The Whitehead Institute recently came to us with an urgent opportunity: They wanted to revamp how they present their research to their board of directors – and their board meeting was just a few weeks away. 

The big-picture goal was for board members to walk away with a better understanding of the institute’s science, so they could be even stronger ambassadors for its work. 

As people who love translating complex research, we couldn’t pass this up. The Whitehead Institute is a world-leading research organization. Its scientists are faculty members at MIT, making discoveries that reshape our understanding of biology and lead to game-changing treatments and technologies. We were thrilled by the opportunity, but we knew the challenges ahead: 

• We needed to clarify what the institute’s events and communications team were aiming for. 

• We needed in-depth conversations with scientists whose schedules are often booked weeks in advance. 

• We needed to create the actual materials. 

• And we needed to give the scientists and stakeholders time for review.

It was possible, but only if we made tough decisions about where to focus and stuck to a strict timeline.

Setting the Project Up for Success

In previous years, the institute’s scientists stood on stage and gave presentations to the full board. The problem? The presentations were often too technical for a non-scientific audience to follow. 

This year, the institute wanted something more accessible and engaging. They decided three scientific teams would host interactive stations, where they would spend 15 minutes making quick presentations and answering questions from small groups of board members. 

Our job was to bring this concept to life. We quickly identified four priorities.

1. Align Around Realistic Expectations

We had some ambitious ideas: coordinated video displays, animated explainers, even physical models demonstrating how certain animals regenerate limbs. But with limited time, our first step was an honest conversation about the timeline, the work required, and the tradeoffs involved. We discussed where we could realistically make the biggest impact.

The good news: Everyone agreed that, while we didn’t have time to achieve a perfect end state, we could make big improvements – and gather insights to make future presentations even stronger.

2. Focus on the Most Important Deliverables

Given the compressed timeline, we focused on what mattered most: Creating a narrative foundation for each presentation.

That included developing:

Pre-reads for board members. These short, accessible summaries provided context before the meeting, helping board members arrive informed and excited.

A standardized storytelling framework. Consistent structure across presentations would make the science easier to follow.

Talking points for scientists. The institute’s scientists needed flexibility to present in their own voices, but they also needed a concise way to communicate the most compelling aspects of their work. We created talking points that distilled key messages and provided language they could incorporate into their presentations.

Visual storytelling recommendations: We developed visual recommendations and rough sketches to help a scientific illustrator develop supporting visuals. 

The Journey

Then came the fun part. We spent a whirlwind two weeks deep-diving into scientific papers, meeting with research teams and developing core assets.

For example, we decided every presentation should be built around five key components:

The Big Idea

This captured the intrigue of each team’s science and was framed around a “What if?” question that revealed the research’s possibilities. 

For Peter Reddien and Patrick Autissier, that question was: What if people could regenerate tissue—to heal wounds, recover from injuries, or reverse disease?

The Core Scientific Question

This connected the big idea to the actual research.

For Drs. Reddien and Autissier, the question was: How do animals regenerate tissue—and why can’t humans do it better?

Why It Matters

This translated scientific discovery into human impact. In the regeneration example, we focused on how this could lead to therapies that repair spinal cord injuries and prevent paralysis.

The Technologies Driving the Work

The institute wanted to help board members understand the scientists’ cutting-edge tools. We highlighted technologies like machines that quickly sort through millions of cells and find the ones that could guide regeneration.

Why Whitehead Institute Is Uniquely Positioned

Finally, we wanted board members to understand why this work flourishes at the Whitehead Institute.

We emphasized things like how scientists have freedom to pursue big questions and partner with colleagues in other fields. 

With the framework in place, we developed the pre-reads, talking points and visual recommendations. This involved quick, daily back-and-forths where our team vetted approaches and gave each other reality checks to be sure captured the science in ways that would resonate. 

That investment paid off when we delivered the materials: They moved smoothly through review, with lots of happy responses and no significant revisions.

The Results

The big day arrived.

Board members gathered in person, split into small groups and rotated through each scientific station. They listened to presentations, asked questions and engaged directly with the researchers. 

When we regrouped with the Whitehead Institute team, we were thrilled to hear that both the staff and the board viewed the new format as a huge step forward – board members came away with a deeper appreciation for the science and a clearer understanding of what makes the institute unique.

Just as important, we identified opportunities to build on the new format for next year's meeting and an initial timeline to bring some of our more ambitious ideas life for future events. 

The project showed what's possible when great science, clear storytelling and a focused process come together, even on an ambitious timeline.

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