Network Rail. Values and behaviours internal campaign
Role: Graphic Designer. Agency: Storycatchers
Context
Network rail developed a new values and behaviours guide to help employees understand how organisational values translate into everyday actions, career development and progression. The content was intended to support performance conversations, one-to-ones and reviews, making behaviours feel practical and personally relevant rather than abstract.
The guide needed to work for a large, diverse workforce and be clear, approachable and easy to navigate.
My role
The core content for the guide was provided by Network Rail’s HR team and shaped by the Storycatchers copy team. I was responsible for the design and visual structure of the guide, translating the written content into a clear, engaging and accessible document.
My role focused on creating a layout system that could handle a large amount of detailed information while remaining readable and human in tone. This included structuring complex behaviour frameworks across different bands and leadership levels, and ensuring the guide felt supportive rather than instructional.
Design approach
The design centred on people, using photography of real Network Rail employees to reinforce the idea that values and behaviours apply to everyone, regardless of role or seniority. A modular layout system combined strong colour blocking, clear hierarchy and repeated visual cues to help users navigate the document and understand how sections related to one another. A triangle shape overlaying the photography gave the impression of a speech bubble without making the design feel fussy and attributing the statements to the people.
The visual language was designed to feel consistent with Network Rail’s wider internal communications, while giving the guide its own identity so it could stand alone as a reference document.
Internal promotion
Alongside the guide itself, there was a small internal launch campaign to raise awareness and encourage engagement. I designed supporting visual assets used in Yammer posts, helping to introduce the guide and prompt employees to explore how the behaviours related to their own roles and career development.
These assets reused key visual elements from the guide to create recognition and consistency across channels.
Outcome
The finished guide provided Network Rail with a clear, well-structured resource that could be used across the organisation to support conversations about behaviour, performance and progression.