Publication Strategy & Transformation
Redesigned a legacy quarterly reporting system into a magazine-style publication that increased public engagement, strengthened institutional visibility, supported outreach initiatives, and reduced production costs by 86%.
The Challenge
Legacy quarterly reports were dense, expensive, labor-intensive, and low engagement
Publications ranged from 100–300 pages, making them difficult to consume and costly to produce
Content duplicated existing information
Reports were not optimized for digital sharing or broader audiences
Publications were frequently discarded or ignored
Communications were internally focused instead of outreach-focused
Needed to support broader institutional visibility and stakeholder engagement
Strategic Shift
Following leadership feedback that existing publications were ineffective, I led the creative transformation of the laboratory’s quarterly publication
As Creative Director, I helped shape editorial direction and story development while overseeing illustration, design, photography, production, distribution, and supporting digital communications
Shifted from exhaustive technical reporting to a magazine-style editorial model inspired by Scientific American
Introduced shorter, highly visual stories designed to engage both technical and nontechnical audiences
Repositioned the publication as a communications tool for outreach and stakeholder engagement
Extended content beyond print into integrated web stories
Impact
Reduced publication production costs by 86%
Reduced publication length from 100–300 pages to 25–40 pages
Expanded the publication from an internal report into a widely distributed communications and outreach tool
Publications are regularly displayed and distributed during tours, outreach events, career fairs, and visits with elected officials
Established an integrated print, web, and email communications model that expanded the reach and longevity of publication content