I’ve always been amazed at the power of simply sharing an idea, and have found three very powerful words to be, “What if we…” – and I’m proud that Cisco teams around the globe use these words regularly. So, when the way we’re used to working – and where we’re used to working – changed, we adapted. We found new and improved ways of working and made our workspaces our own.
Cisco employees have not hidden the fact that we love our logo, because – to us – it’s more than just a logo. It’s a sign of comfort, a sign of innovation, a sign that we all want to work harder to make the world a better place – for many of us, it’s a sign that we are ‘home.’
With the rise of remote work – one thing employees missed having during their Webex meetings was something quite simple and quite familiar – our logo. During many of our calls, a sign featuring our beloved Cisco logo and the location we were currently in was typically displayed behind us. It was a representation of Cisconian’s pride in the work they do, who they do it for, and where they do it from.
But, it was something many home offices don’t have, and something Damien McCoy, Director of Product Growth in our Galway, Ireland offices thought we might be able to help with.
Damien and Stewart Curry, a Webex Teams User Experience Architect, were having a virtual coffee break and an idea, sparked by Cisco signage and their work with Webex Teams, bubbled to the surface.
What if they could create a coloring book with Cisco logos for the new wave of remote workers to bring a little Cisco signage to their home offices?
Stewart says, “The idea really resonated with me because it’s not only a way to give employees a sense of comfort, but also a way to create a connection between kids and what their parents are doing at Cisco.”
Even better, it parallels to the work that the Cisco Webex Teams User Experience team focuses on. The Webex Teams application assists in global collaboration, remote work, and helps people work better together – while our User Experience Group helps the Webex Team communicate its personality. As our illustrators have been adding more and more illustrations to Webex Teams, we thought – why not turn those into elements of the coloring book, too?
From there, the idea grew and quickly caught on.
Stewart approached Cassandra Walsh, Visual Designer and Illustrator, with the idea – and she got to work. As part of our Visual Designers team, Cassandra focuses on making the user smile through unexpected illustrations that tell a story.
The result was something never done before at Cisco: A coloring book that connects our people, their kids and our technology.
Webex Teams, the application that sparked the brainstorm for the coloring book, became the very tool to spread it far and wide. Damien shared the link to the coloring book in Webex Teams spaces, and from there, it became the subject of tweets.
Alex Goryachev, Managing Director – Cisco Innovation Centers, saw the social shares, downloaded the coloring book, and his son started coloring. “Getting a Cisco coloring book made my day brighter. I was on Webex video almost all day, and Matthew (my son) was sitting next to me coloring – and we were connected like never before. Since, then, I moved his little table over to my home office and we both commute there every day.”
“This coloring book has given my kids moments of relaxation and some fun since they’ve turned coloring these images into a game of finding the right colors to match the logos,” said Washington Rodriguez Cambre, Territory Account Manager, Cisco Sales.
The User Experience Group was happy to be able to contribute not only in helping the world to work remotely, but in bringing their families together and adding a few smiles to their days through collaboration and a little Cisco logo love.
“Overall, I feel like the products we are building are part of a positive transformation in how people work together and collaborate, and it’s a wonderful feeling to be part of the machine that drives this new way of working,” said Stewart.
Cassandra said, “I am proud of the little team I am part of here in Galway, Ireland and that we make a product that not only delights people but one that is striving to help and be more accessible for everyone. Working at Cisco has allowed me to learn and grow as a designer!”
Alex concluded, “While we are socially distancing, we are becoming more authentically connected. I’ve learned more about my co-workers and their lives in the last three weeks than during my last two decades at Cisco and there is a global outpouring of caring, support and love for each other. Everyone has each other’s backs as we go through this.”
He adds, “Witnessing the best of humanity is what gives me the most hope as I look at my kids – I know there is silver lining in everything, and they will live in a better world because of this.”
How have the words, “What if we…” inspired you lately?
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