Cannon Design launches employee-driven social video effort - @cannondesign

Cannon Design, an internationally ranked architectural, engineering and planning firm, recently launched a new social video effort called "@cannondesign." The effort is entirely employee-driven and focused on capturing the people, projects and passions that make the firm a special place to work. The idea for @cannondesign came from a group of Buffalo-based employees. The group recruited volunteers from the firm's network of 16 offices to capture 30-60 second clips of people talking about topics most important to their work at Cannon Design. Topics range from specific project work to mentoring experiences and even how the firm encourages its employees to have fun. Already, Cannon Design has gathered more than 75 videos and plans to grow its library. The firm launched 20 videos on its "@cannondesign" Vimeo channel in early November and has been promoting the effort via its blog, website and social media accounts on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. All the videos are recorded with smart phones in casual settings around the offices, without professional camera or production work.. "We're very proud of this video effort as it allows us to highlight our best asset - our people," said Cynthia Hilliers, director of communications at Cannon Design. "Social media allows us to share video humanizing the firm in a way never before possible.These videos are able to capture the stories of our people, projects and passions in a very special way." The effort is just the most recent step in Cannon Design's social media efforts which kicked off in January 2010. The firm has seen impressive growth in its Twitter following, Facebook page and blog readership since that date. The firm has made the use of social media a key focus of its communications efforts. "There are great opportunities for firms and companies to use these social communication and technology tools to connect with new people and creatively present yourself to marketplace," said Hilliers. "There's no set formula for success within social media, but our firm leadership team believes you must be creative, commit to trying new things and seek innovation. Our @cannondesign video effort is the most recent expression of that belief." Cannon Design will continue to add new videos on a weekly basis to its Vimeo channel. There is no end date for the project, just an ongoing channel for outreach as part of the firm's social media efforts. "When we play these videos at our offices, we're constantly meeting people who before were only a voice and hearing stories that erase our geographical boundaries," added Hilliers. "It's quite incredible what can happen when you give everyone in a firm this large a voice. That was the goal of @cannondesign and so far we're thrilled with the results." Cannon Design is an Ideas Based Practice, ranked among the leading international firms in planning and design for healthcare, research, education, corporate commercial, sports and government clients. At present, the firm employs a staff of over 1,000, delivering services in 16 offices throughout North America as well as abroad in Shanghai, China, and Mumbai, India.