EC THIS WEEK | 2021–PRESENT

From Bad Puns to Big Culture: How an Internal Newsletter Grew from 100 to 2,000 Readers

Over four years, I created and managed a weekly internal newsletter that mixed humor with utility. Content was sourced from leadership, HR, and teammates across markets, ensuring it reflected both business updates and the human side of work.

My Role

Founder, team lead, content designer, writer, and curator

The Team

HR (for approval), 3-5 news crew members

Duration

July 2021 - Present (going on 5 years!)

Results

Grew from 100 - 2,000 readers, survived 4 org restructures, 98% reader satisfaction

CONTEXT & PROBLEM

Stale internal comms weren’t building culture

Hybrid and distributed work left teams relying on stiff, corporate-style updates that few bothered to read. Engagement was low, and without a fresh approach, internal comms weren’t helping people feel connected to each other or to the practice.

THE APPROACH

A people-first newsletter with bad GIFs and even worse puns

Each issue featured playful visuals, witty headlines, and self-guided links alongside project spotlights and team updates. By balancing humor with value, the newsletter became something colleagues looked forward to each Friday—casual in tone, consistent in quality, and collaborative in content.

Snippets from the newsletter guide – includes values, goals, style, and schedule.

Custom gifs were used to lighten the mood and sometimes convey important information.

Example newsletter

THE IMPACT

From 100 to 2,000 readers and a practice-wide following

What started as a small design team update grew into a 2,000-subscriber newsletter spanning the entire Customer Transformation practice. More than numbers, it survived 3 reorgs and earned a reputation as “the only PwC publication people looked forward to reading.”