Nike 2021

Nike is known for its secrets. Whether that's the exact make-up of the original waffle runner or the training methods that catapulted Steve Prefontaine to stardom. So it was no surprise that the athletic footwear giant was mum about a 3-hour gaming event that was part executive training session, part team-building exercise. Set in the year 2021, the "game" presented volatile economic and social scenarios requiring fast-thinking business decisions and collaborative gameplay. Due to the confidential information contained throughout the game, I decided to exaggerate its secrecy and sensitivity at every opportunity. Themes of espionage, spy-craft, and global crisis were applied to all aspects of the experience; from the details of the game itself, to the design of the physical location, to the theatrical choreography of the game-day presentation.

Employees started the experience by finding their name, team and where they were seated. It was like some kind of Cold War-era Spy wedding.

Every piece of collateral from the event, the Pelican case which contained the board game, black dry-erase board, game pieces, markers and jars - were all custom created for this event. The collateral was a staged series of envelopes with questions, data and answers. Also shown: stickers, table team cards, and ephemera from the era the concept is based.