Creating and producing a podcast on leadership innovation
As Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella points out, work is now changing more quickly in a matter of months than it used to change in several years. The pandemic lockdowns led to big questions that may have been there all along: Where do we work? When do we work? How do we work? And fundamentally, why do we work? And then, as the pandemic receded and companies were trying to hash out their return-to-office policies, a new generation of AI emerged and promised to transform every aspect of our jobs, organizations, and industries.
In January 2021, amid these disruptions, Godfrey Dadich Partners launched an editorial publication for Microsoft called WorkLab to explore the future of work. The stories examine the ongoing research studies that Microsoft is conducting about how people are adjusting to new ways of working. Godfrey Dadich assigns, edits, and designs all WorkLab articles, which range from long-form features to service journalism to data visualizations. The articles have been so well received that Microsoft asked us to produce a podcast as a natural extension of the digital publication.
We jumped at the opportunity to create an intimate setting to further explore ideas and develop perspectives on this vital and ever-changing topic. The podcast allows us to bring Microsoft research to life in a surprising and engaging way, and to showcase the company’s executives and scientists as thought leaders. Just as important, the podcast provides a place for experts outside of Microsoft to share their insights and opinions on big questions about the future of work.
“Forward-looking companies don’t want to just tell stories about themselves,” says GDP Editorial Director Mary Melton. “They want to tell stories that are pertinent to their mission, and that are going to inform the outlooks—and even improve the lives—of their clients and consumers.”
The show is structured as a series of conversations between guests and our host, currently veteran journalist and entrepreneur Molly Wood. Each episode explores some facet of our new world of work, and aims to help business leaders better understand and navigate this constantly evolving terrain with hard data, real-world lessons, and actionable insights.
In collaboration with the team at Microsoft, we choose a theme for each new season, as well as a list of guests and topics. We enlisted the female-led podcast company Reasonable Volume to be our production partner. Over the course of 40-plus episodes, we’ve hosted some of the foremost thought leaders on the future of work from within Microsoft and from the broader world, including academics, researchers, economists, executives, entrepreneurs, magazine editors, bestselling authors, productivity gurus, and even a coach to elite athletes.
GDP’s creative team designed a landing page for the podcast that fit neatly within WorkLab’s digital ecosystem, as well as an article post for each episode with a full transcript. “The core elements of the WorkLab identity informed the art direction of the podcast,” says Natalie Estrada, art director at Godfrey Dadich. “This was an opportunity to use key characteristics from the platform and bring them into a new context that still felt familiar within the system.”
The team designed a strong graphic treatment for each article to match the vibrant aesthetic of the WorkLab digital publication. Our web experience team designed the landing page, ensuring an appealing and effortless user experience. In order to capture the optimistic energy of the editorial voice, the team paired the bright palette of the site with more gestural brushstrokes and elements inspired by the UI for the main title art. In addition to the main title art, each episode features a unique treatment with a portrait of the featured guest.
“Collaborating with GDP, we were able to quickly create a podcast that feels not just insightful but highly actionable,” says Microsoft’s Jessica Voelker, editor of WorkLab. “Through strong interviews with some of the most interesting thinkers on the future of work, we’re offering business leaders real ways to help their employees at a moment when work is fundamentally changing.”
Godfrey Dadich Partners is thrilled to help Microsoft offer a new way to showcase its research and expertise in such a dynamic and accessible manner, and to provide listeners with a raft of fresh perspectives on big questions that are top of mind for business leaders across the country and around the world.
We invite you to give it a listen! You can check it out on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.