Marketing as a Differentiated Solution

Marketing and communications (marcom) are the tools brands use to tell their story to the world. If you’re not doing them right, then your business and stakeholders can pay the price. KBR gets that. Our guests for our season 4 premier, KBR marketing experts Philip Ivy and Jessica Burnett, tell us how KBR marcom empowers its team members and is deploying digital innovation to work strategically with all points of the business and propel it forward.

Transcript

IN ORBIT: A KBR PODCAST

Season 4, Episode 1

Marketing as a Differentiated Solution

INTRODUCTION

John Arnold

Hello, I'm John, and this is In-Orbit.

Welcome to the launch of our fourth season of the podcast. Whether you're a first-time listener or a loyal Orbiter, we're thrilled that you're spending some of your day with us and that you're staying in our orbit.

Before we get to the meat of the episode, I wanted to take a moment to give you the rundown on what In Orbit is and what our purpose is. As you can tell from the title, we're a KBR production. If you're not familiar with who KBR is, I encourage you to visit KBR.com when you're safely able to do so — not while you're driving around — and read up about the amazing work the company does, delivering science, technology and engineering solutions that are helping address some of the greatest challenges that humankind is facing today.

While the podcast is produced by KBR, this is a show for everyone, inside or outside the business, because by and large, the topics about those challenges I just referred to, things like climate change, national security, civilian and military space, energy transition, and security, they affect us all. So while the content's often presented through a KBR lens, we always try to talk about things as they pertain to the rest of the world, our various industries and our communities. And we do all of that to keep us all connected and in each other's orbits.

So that's my spiel. Hopefully, it's got you interested in hearing more over the course of this new season. Now on to our first topic of 2024, and that is marketing and communications. Now, you might be thinking, “Well, you normally talk about technology. So why are we talking about marketing today?” Well, because marketing is how you tell a brand or company story to the rest of the world. And if you don't tell that story and tell it well and somehow cut through the noise and all the things competing for attention than you might be, you probably are doing your business and your stakeholders a disservice.

KBR is an example of a company that gets that. Over the past few years, KBR marketing and communications have really been transformed to be closely aligned with the greater long-term business strategy. In fact, more and more marketing and communications are becoming yet another solution that KBR can deliver in some really interesting and effective ways. And with me here to talk about all this are two of my favorite people in the world. They are experts in marketing and communications, wonderful leaders of people and good friends. I have Philip Ivy, vice president of Global Marketing and Communications at KBR, and Jessica Burnett, director of Global Marketing. Welcome to you both.

Jessica Burnett

Hey John, thanks.

Philip Ivy

Hey, John, glad to be here.

John Arnold

Awesome. Well, yeah, this is an exciting and close to the heart first episode of the new season. We've been trying to get this one on the docket for a while, so I'm glad we're finally able to make it happen to start off the new year. 2023 was a big year for KBR Global Marketing and Communications. The team was super busy working with various parts of the business, and I wondered if you two would just tell us a little bit about some of those important initiatives and projects that we had an opportunity to work on.

Philip Ivy

Yeah, sure, 2023 was probably our busiest year by far, but it never led up. It was all gas, no brakes, as they say, and was great. So two top initiatives that kind of come to me that we developed and worked on was a revamp of kbr.com, our website. It's something we tried to do on a regular basis — 18, 24 months at a time. And we went with a more streamlined, a simple approach, trying to make the user experience as good as possible. And it was a huge undertaking and proud of the effort that the team put in there to hit the deadline and get that revamp launched. And it's been a huge success. The feedback has been excellent, and we continue to evolve and to think of ways to help get the word about KBR and what we're up to these days out to the general public.

And the website certainly is a first stop for many. So happy to see that that thing came to fruition and was a major success. This was the first time we really put together a global strategy for our function and working with the leaders of the company and adding that strategy into the overall company strategy. It was a huge undertaking. We did a bottoms-up review of the entire function and what we want to be, what we don't want to be, what we do want to do, and what we don't want to do. And this will guide us in the near future as we go forward. It's not to me be just a one-time document. It'll be a living document as we move forward and evolve, and really proud of how that turned out as well. Jess, what do you have?

Jessica Burnett

Yeah. Wow. 2023 was a fast and furious year. It's hard to remember back, with all the things that we created and delivered, but it was a great year. The first thing that comes to mind is the digital asset management system that we now have in place. So that was something that's been many years in the making. I think that was something we started talking about three years ago. In 2023 was our year where we really got down to business. We selected a vendor, and we really started to implement the process of getting all of our assets across the globe onto one platform. So we are calling it the KBR Digital Media Library. Right now, it is internal to our team, but it is going to be a game changer for our business because what it means is that we're going to be able to give people across the globe, across KBR, access to assets in an organized manner. We're going to have everything tagged. We're going to be able to share things, add things, really be more organized in terms of the assets that we have. And when I say assets, I'm talking about media files, videos, images, voice recordings. It's everything, all encompassing. So it's really going to further allow us as a global team to work together in a consistent way. So it's very exciting. And then the second thing that comes to mind for me is the people strategy.

So we've been working with Jenni [Myles, KBR’s chief people officer] for the last two-plus years on major People initiatives, but this year we just ran and started implementing a ton of different deliverables. We launched the KBR recruitment video, which I need to add is award-winning. We won a 2023 video award for …

Philip Ivy

Great job.

Jessica Burnett

… So it was pretty awesome. But then just with a bunch of other major deliverables, including revamping our EVP [employee value proposition]. So that was huge. And once that was revamped, we had to go back and update a bunch of materials. But really helping set the company up for success with all the different People initiatives. And then in 2024, instead of starting new initiatives, we're really helping grow the initiatives that we started last year.

John Arnold

Awesome. And just a clarifying point for our audience real quick. When Jess is talking about Jenni Myles, she's referring to KBR's chief people officer, and EVP in this case refers to KBR's employee value proposition.

So you guys were just talking about streamlining processes and procedures. You were talking about use of digital tools. You're talking about aligning the global marcom strategy directly to the broader KBR business strategy. And what that sounds like to a casual listener, someone like me, for instance, is it sounds more like the way that the very intelligent people all across KBR think about solutions delivery. And so I think that one of the reasons behind doing an episode like this is to try to get it in people's heads that global marcom functions as a solution, just like any of the other kinds of expertise that KBR offers people. So I wonder if you could talk about the value of having a global marcom team in house. A lot of businesses outsource that work. They don't want to deal with the overhead. How has KBR's marcom function proven that it's a valuable tool to have that talent on the inside?

Jessica Burnett

Yeah, that's a great question, John. I'd love to talk to that. So it will always be important for us to have solid, great partnerships with vendors. There will always be things that we will do outside of our team. We have awesome partnerships. Shout out to our vendors across the globe. They're great. We even had one of our vendors show up at our [KBR Marcom] All Hands global team event in Austin [Texas] this past year, which we'll talk about in a little bit. But it is so important to have the right resources in house because then we're really able to evolve what we're doing. So by having content specialists like yourself, John, and creative designers and social media resources, we're able to become subject matter experts in what we do. Our business is constantly evolving, constantly changing, and so by having the right resources in house, we're able to continue to contain that knowledge and grow it and apply it in everything that we do.

John Arnold

That's awesome. Well, I wonder if then you could, wonder — both of you talk about what's the secret to the team's success? What are the top three things needed right now in the global state of business to have a successful global marketing and comms team that delivers meaningful work?

Philip Ivy

Yeah. I mean, it's a great question. And look, the secret to our success is — and this is not to mean a generic answer — but it's the people. It's the people that we've brought in and the people that are on the Global Marcom team that represent and that work for the client who is our business partners within STS, the Sustainable Technology Solutions group, and the Government Solutions business, it's the people that we have there that have the know-how and the relationships that they've built to be trusted and valued partners. And to deliver what is needed for the business's success. You have to keep evolving that and you have to keep moving forward as the company moves forward. It's important that our function stays a little bit a step ahead of folks there so that we're not lagging behind in industry trends or wherever the world economy might be going.

And so it's important that we stay in lockstep with those business leaders and understand where they're headed so we can be in the best place to support them. So that's one is the people and the relationships that are established there, both with not just the business leaders but the BD [business development] folks, and also the talent acquisition folks, to make sure we get the right people in to support the business and all of those things. So that is a huge ingredient to the secret sauce.

I also think it is a huge role and responsibility of our team to be the flag bearers of the KBR culture and the KBR values. Our values drive our culture. You don't have a culture that's a one-size-fits-all. And so as a global company, it's our values that drive that. And if our team doesn't represent those values fully, then we fall behind. And so I think that is also something that's incredibly important that we have the responsibility to do there.

And then the list is long, but I think one final piece and a third piece here is making sure that we have the right tools for our folks in place to do the job that they need to do. So as we're saying, "Hey, the company is going in this direction, the businesses need this kind of support," you better have the tools for our folks that can support that. And so always staying up to date on trends and what platforms are out there to drive deliverables and produce deliverables on for the collateral that is needed, I think is very important. If you show up with a stale PDF that's kind of 10, 15 years ago. So I think as you want to present the company in a certain way, it's important that we stay with the advances in technology and stay with trends and on the leading edge there to make sure that the things that we're producing match what we're saying.

John Arnold

Awesome answer. Yeah, something to be taken there for anybody that's looking to modernize and get their team moving in a positive direction. So Jess, you mentioned that we had our Global Marcom All Hands meeting in Austin, that was back in November — Austin, Texas. Most of our global team were gathered there for team building and to brainstorm new ideas for the future. What are some of the big takeaways from Austin that are going to be positive for KBR coming up?

Jessica Burnett

So we had a great meeting in Austin this past November. It's always great to get together and just collaborate, have fun in the evenings, but also work hard during the days to plan for the next years ahead. So one of the big things that we discussed in Austin was the influencer program, which we are in the beginning stages of implementing. We've secured a vendor to help us do that. And what we're doing is we are bringing employees together from across the globe to create better brand recognition and really working to create a better online presence. We have a lot of social media followers, but trying to increase that and really further engage with our followers and add new followers and all of this is to help us continue to hire the best and brightest new future KBR employees.

And then the other one, or the other thing that comes to mind is evolving the brand. So we talked a lot about how do we move the KBR brand forward? And so we have a lot of great ideas, a lot of big initiatives to sort out here in the next few months and start running towards. But really taking KBR and again, becoming more of a recognized brand, but also making sure that we're consistent in everything that we do and we look and feel one way regardless of any acquisitions or any changes within our business that we appear as one KBR.

Philip Ivy

And I would just add another point that we were trying to drive during that meeting was — and I mentioned it earlier — was to be forward-looking and a little bit less reactive in some of our work. And so to lead out front and be side by side with our business leaders and a little less reactive in some of the things that we do. Look, I think you talk to any marcom folks, a certain percentage of the job is reactive.

John Arnold

Sure.

Philip Ivy

But wherever we can be proactive and lean forward, let's take advantage of that and do that. And so I think that was another message that we were really trying to drive home.

John Arnold

That's outstanding. Yeah, as someone that proudly serves as part of the team, I can say there's so many things that you really see the team being proactive and moving on things as opposed to just waiting for stuff to happen and then following up afterward. So in the near term, how will KBR Global Marcom be helping the broader KBR business take it to yet another level?

Jessica Burnett

Yeah. So we have a bunch of major initiatives in the works that will help us take the business to another level. And the first that comes to mind is that we recently hired a global brand manager, which is very exciting. This person will be joining the global team to help us elevate the KBR brand and execute on our brand recognition strategy overall. That is for them to be focused on our brand identity, our brand reputation and protection, and then of course, our brand position and help us really better promote the KBR brand and continue to build a brand that is recognized and respected while ensuring brand consistency across all the different touch points.

Additionally, the brand manager will work closely with all of our business leads, assess their needs and look for opportunities where we are doing things well, but maybe we can do them better to reach a broader or perhaps even a different audience. They will also hopefully help us identify gaps where we maybe aren't doing as much as we can in a specific area to promote our brand and gain further recognition as a best-in-class global brand and of course, as an employer of choice. Ultimately we want to become a household name and for people across the globe to know who KBR is and how we're delivering solutions that are changing the world and of course want to be a part of it.

Another major thing I'd like to mention is that we are working alongside the KBR People team [human resources] to help deliver their objectives around employer branding, recruiting and other items as part of their strategy. And then lastly, we are working closely with key leads across the business to develop brand and market our digital portfolio products and solutions, which is very exciting and will continue to help differentiate us from our competitors.

John Arnold

One more question before I let you guys go, and then maybe I'll let you just wing it and add any thought there at the end. But just from a thought leadership perspective, as leaders in marketing and communications, leaders in general, what are some tips you have for people who are looking to get the best out of their teams and to make more of an impact?

Philip Ivy

I think there are several important factors when you're looking to make a successful team and build a successful team. And certainly you need to have the skill set right. But you can also have the right fit. And if the team can come together and build community among each other and lean on each other and build a comfortable place where they can learn from each other and they can push each other at the same time, on the creative side, I think that's extremely valuable to create a team that works together. And while our team is around the globe, and a little bit of a shout-out here to Rakesh [Singh, director of Marketing, KBR STS business] and his team and Kimberly [Schwandt, director of Marketing and Communications, GS US] and her team, Caitlin [Gardner, senior manager, KBR Communications] and her team, Sam [Edwards, director of Marketing, EMEA] and Jess, obviously as the leaders — it's incumbent on them and myself to make sure that we are building that community within those teams that are embedded into the business.

Also have relationships with the corporate function teams, and that we work together as one to get things done and lend a hand when needed. And I think you start to empower people and you start to unleash the creative ability and not hold people back, but rather let them go and then rein them in if need be on the creative side — only good things can come from that. Only positive can come from that. You shouldn't be driving. Let the creative people, putting them in a box, rather let them be everywhere, but inside the box they ought to draw all over the page and then work together to come up with a final solution. So I think as a leader, that's one thing you can do.

I think it's also important to drive clear direction on where we're headed and what we're doing and provide enough insight into the team about where the company is heading and set clear goals and what the company is going to be moving towards and what the big initiatives are, and have sort of an open policy where that can be talked about and help inform them of why we are doing certain things. Well, it's because these are the initiatives for the company and we're helping to drive that. So I think empowerment is great, unleashing the ability of your whole team is important and setting clear parameters around here are the goals, here's where we're going. I think those are all key parts of building a successful team. Jess?

Jessica Burnett

Yeah, the one thing I would add is encouraging collaboration, right? So we're located all around the globe, so really encouraging our individual resources to work together to lean on each other for questions, and then also just to have fun together. One thing that was launched within our team in 2023 was Communities of Practice, COPs is what we call them. And those have been really great. We stood up two. So we had a Creative [Design] COP and then a Content COP, something really a lot about John as a leader, the content COP.

But it was really awesome to see our resources come together from across the globe, meeting quite frequently to talk about things that interests them within the content realm or the creative [design] realm, and then coming up with great ideas. And so a lot of really solid things have come out of those COPs, and I'm really excited to see what happens as they continue to evolve into 2024. But I think really encouraging collaboration is something that's very important because it's really easy to get stuck in just doing your work and in your world, we're all very busy, so bringing your head up once in a while and talking to each other and making sure that we're having fun while we're doing our day-to-day work.

Philip Ivy

That's a great point.

John Arnold

Definitely.

Well, is there anything either of you'd like to add before I let you go?

Philip Ivy

Yeah, I'll add. It's great to see how our team works together. And while the podcasts are great and we all hear your voice on every episode and the guests you have, what's cool about our team is that there's people around the globe that work on the collateral of many different items. And so the podcast is a perfect example of that. You're the voice of the podcast, but there's a group of folks behind you …

John Arnold

Definitely.

Philip Ivy

… that help support and edit and do the other things — the social media piece of it, whatever. And that's just one example of the many items that we produce that have different sets of eyes and the collaboration that it takes to get those things done. And so I'm proud of our team and what we produce and that we work together to get it done. And sometimes it takes late hours and over weekends and whatever, but we push to get it done. And that's part of why we've been successful and why KBR finds value in our function certainly. And so thank you for taking the lead on the podcast and taking the lead …

John Arnold

My pleasure.

Philip Ivy:

… John. You're a great asset to the team, and we're excited for 2024, excited to see — we don't know everything that's in store for us in 2024, but whatever it'll be, we'll tackle it. We'll climb that mountain, and a year from now we'll look back and think about the important initiatives we accomplished in 2024 that we couldn't even possibly think about today. But part of that is just seeing what's in front of us and getting after it and getting it done, and utilizing the team we have today to go do that. And so proud of the team and proud of the work that we produce.

Jessica Burnett

I absolutely agree with that. Really excited for 2024. We have the right people, the right processes, and the right tools in place, and it's go time. So looking forward to a great year.

John Arnold

Lots to look forward to. Jess, Phillip, thank you so much for being our first guest on the podcast for the new year, and we'll talk to you soon.

Jessica Burnett

Thanks, John.

Philip Ivy

Thank you, John.

CONCLUSION

John Arnold

We want to thank Phillip Ivy and Jessica Burnett for joining us and talking about how KBR's marketing and communications is helping take the business to another level. We also want to thank our producer Emma, for the amazing work she does week in and week out on the podcast. We're looking forward to another year of working with you, Emma.

Hopefully you like what you heard today. If so, tell your friends or share the episode with your social network. If you have an idea for a future episode or just want to drop us a line, you can email us at inorbit@kbr.com. Who knows, your idea might end up being featured in season four. We hope you'll join us every other week for all new stories about science, technology, and engineering solutions that are changing the world. And as always, thank you to all our listeners for taking time out of your busy lives to hang out with us and for keeping us in your orbit. Take care.