A pair of game-worn Air Jordan’s sells for $610,000 at auction, Murder Hornets are spotted in Washington state and a little show called JMP On Air nearly crashes the internet. If you guessed it was May 2020, you nailed it. Here’s another notable event that took place in May 2020: Inside JMP debuted.
The idea for an internal web property dedicated to JMP news was solidified during a late 2019 management meeting in Toronto. “Division-wide communications was something we felt could be improved, and we were all in agreement that we needed our own website,” said Sr. Director of Marketing Diana Levey. The plan was to create a space where internal content relevant to the majority of JMP employees could live. In addition to important JMP news and updates, the site would be a place for JMP employees to get to know each other a little better and connect in new and fun ways.
Inside JMP was built using the same engagement platform, Khoros, we use for the JMP Community. Though employee Community boards have been active for years, the Inside JMP homepage would be a new place that curated news from existing boards and spotlighted a “feature” story and eight news items deemed most relevant to JMP employees.
Director of JMP Customer Care Jeff Perkinson served with Levey as Executive Sponsors on the project. Their first task was to pull together a steering committee from around the world to help shape early iterations of the site. Perkinson said members embraced the idea of expanding colleagues’ use of the existing boards – to build some “gravity” around their use – while serving up original content to inform and connect. The team included Diana Levey, Amy Stuart, Sara Doudt, Robin Betters, Alexa Baltazar, Nina Chan, Rita Lv, Rei Yamazaki, SangHyun Kim, Phil Kay, Sarah Springer, Bob Hickey, Frank Moser, Olivia Lippincott, Hyde Miller, John Jones, Jeff Perkinson, Ian Kleinfeld, Kate Fitzgerald and Larry LaRusso.
So, what’s this I hear about lemmings?
Though we ultimately settled on Inside JMP, it wasn’t the only name considered for the new site. True to widely accepted rules of engagement when brainstorming, nothing was off limits. Popular for the long-standing myth that they’ll jump off cliffs following one another, lemmings became the adopted mascot for the project, and “The Slice” an early contender for the site’s name. (A group of lemmings is called a Slice.) The idea got enough traction that Aaron Kennedy even mocked up a layout that Levey presented at the 2020 Kickoff. Despite their undeniable cuteness, the fact that lemmings will never be mistaken for geniuses in the animal kingdom just could not be overcome – not with the brilliant people you find at JMP.
Inside JMP: By the Numbers
Inside JMP has been a success on many levels, but a look at the numbers shows us just how quickly employees embraced the site and how often they’re accessing it for information and entertainment.
Since the site was initially stood up (with a soft launch in April 2020) we’ve published an astounding 490 articles which have been viewed 29,516 times. Despite only being a little more than a year old, Inside JMP has become the 2nd most subscribed internal community, with more than 100 employees receiving notification when a new story is published on the homepage.
Views have steadily increased over the course of the past year as well. Since the start of 2021, we’ve averaged more than 500 views each week, with a high of nearly 800 during one week in March.
Here’s a look at Inside JMP visits and views since its launch last year:
Curious about which Inside JMP stories employees found most interesting? Here are the Top 10 Inside JMP Features since we published last May.
- Discovery Summit Americas
- Refreshing the JMP brand in advance of JMP16
- Data for Green
- Hard-earned, long-awaited promotions announced
- Get to Know Krystal Barnes
- Get to Know Jeff Upton
- Watch Dec. 15 Webcast
- Get to Know Antoine Smith
- Get to Know: Dahlia Watkins
- JMPers Needed for Short Videos for Discovery
Do you have news to share on Inside JMP?
Remember, Inside JMP is a global repository for everyone to use. If you feel your story is appropriate for the entire division, you have two options for publishing. If you need your information to live in your team’s library or discussion boards, build your story there and contact either Diana Levey or Larry LaRusso, who will post your news item on the homepage, either as a Feature or News blurb. If you feel like your news would make for a good Feature Story, please contact Diana or Larry to discuss writing, scheduling and publishing your article. You can also contact Diana or Larry with any questions about Inside JMP or if you have other story ideas.
If you haven’t subscribed to Inside JMP News, consider doing so now. Simply select “subscribe” for the Inside JMP News board, to be sure you’ll get a notification when we post stories to the Inside JMP homepage.
Happy Birthday Inside JMP!
The lemmings story is proof that we are listening to reason and evolving as we go. (By the way, lemmings was not my idea!) We want Inside JMP to be whatever you need for communications and access to the information you need to do your jobs. So we're happy to hear your ideas for improvement. And we want your suggestions for making this a better global resource. In the spirit of continuous improvement, feedback is welcome.
