branding
- Distinct identity within corporate guidelines
- High-energy, colorful aesthetic
- Engaging, usable templates
- Consistent system for internal teams
Illustrations
- Custom scenes narrating Studio goals
- Visuals that humanize user journeys
Badges
- Gamification of skills and milestones
- Collectible designs to boost motivation
Storytelling
Once the look landed, we translated the language. Innovation work tends to drown in its own vocabulary, so we built a content template library for presentations, newsletters, and podcast promos that handled the heavy lifting: clear hierarchy, consistent pacing, one idea per slide instead of five. Anyone in the network could pick one up and tell a credible story without losing the substance underneath.
Presentations
- Standardized branded templates
- Visual patterns for data
- Flexible structures for speakers
- Pacing designed for engagement
Newsletters
- Updates reinforcing strategic priorities
- Hierarchy aiding rapid decision-making
Podcast promos
- Promotion of key internal voices
- Visual framing for episode themes
Campaigns
With a shared voice in place, we put it to work. Campaigns, one-pagers, and business model templates each gave intrapreneurs a clear next step: apply to a program, attend an event, or carry an idea into the next quarter’s planning. The campaigns held a consistent thematic identity across email, intranet, and event surfaces, so a single launch felt like a single launch, not five disconnected nudges.
Campaigns
- Consistent identity enforcement
- Thematic graphics for launches
- Templated messaging and headlines
- Layouts for multi-touch comms
- Adaptations for various formats
One pagers
- Concise program summaries
- Defined purpose and value
- Actionable participation steps
Business models
- Frameworks simplifying complex concepts
Studio portal
And once people showed up, we needed somewhere for them to stay. The Studio portal, built on SharePoint, pulled the work into one connected home: a community hub that surfaced what others were trying, a directory that made finding the right person feel like searching for a colleague, and an academy that turned scattered learning into a real path. The portal carried the network between launches, so energy from one program didn’t bleed out before the next began.
Community hub
- Structure guiding user decisions
- Layouts for news and spotlights
- Visual cues for exploration
- Organization aligned to workflows
- Pathways to deep resources
Innovators directory
- Profiles highlighting specific skills
- Discovery tools for collaboration
Innovation academy
- Paths for distinct roles
- Visualized skill progression
The impact
Brand and platform together turned an invisible network into a visible community. Intrapreneurs stopped working around the system and started bringing their ideas through it.