Our Playbook: How A Group of Athletes Excel in Design & Communication
Football. Design. Basketball. Communications. Lacrosse. Impact. Swimming. Brand. Soccer. Connection.
What do all of these words have in common? At first glance, not much. But when you really consider their aspects, the fields of athletics and design are not as dissimilar as it may first appear.
From Field to Studio
Joba is a multidisciplinary design studio largely made up of athletes. Our Creative Director and CEO was an All-American running back at Virginia Tech and had a seven-year career in the NFL. His mutual love for athletics and teamwork, and then design and communication, were combined to create Joba Studio. As athletes, we learn the importance of communication among teammates, the value of supporting each other, and the benefits of thinking outside the box in order to anticipate and swiftly solve whatever problems we may face. We’ve brought these skills from the field into the studio on our mission to design and create meaningful connections between people and brands. So how do we excel? For either field, we acquire go-to ‘plays’ that, when executed properly, always ensure the win.
People-First
At Joba, we redefine what design and communication can — and should — be by focusing on the impact our work has on others, and searching for those powerful, authentic, and genuine connections between people, art, words, and products. Our team is made up of individuals with very diverse backgrounds. But one thing that is identical in each team member is that they respect and appreciate every person they help. We extend consideration and empathy to our colleagues, clients, vendors, and members of the community. Because nothing is more invaluable than the people we interact with. Every client has a story to tell and that story is one that others need to hear. Connecting two people through this same narrative is the most amazing part of what we do and allows us to fulfill our favorite component of Joba’s mission: making people’s lives better by allowing their story to shine.
Trust - Loyalty - Respect
The importance of building relationships of mutual trust, loyalty and respect between clients and team members should not be understated. How many times have you seen a team of predominantly A+ rated athletes fail to win a game simply because they lacked the trust, loyalty, and respect needed to focus? We spend a number of hours on every project conducting discovery — and not just any discovery. We seek to understand the big picture and rationale behind our client’s business practices. We also emphasize transparency between our team and the client, keeping an open line of communication. Just like in any sport, we have found that coordinating a solid game plan for each game allows us to execute with precision, saving our clients time and money. Trust, loyalty and respect is our mantra, because in the instances that you do fall short — and we all do from time-to-time — a solid relationship means that the likelihood of your teammate or client extending grace to you is exponentially higher, ensuring a big win in the long run.
Process, Process, Process
We have learned (the hard way) that when we deviate from our process, we inevitably regret it. This can happen when a client likes to make ‘suggestions’, when an approval skips the appropriate point person, or when we think a project is small enough in scope that we can justify skipping steps all together. Just like on game day, there are no shortcuts to success. A great deal of trial and error has gone into identifying our top processes; it is what keeps our team in-tune and draws new members onto a clear path of what they should aim for in success. Each game requires players from both sides to play from the first quarter to the last. You can not skip a quarter because your team is ahead. Why? At any minute the game (or project) can change, altering the momentum of the play. Whether building brands, writing copy, designing logos, or creating products, we use a structured workflow that combines research with creative exercises to brainstorm and explore possible paths. This way every project is impactfully designed and compellingly communicated.
