About us
The Surgery was founded in 2013 by Paul Cohen and Nick Cordell, built on a heritage of graphic design, brand thinking and digital craft. From brand development, print and sponsorship activations to retail environments and digital experiences, our roots have always been in creating work with clarity, intelligence and unmistakable creative polish.
As our relationships with clients deepened, one discipline consistently drew us in: internal communications. With the insight and encouragement of client and internal comms specialist Sarah Meurer, who later joined our leadership team, we made a deliberate decision to specialise. Carly Murray soon followed, strengthening our strategic capability and helping us shape a rare blend: design thinking and internal communications working seamlessly together.
Today, Sarah has returned client‑side, but her influence runs deep. As part of her legacy, we continue to run Barn to Boardroom – the internal comms event she and Carly launched over a decade ago. Now in its eleventh year, it remains one of the sector’s most valued forums for insight, challenge and connection.
This integration of disciplines has become our hallmark. Insight sharpened by creativity. Creativity grounded in human understanding. A combined practice designed to create communication which resonates and transforms.
We’ve grown intentionally, not exponentially. A 20‑strong team, proudly independent and purposefully lean. Strategists. Designers. Brand thinkers. Writers. Internal Comms specialists. All working side by side to deliver clarity, confidence and meaningful change for some of the world’s most respected organisations.
Our studio sits in a converted barn on a working West Sussex farm, a place with room to think, challenge, create and breathe. It shapes how we work: focused, thoughtful and always curious. A setting that invites fresh thinking and fosters great ideas.
We’re proud of our blue‑chip client list. Proud of the awards we’ve earned. But most of all, proud of the impact we create – work that helps people understand, connect and move forward with confidence.
This is The Surgery.
Independent. Insight‑driven. Creatively led.
Work that works®.
What drives us
Our mission
To create work that works – strategic, insight‑led, creatively crafted solutions that move people and organisations forward.
Why we do what we do
Because when people understand, believe, and feel connected to what’s happening around them, organisations thrive. Clear, purposeful and creative communication changes everything.
What we do
We combine human insight, strategic intelligence and creative craft to deliver internal comms, EVPs, brand, design and digital solutions that align and inspire your people.
How we do it
We listen deeply, think boldly and design with intention. We cut out the unnecessary, focus on what matters and turn complex challenges into clarity – and clarity into action.
Big fish, little fish, cardboard box… 🕺
It might sound like a throwback dance move, but what if the “shapes” we use every day are doing more than we realise?
As our Head of Animation, Bradley Poston, explains, great design doesn’t just look good—it creates an emotional connection, cuts through noise, and helps people actually remember what they’ve seen.
In a world of endless scrolling and information overload, that`s the kind of impact that matters more than ever.
So next time you’re building a campaign or sharing an important message, ask yourself: Are you just saying it… or are you showing it in a way people will feel?
Read the full blog to discover how to use shapes and characters more strategically 👇
https://ineedsurgery.com/big-fish-little-fish-cardboard-box-the-secret-meaning-behind-shapes-and-characters/
And it’s live… we are really pleased with the outcome of our work to develop a brand-new website for Morelli Consulting Ltd And thankfully, they are, too!
Clear and to-the-point copy and content demonstrates who they are and some of the incredible work they can do for their clients, all within a search optimised structure using striking story-telling imagery and branding.
It’s the culmination of our work with them developing their new story and brand.
Thank you to Morelli Consulting and the team for all their support and trust in us.
Check out the new site https://morelliconsulting.co.uk/ and if you need a digital solution for your organisation, drop us a line today!
March has marched by and now spring is springing! We enjoyed lots more creative design and internal comms work over the past few weeks, here’s some quick highlights. We…
📅 Added another 46 jobs onto our production sheet for clients old and new.
🙌 Delivered insightful AI personas work for one of our loveliest and longest-standing clients.
✈️ ‘Connected’ with an aviation client to help them soft launch a brand-new member platform.
🎸 Really enjoyed helping out in our local community by designing posters for our friends at Haslemere Fringe.
🎬 Completed a mammoth storyboard session of 76 frames and 53 frames to help our clients keep people and communities safe.
☀️ Celebrated the return of the big yellow orb in the sky with some outdoor lunches (as well as a hotly contested Easter egg hunt) all while cooing over the new farm puppies.
🔋 We also add a new twist to working from home by working in Turkey (while some of us recharged the batteries on breaks to Thailand and Germany).
So, thanks March, it was a blast. 💥
Get in touch if you need our help and let’s get Spring swinging!
Last week, as part of our design away days, the Surgery studio team took a creative field trip to Chiharu Shiota’s Threads of Life at the Hayward Gallery.
Getting out of the barn now and again definitely helps us to stretch our creative legs and to see how others see, think, and make.
It’s worth a trip – Shiota’s work is built from thousands of hand‑woven threads that fill entire rooms, binding everyday objects into immersive environments. Her installations explore connection, memory and the unseen systems that hold things together.
It sounds like it might be a bit random, but every thread is placed with care and understanding. Scale, density and negative space all come into play, reminding us that strong ideas don’t always need explanation when the craft is right!
We love our away days, they keep us curious and feed our imagination, so we’re ready to create our next design solution and work that works.
If you’re in town, go and take a look, and as always, get in touch if you need a bit of design inspo!
Puppies, chicks, and lambs.
Not a start to a Cher song but the new arrivals down on the farm where our fabulously idyllic barn is.
Spring is springing!
If you’re passing pop in and say hello!
The lure of the barn is strong, and we have already sold out of places for this year’s Surgery IC event, Barn to Boardroom!
But don’t despair, cancellations are sometimes unavoidable, so if you would like to join in, register for our waitlist now. Spaces will be allocated as they become available on a first come first served basis.
https://ineedsurgery.com/barn-to-boardroom/
When Breedon GB united its materials, cement and surfacing businesses, it marked a major step toward becoming a more connected, future ready organisation. And with 3,000 colleagues spread across offices, quarries, plants and sites, needing to hear all about the new strategy from their leaders in a clear and connected way, we were delighted to help!
Working closely with Breedon’s Internal Comms Business Partner, we developed a refreshed internal communications strategy designed to bring clarity, confidence and connection. The resulting campaign focus was fourfold: create our story, make it real, support GB leaders and engage all colleagues. So, we created the ‘Growing Together’ narrative, delivered an upskilling workshop for leaders and brought everyone together through a leadership conference supported by clear follow up communications and support.
The impact was immediate. Post conference results showed strategic clarity among leaders soaring from 14% to 66% strongly agreeing. Role alignment jumped from 19% to 59%, and confidence to cascade the strategy rose from 22% to 54%. Cross business connection moved from 11% to 39%.
Momentum continues through active working groups, regular Strategy Hub updates, newsletters and pulse checks, ensuring the strategy and the need for cross-functional collaboration stay front and centre.
This work highlights the power of shared storytelling and confident leadership in driving organisational alignment (we’re looking forward to seeing even more positive results in the next survey point).
This was a fun one for us as nearly every member of our team was involved, too, so thank you, Breedon, for putting your trust in us.
If you`d like to explore how we can help you hit your strategic comms or leadership engagement goals, get in touch today!
One of the best things about our annual Barn to Boardroom event is the chance to get together with fellow internal comms, HR and employer brand peers and colleagues. That’s what our lovely clients and industry friends tell us each year anyway!
If you haven’t heard about Barn to Boardroom (or B2B as we call it) it’s not only a chance to get the low down from insightful speakers but to spend time alongside your industry peers in immersive workshops and fun activities. There’s also dedicated networking time and opportunities to chat and mingle while sipping local wine and lovely grub, all in a fantastic setting in rural West Sussex.
This year’s theme is Influencing with Impact and will take place on Wednesday 1 July, so come down, pick up some really useful knowledge and get networking!
Our early bird offer of 50% off tickets ENDS ON FRIDAY, so don’t delay, register https://lnkd.in/e-ZVrEFG
We can’t wait to see you there!
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