Business Chief US+CAN Magazine March 2017 | Page 14

PROFILE

People will see the savings and the impact these organizations are making , and be inspired by it

store can only learn from another grocery store – that ’ s not true .
“ We wanted a way to demonstrate in a fun , interactive way that learning can happen across the market , and eventually we came up with this notion of a swap .”
The first series of the Better Buildings SWAP features Hilton and Whole Foods – both giants in their field , one very corporate and one very proud of being the opposite of corporate – swapping places and sharing the details of their organizations in the most open way possible .
“ One of the Whole Foods team said ‘ there ’ s never been suits in the kitchen before ’. Despite the cultural differences , the lessons
each organization took away from the experience were quite profound . That ’ s why we decided to make more episodes of SWAP , because it illustrates the ‘ a-ha !’ moment we want people to have when they think about energy efficiency . We want to show that other people have the same issues as you , and that you ’ re well-served to figure out how they overcame those issues . While it ’ s a serious issue and very much in the national interest , we ’ ve proved that it can still be enjoyable and engaging .”
Vargas and her team have reaped the rewards of the SWAP in the form of positive feedback and increased awareness of what she and her team are doing . Thanks to an unforeseen degree of recognition – after all , a televised business swap is a highly unusual project for a governmental department to undertake – the first season achieved over 50 million media impressions and 300,000 YouTube views . Season two – a swap between the US Airforce Academy and the US Naval Academy – has over 1.5 million views .
The team has already wrapped on a third season – a city swap between Boston and Atlanta – which delves into a whole new set of trials . The diverse spectrum of sectors that the show has already put through the same challenge is what makes it so appealing for its audience , and it has enjoyed enough enthusiastic feedback
14 March 2017