In October 2023, CMT employees collaborated across 25 offices in nine states to participate in its second annual Continuous Improvement and Innovation (CI²) Day.
The overarching goal for Innovation Day 2023 was a focus on growing internal Communities of Practice, where individuals with similar talents and interests come together to share insights and identify areas for improvement. Overall, 20 Communities of Practice meetings took place firmwide to support growth and knowledge sharing.
CMT’s CI² initiative aims to foster a daily improvement and innovation mindset amongst teams across the firm. “There can be a tendency to get stuck in your ways,” says Heather Gipp, Water Resources Senior Engineer and CI² Coach in St. Louis, MO.
“CI² encourages big picture, out-of-the-box thinking, and challenges our team to explore approaches that haven’t been done yet to provide even better quality for our clients.”
As a CI² Coach, Heather creates pathways between departments to help move ideas to solutions. Creating these connections can be a catalyst for launching new Communities of Practice. “It has been rewarding to help start Communities of Practice in hydraulics and hydrology. I see the opportunity for others, and I’m happy to help facilitate these relationships for the overall growth of the firm.”
Dayton, OH
Jacksonville, FL
Columbus, OH
St. Louis, MO
Community of Practice Meetings
CUP-STACKING TEAM ACTIVITIES
Office Scavenger Hunts
Innovative idea campaigns
On Innovation Day 2023, CI² champions organized companywide activities for learning and engagement. Overall, 20 Communities of Practice meetings took place across the firm to support growth and knowledge sharing, 27 individual teams worked together to innovatively engineer the tallest cup tower in a small group activity, and participants from 10 offices successfully completed a firmwide scavenger hunt on internally shared resources. Additionally, 14 new ideas for innovative projects were posted to Innovation Day-specific idea campaigns.
The CMT Team looks forward to hosting Innovation Day 2024 to bolster even more creative collaboration.