Obtaining the best value from internal communication to support your brand strategy

Transcription

1 Obtaining the best value from internal communication to support your brand strategy Rodney Gray Employee Communication & Surveys IQPC Conference, 25 October 2005 Aligning Employees with Brand Values

2 Coming to grips with internal branding today s session Defining brand and who decides what it is What internal branding is and what it isn t What to do to differentiate our organisations How we go about delivering brand promise Why internal branding is critical to survival Alignment with business strategy, positioning Why great communication is just not enough Going beyond understanding to commitment 2

3 What is brand? Many definitions, mostly wrong A distinctive, trademarked product, service A name, sign, or symbol for differentiation What makes something special or unique The personality of a product or service A promise of a certain standard, quality A special corner of a consumer s mind A symbolic construct to represent a collection of information about something A marketing tool for disambiguation 3

4 Brand - a few misconceptions It is not reputation this is related, but different You can have a great reputation and dud brands You may even have great brands and crook reputation Is not your logo, trademark, symbol, slogan etc. Although these may influence perceptions of brand Is not brand recognition, sentiment or personality Is not your (formal or espoused) values Although your values-in-use will affect your brand Is not your organisational DNA as some claim It is what people make of what your brand represents 4

5 What brand really is Brand is the totality of perceptions that both customers and others have about a name Based on experiences, hearsay, impressions Is a mental construct May be fact-based or not Truth, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder Is an intangible 5

6 A brand is whatever WE say it is What McDonald s says: Quality, Service, Cleanliness, Value Hot, safe, fresh, tasty food Supports many local communities Spends $500m p.a. in Australia Employs 55,000 in 725 stores What consumers might think: Convenient meal, snack or coffee? Fast but fattening, unhealthy food? Low wages exploit young workers? Quick to sue critics? (McLibel case) No.1 worst reputation nominee in Europe 6

7 Internal branding is not employer branding How do you like your career - well done? (Employer branding is related but different is done very well by the likes of Deloitte) 7

8 Nor branding of internal communication initiatives It is not branding of internal communication initiatives, although many organisations do this very well too 8

9 Internal branding Relates to the extent to which employees deliver your brand promise Despite what your brand promise says, your brand is determined partly by what your people do The moments of truth may have a big impact 9

10 Internal branding Brand engagement Brand assimilation Brand alignment Putting brand at the centre of business Employee delivery of the brand promise (Get it right and you can produce brand equity ) 10

11 Internal branding a simplistic approach Brand promise Employee knowledge and motivation Satisfied customers Great profits and huge success 11

12 Employee-customer-profit model A compelling place to work A compelling place to shop A compelling place to invest Objective Environment for personal growth and development Support for ideas and innovation Empowered and involved teams and individuals Great merchandise at great values Excellent customer service from the best people Fun place to shop Customer loyalty Revenue growth Superior operating growth income Efficient asset management Productivity gains Measures Personal growth and development Empowered teams Customer needs met Customer satisfaction Customer retention Revenue growth Sales per square foot Inventory turnover Operating income margin Return on assets 12

13 Internal branding the reality Brand Promise Employee contribution + Systems Staffing Policies Procedures Product Service etc. etc. Satisfied customers (or not) Financial outcome 13

14 Key drivers of employee behaviour Sears research 1. I like the kind of work I do 2. My work gives me a sense of accomplishment 3. I am proud to say I work at Sears 4. the amount of work I am expected to do 5. my physical working conditions 6. the way I am treated by those who supervise me 7. I feel good about the future of the company 8. Sears is making the changes necessary to compete effectively 9. I understand our business strategy 10. I see a connection between the work I do and the company s strategic objectives? Attitude about the job Attitude about the company Employee behaviour 14

15 Personal case study - what makes the difference? Hardware store B Black + white line adverts Huge range of stock Enormous, dark warehouse Inexperienced staff Too few personnel Poor knowledge of store Little knowledge of DIY they hide from you Many long, slow queues Lowest prices are just the beginning Hardware store C Full colour advertisements Adequate range of stock Light bright, cluttered store Experienced tradesmen Plenty of eager staff Know where everything is Expert helpful handymen Genuinely keen to help you One queue, a few checkouts All the help you need 15

16 Brands depend much more on systems than people Systems 80% People 20% Systems People The main focus should be on policies, systems and processes, so you need to get these right People can only do so much but, once systems are in place, competitive difference or advantage depends on people 16

17 Which do you work on? Communications or communication Communications = Program focus Work on about 20% Employee engagement Service KPIs, delivery Customer feedback Mostly managing information flows up and down organisation Valuable but not the complete picture Communication = Total system focus Get involved in 100% Employee engagement Service KPIs, delivery Organisational meaning Policies, procedures Systems, processes Executive role modelling Manager skills training Etc. 17

18 Organisation s Vision, Mission, Objectives Brand promise 1. Brand promise, values, attributes, positioning Feedback on brand promise Sometimes the brand promise or values are unrealistic and need revision, modification 1. Communicate brand promise, values, attributes, positioning Systems feedback Cross-functional, staff support, processes, policies, procedures or some other operational issues may to be fixed. Deliver programs to ensure employees deliver the promise Programs - Media - Sources Measurement Programs - Media - Sources Measurement Programs - Media - Sources Measurement Programs - Media - Sources Measurement Programs - Media - Sources Measurement People feedback Selection, staffing Induction, training Understanding brand Service standards Culture, morale, pay Teamwork, manager Rodney Gray 2005

19 How to get from brand promise to brand BRAND PROMISE POLICIES, SYSTEMS, PROCESSES, PROCEDURES value proposition competitive advantage brand strategy brand positioning, niche brand values, attributes ORGANISATION vision, mission, goals values espoused employer brand corporate reputation recruitment; selection; staffing levels structure; employee deployment remuneration; benefits; prerequisites communication infrastructure induction; training; coaching performance management system upward or 360 manager feedback information technology infrastructure employee opinion, culture surveys profit share; incentives; ESOPs policies, procedures, processes product/ service systems service/quality standards cross-functional hand-offs support functions reporting system measurement processes customer feedback processes TQM process mapping Balanced Scorecard ORGANISATIONAL MEANING EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT SERVICE DELIVERY BRAND Symbols executive role modelling (behaviour) uniforms, appearance physical environment Culture values in use, norms stories, language used behaviour rewarded consult, involve staff understand promise employee satisfaction morale, motivation intellectual and emotional commitment use of time discretionary effort internal service retention of staff what employees do what employees say teamwork attitude, demeanour performance (handling moments of truth ) service consistency recovery (glitches) attributes as perceived by public (whether accurate or inaccurate, correct or incorrect) versus expectations brand is as defined by customers, others Rodney Gray 2005

20 How to get from brand promise to brand BRAND PROMISE POLICIES, SYSTEMS, PROCESSES, PROCEDURES value proposition competitive advantage brand strategy brand positioning, niche brand values, attributes ORGANISATION vision, mission, goals values espoused employer brand corporate reputation recruitment; selection; staffing levels structure; employee deployment remuneration; benefits; prerequisites communication infrastructure induction; training; coaching performance management system upward or 360 manager feedback information technology infrastructure employee opinion, culture surveys profit share; incentives; ESOPs policies, procedures, processes product/ service systems service/quality standards cross-functional hand-offs support functions reporting system measurement processes customer feedback processes TQM process mapping Balanced Scorecard ORGANISATIONAL MEANING EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT SERVICE DELIVERY BRAND Symbols executive role modelling (behaviour) uniforms, appearance physical environment Culture values in use, norms stories, language used behaviour rewarded consult, involve staff understand promise employee satisfaction morale, motivation intellectual and emotional commitment use of time discretionary effort internal service retention of staff what employees do what employees say teamwork attitude, demeanour performance (handling moments of truth ) service consistency recovery (glitches) attributes as perceived by public (whether accurate or inaccurate, correct or incorrect) versus expectations brand is as defined by customers, others Rodney Gray 2005

21 BRAND PROMISE BRIDGING THE GAP Modify brand promise - if unrealistic to deliver Service delivery issues Fix people issues Marketing, Advertising and Public Relations DELIVERING THE BRAND PROMISE Brand information Vision, Mission, Goals Organisational meaning Fix systems problems Change perceptions -Communication Assessment of issues - perception issues - real brand issues Expectations of potential customers Employee engagement Service delivery issues Systems, policy issues BRAND Rodney Gray 2005

22 What to communicate - Organisational vision Vision, Mission, goals Organisational objectives Values espoused How we wish to do things Employer brand Perceptions we create to attract new people Corporate reputation Governance etc. 22

23 What to communicate Brand promise Brand promise What advertising says What PR has promoted Competitive advantage Brand values Key brand attributes Points of differentiation Brand aspirations What we truly aspire to Ideal market positioning Brand alignment How functions work as team Brand engagement Difference employees make 23

24 What to communicate Brand features (tangibles) Key features, benefits of product and/or service Points of differentiation Testimonials from customers, brand comparisons (Choice) How to discuss with prospects and customers What to say What not to say What you can promise (You could run role plays) 24

25 What to communicate Brand essence (intangibles) A defining sentence or slogan Personality (compare brand to an animal, car, or person) Values what does the brand stand for (and not stand for) What are symbols and stories? Exactly how brand adds value to increase pleasure, reduce pain Any other benefits: tangible and intangible (customer segments) 25

26 What to communicate Brand repositioning What advertising, PR says Consistency what is said externally and internally The internal reality Feedback from staff about ability to deliver promise (s) Cross-functional issues Employee behaviour What staff start doing What staff stop doing What remains the same 26

27 What to communicate Social value and WIIFM Contribution of brand to society Younger employees particularly with to contribute to society What good does brand do for the world (nation, or local community) WIIFM = What s in it for me? Training, skills will benefit career Successful brand = successful employer = good career prospects Successful brand = more likely to get good pay levels, increases 27

28 What to communicate Organisational meaning Managing symbols Physical environment Employee appearance Stories, symbols, icons Developing culture What executives do, say What is reinforced Who gets rewarded, why? Values-in-use v espoused How things are done around here (traditions) 28

29 Formal media Organisational meaning WEAK What executives and managers say Espoused values Vision, Mission STRONG Rules Policies Procedures Systems Processes Formal media will only have impact if messages are from trusted sources and/or are consistent with employees experiences What employees experience; what they observe; what they hear from those they trust; what executives do; who they recognise; what is reported; what is measured Creates MEANING What is important How things are done Values in use EMPLOYEES BEHAVIOUR (What employees do) Rodney Gray 2005

30 What to work on - Employee engagement Staff understand Vision and own role in achieving Consult and involve for ownership, commitment Morale and motivation Depends on extent staff are respected and valued Retention, loyalty Depends on growth, learning, improvement 30

31 What to communicate - Staff selection and management Staff specifications Nature of people needed Employer branding Advertising, promotion Recruitment promises Reward communication Salaries, benefits, perks Induction, orientation Performance appraisals Coaching, counselling 31

32 Sears Employee-Customer-Profit chain 1. A company must build management alignment around the model It is critically important that every manager, especially those at the top of the company, understand the system and buy into it wholeheartedly. 2. it is essential to create sense of ownership among sales associates and staff It looks like a simple communication challenge, but it is a good deal more. 32

33 What to communicate Feedback to managers Customer feedback Customer complaints Research findings Staff feedback Upward or 360 feedback Employee opinion surveys Communication audits Process issues Feedback from internal customers What process mapping tells about improvement 33 possibilities

34 What to communicate - Customer expectations What customers need What research says What complaints indicate What employees feed back from customers comments Employees ideas and suggestions broadly Gap between customer perceptions and brand promise (Don t forget internal customers) 34

35 What to work on helping managers to communicate How staff should use resources, technology How to meet unusual customer expectations Working within budgets Operations systems issues Support function issues Policies and procedures How to appraise and coach Handling poor performers Developing teams, morale 35

36 What to communicate Service standards Service expectations Job descriptions, role specifications Customer interaction guidelines Managing customer demand How performance is evaluated Customer measurement Role of various functions consistency of policies 36

37 In short The customer/public decides what brand is Internal branding is delivering brand promise Our people may be the best, only differentiator We must work on BOTH systems and people But out people can destroy our brand = critical Communicate to support brand strategy, values Communication not enough (policies, systems, staffing, training, manager competence, etc.) Commitment comes from WIIFM and society 37

38 References Slide 5 clients of Impact Communications (see Slide 6 McDonald s website + Can Reputation be Managed The Bulletin of Public and Corporate Communication, Issue 1, September 2005 Slide 7 graduate recruiting advert from Deloitte Slide 8 ANZ internal branding for Breakout program Slides 12,14,32 The Employee-Customer-Profit Chain at Sears Harvard Business Review, Jan-Feb,

39 Internal Branding: has been around a while, one way or another with different names Crosby, Philip, B Quality is Free, Signet Shakespeare, 1979 (argued that management is the root of all quality problems = must engage executives) Carlzon, Jan Moments of Truth, Harper & Row, 1987 (failing SAS was turned around by working on the 50,000 moments of truth with customers each day) Wellins, Richard S et. al. Empowered Teams, Jossey-Bass, 1991 (self-directed work groups can unleash the full potential of people, from DDI) Byham, William C. & Cox, Jeff Zapp! The Lightening of Empowerment, Fawcett Columbine,1992 (a fable on how to empower people, from DDI) Sears, Roebuck and Company 1992 The Employee-Customer-Profit Chain at Sears see Harvard Business Review, January-February, 1998, pp Pfeffer, Jeffrey Competitive Advantage through People, Harvard Business School Press, 1994 (about how people make the difference in top firms) Thomson, Kevin Emotional Capital, Capstone, 1998 (capturing hearts and minds to create lasting business success - from leading communicator) 39

40 Contact details Rodney Gray Employee Communication & Surveys Suite 217, 40 Yeo Street, Neutral Bay, NSW, 2089 Phone (02)