Eleven Peppers Studios’ husband and wife co-founders Bryan and Kristen Parks partnered with Stories Inc. to create authentic culture content highlighting their tight-knit culture. In this case study, you will learn how Stories Inc. created a video content library that captures how Eleven Peppers Studios balances work, family, and fun. 

Eleven Peppers Studios is a small visual communications studio that serves both the public and private sectors with branding, marketing, and user experience solutions. Being a husband and wife team, it came naturally to co-founders Bryan and Kristen Parks to build a culture that felt like family. They wanted to surround themselves with passionate creative experts that they could trust to go above and beyond to wow clients and push the envelope. They also wanted work to be fun and for Peppers (how team members refer to each other) to feel cared for and love where they work. 

Multiple design and workplace awards later, it became clear that Bryan and Kristen achieved that balance of working hard and being people-first. Now, they needed to communicate this culture to candidates.

The Challenge: (Actually) Authentic Culture Content

As the creative agency crossed the 40-employee threshold and moved into a newly designed office, Kristen and Bryan needed to find a way to bring their culture to life to candidates in a scalable way. Like many small businesses, few candidates had ever heard of Eleven Peppers Studios or knew what it was like to work there.

Their concern? The Pepper Culture being lost in translation. Kristen and Bryan wanted company culture videos that would actually reflect the special culture they had created, not sound like corporate jargon. 

Enter Stories Inc. 

The Solution: Using Employee Stories to Communicate a People-First Culture

Stories Inc.’s facilitated interview approach was a perfect match for Eleven Peppers Studios’ desire for authentic culture content. Twelve storytellers, including co-founders Kristen and Bryan, would be interviewed over two days of in-person filming. The interviews would be complemented by in-person b-roll and photos from over the years submitted by Peppers. 

Stories Inc. went into the interviews with a loose idea of what we were hoping to uncover: 

1. 1. History of Eleven Peppers Studios: The company’s origin story sheds light on company values and why the culture is the way it is.
   2. People-First Culture: From benefits to milestone celebrations to everyday work life, Eleven Peppers Studios wants what is best for its people inside and outside of work. 
   3. Career Growth: Within a small business, Peppers experience mentorship and opportunities to advance their careers and grow their skill sets. 

While these themes would guide the interviews, the conversations and stories uncovered during the interview day would inform the topic of each video. 

A Digital Content Library to Communicate Culture

Eleven Peppers Studios’ expectations came to fruition: from award-winning projects to a team members’ experience as a new mom, Peppers were bursting with stories to tell from their years of working at the company. The Stories team then got to work creating eight videos that brought this culture to life. 

History of Eleven Peppers Studios: One Compilation Video 

Co-founders Kristen and Bryan Parks tell how the Eleven Peppers Studios’ name came to be and members of the team share what the name and history of the company mean to them.

People-First Culture at Eleven Peppers Studios: Four Videos 

Culture Overview

Seven team members share how the Eleven Peppers Studios culture has added to their personal and professional lives.

Working Parents 

At Eleven Peppers Studios, being people-first often means being family-first. From personalized Mother’s and Father’s Day gifts to family-friendly policies, team members share how they are empowered to be great family members and still do their best work.

 

Theresa’s Favorite Day: Winning the Spirit Award

In this employee spotlight video, long-time team member shares her favorite day as a Pepper: winning the spirit award at the Baltimore Best Places to Work celebration, alongside all of her fellow Peppers in matching tees!

 

Eleven Peppers Studios Heads to Disney World 

To celebrate their five year anniversary, Eleven Peppers Studios surprised the team with an all-expenses paid trip to Disney World with their families. Peppers share what this trip meant to them both personally and professionally.

 

Career Growth at Eleven Peppers Studios: Two Videos

Career Growth Overview

In this compilation video, multiple Eleven Peppers Studios team members share how their careers have grown and evolved over their time with the company.

 

Impactful Work | Melissa’s Story

In this standalone story, Melissa shares her proudest moment at Eleven Peppers Studios: launching a website to help women entrepreneurs scale their business.

Conclusion

From just two interview days, Eleven Peppers Studios was able to create a library of eight videos capturing the three core aspects of their culture: company history, being people-first, and empowering career growth. This authentic employee storytelling content allows the studio to use their unique culture to attract future top candidates to their team.