Woodward's 150th Celebrations Take Flight

In 2019, as Woodward’s 150th anniversary approached, the organization—an independent global designer, manufacturer and service provider of energy control and optimization solutions for aerospace and industrial markets—sought to leverage the milestone in order to celebrate its innovative spirit, inspire pride in its past and confidence in its future, and increase brand equity. In partnership with Woodward’s communications and marketing teams, History Factory used our tested anniversary planning methodology to create a comprehensive anniversary plan with a theme rooted in the organization’s heritage: “Making Our Mark.” The plan included a holistic content and activation strategy, short stories from Woodward’s 150 years of history, images, oral histories, videos and event plans for its 42 locations across 13 countries.

Woodward partnered with History Factory to engage its multilingual and global workforce in an integrated sesquicentennial campaign that delivered:

• A flexible anniversary plan and content strategy that was able to pivot to meet COVID-era challenges
• A content bank of stories and assets to communicate Woodward’s collective history, including a dynamic multilingual website and anniversary materials to provide content across the global organization
• A unifying anniversary mark/logo
• An executive oral history program linked to anniversary storylines
• An ambassador toolkit to implement anniversary programming with local flair
• ESG-centric exhibit work to spread STEM education to local communities and families

By early 2020, Woodward was ready to roll out its anniversary. But by the end of the first quarter, the COVID-19 pandemic and the industry challenges it caused threw a wrench into the organization’s plans.

Pandemic Aviation Restrictions Interrupt Woodward’s Anniversary Plans

As COVID-19 brought the aviation industry—and so many others—screeching to a halt, Woodward’s business changed dramatically. It became clear that the plans initially developed for the anniversary would need to change to meet the moment. Thanks to the flexibility and ongoing relevance of the strategy History Factory and Woodward had developed, we were able to adjust the 150th messaging to fit the unforeseeable circumstances in which the world found itself. 

We modified the anniversary’s celebratory tone to one that focused on commemorating the work of the past 150 years. The stories and videos we developed became essential messaging content for leadership communications and intranet content authenticating Woodward’s story and demonstrating how it had overcome similar challenges in the past. By focusing on past instances of resilience and overcoming challenges, Woodward provided internal and external stakeholders alike with historically grounded reassurance in an uncertain time. 

History Factory and Woodward worked together to find ways to celebrate safely, including shifting planned in-person events to digital and outdoor departmental gatherings. A physical display planned for headquarters, the Marks of Progress exhibit, became an online interactive timeline that showcased innovations from Woodward’s 150 years for members around the world.

Like many organizations during COVID-19, Woodward faced difficulties with member morale. While some of its staff was able to work from home, much of the organization’s manufacturing staff was considered essential and continued to work on-site. To make members feel valued, Woodward implemented a story capture campaign using smartphone technology to record history in real time alongside its 150th anniversary celebration. These submissions of user-generated content recorded the challenges and triumphs of 2020—history in the making—and helped reiterate the anniversary’s themes as initially outlined.

Finally, Woodward created an anniversary web store for its members—one of the anniversary campaign’s best-received initiatives. The store featured heritage-inspired items, including coasters printed with archival photos, specially branded anniversary items and blankets with founder Amos Woodward’s original patent—which turned out to be a staff favorite. Each member was allowed to select their favorite items as a thank-you gift for all of their hard work keeping the company running during a difficult time.

A Return to Normalcy Allows for Wider Implementation

Once COVID-19 restrictions began to lift, Woodward reactivated ideas that it had put aside at the beginning of the pandemic. As international borders opened, so did cultural institutions. One of the initial parts of Woodward’s anniversary plan included the development of sponsored exhibits at children’s museums in Rockford, Illinois, and Fort Collins, Colorado. These STEM-focused, interactive exhibits, which highlighted the scientific principles used in Woodward’s flagship products and were intended to educate and excite the next generation of engineers and scientists, were a huge hit, drawing attention from local newspapers and media outlets.

Forging Ahead in Unprecedented Times

In the face of COVID-19, Woodward shifted the tone of its 150th anniversary from celebratory to commemorative—a pivot that remained true to the original goal of drawing on its heritage to create long-lasting impact.

Thanks to careful planning, quick thinking and flexibility, Woodward’s 150th anniversary proceeded safely with activations such as: 

• Capturing Woodward members’ thoughts on their definition of a “Woodward Maker” using a platform allowing users to directly submit content. History Factory used this footage to produce a total of 26 videos (with translated captions) on subjects such as Woodward’s core values, community involvement and members’ thoughts on the CEO. These were shared via Woodward’s internal global news, email and social media platforms.
• Building a Woodward 150th online store where members could select mementos Woodward’s milestone anniversary. 
• Shifting focus from a single-location permanent exhibit to an interactive virtual experience that was accessible to all of Woodward’s members.

Lasting Impact

Woodward’s collaboration with History Factory for its 150th anniversary significantly deepened employee engagement, strengthened customer loyalty and enhanced the company’s reputation, in addition to the following lasting impacts: 

• Increased pride in Woodward’s heritage and confidence in its future
• The repurposing of content from the anniversary websites and Marks of Progress exhibit for communications beyond the 150th
• A relationship with History Factory that extended beyond the anniversary to additional consulting and archival support
• Foundational story and artifact gathering for long-term presentation, forming the basis for an archives program

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