History Reimagined: Updating yesterday's company history can improve today's legacy

Are you rewriting history? … OK, so that’s not exactly the same thing as initially creating information about your organization’s history, but it can still seem like a huge task. The good thing — and perhaps one reason this needs to be done — is that today’s tools and networks allow for very dynamic ways to share this history with the world. Gone are the boring charts and non-interactive timelines and text.
 
Thanks to more sophisticated Internet capabilities and high quality printing standards, yesterday’s company history can become today’s relevant introduction to what makes your organization the unique entity that it is. What’s more, redoing the history with extra “bells and whistles” also brings pride and new understanding by members and employees.
 
I am proud of three histories that I’ve created for three of my clients. Standley Systems (top right), the Airport Consultants Council (middle right) and Loudoun County, VA (bottom right). They are illustrated on this page. But here are some tips for creating the online history that will get noticed:

1. Form is as important as function — visual beats verbiage. Start your search for photos, illustrations—and the people who have them— immediately. This includes video and audio recordings too. It may mean creating a video instead of entering text online or publishing a booklet. Maybe it’s just a graphical illustration like a piece of artwork. This involves work with a graphic designer or project team.
2. Vantage point — Find the right depth of information. No one wants to get buried in the possible minutia of day-by-day history. We want a brisk and interesting overview.
3. Interview senior managers and long-time employees. Many of their stories will aid the overall strategy.
4. Outline the basics. Let’s say your company is 50 years old. Then consider creating a timeline that includes determined phases of the company. This provides an important framework for setting specific entries.
5. Conduct some research on industry achievements and determine how your organization fit into that larger timeframe of “progress.”
6. Plug in important dates of major public events like the walk on the moon or the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. This is a good way to appeal to even the most uninterested person.
7. Create concise text.
8. Bring it all together.

Style: interactive online

Style: printed

Style: visual