SPOTLIGHT ON MARINE HARVEST EFFECTIVE INTERNAL COMMUNICATION FOR THOUSANDS OF EMPLOYEES WORLDWIDE

Transcription

1 SPOTLIGHT ON MARINE HARVEST EFFECTIVE INTERNAL COMMUNICATION FOR THOUSANDS OF EMPLOYEES WORLDWIDE

2 The key factor in realising our vision 'Leading the Blue Revolution' is our 12,700 employees in 24 countries Marine Harvest is the biggest salmon breeder in the world. The company controls the entire value chain from roe to finished product. Its vision, Leading the Blue Revolution, is about being able to supply healthy, nutritional food that is produced sustainably and efficiently. Its staff are key to the realisation of this vision and its corporate culture encourages community, passion, openness and the desire to change. These are all qualities that require excellent internal communication. Interview with KRISTIN HOLSETH Communications Advisor MARINE HARVEST WHAT INTERNAL COMMUNICATION CHALLENGES DID YOU FACE BEFORE YOU HAD DIGITAL DISPLAYS? We have 12,700 employees worldwide. And we control the entire value chain from feed production to the hatching of eggs to edible salmon. Our operations are both geographically distributed and divided into several different activities. We have employees who work in offices, plants and factories. The employees in the factories and plants don t have the same access to and the intranet at work as those of us who work in offices. So our challenge was to make information more easily accessible to everyone. THOUGHTS ABOUT THE INVESTMENT The aim was to make information more easily accessible. To create information that is easy to absorb without having to search for it actively. News items are concise, consisting only of a heading, a photo and an introduction. This makes the message easy to absorb. Animations also arouse greater attention and cause people to watch for a little longer. The idea is for employees to be able to get information on the go. If they want more information, they can visit our intranet or read the trade journals from which we display news. HOW DID THE PROJECT START? AND WHAT WAS THE PROCESS LIKE? Our communications department is here at the head office in Bergen. Therefore, it was logical to test the

3 Kristin Holseth, communications advisor at Marine Harvest, talks about the company s investment in digital internal communication. contents and graphic design here first. We asked our colleagues and others what content they wanted to see. Once we were satisfied with the results, we began to roll the project out to two of our four regions in Norway. We soon got some really positive feedback. This information channel had been missing previously and people realised its value. We then continued to roll it out abroad. When we start in other countries, we do so in the same way as in Norway, by testing one display. This is to give staff a greater understanding of what the information channel involves. WHAT DO YOU SEE AS THE ADVANTAGES OF DIGITAL DISPLAYS? HOW HAS YOUR INTERNAL COMMUNICATION IMPROVED? The main advantage is that we can quickly get information to a large number of people. We have many employees in different countries at many different locations in many different activities. Here in the communications department, we can quickly and easily get global information out to all employees. Regional and local operations can also display their own information. The information is easily accessible as the displays are located in places where staff naturally gather, and they can keep up to date. When you know what is happening in the company, you gain a sense of solidarity. This works both globally and locally. If you know what is happening in your local company, you have greater understanding and commitment and a strong sense of belonging. CAN YOU DESCRIBE YOUR INFORMATION FLOW? The initiative to invest in displays came from the communications department in Bergen. This is where all global information is managed. It s in English and is sent to all countries that have digital displays. The news items are mostly automatically generated news from the global intranet and selected industry sites. Every country, region and major operation is able to create its own material. For example, the operations manager might publish material. Automatically generated news is also taken from the local intranet. > Central information: Information that concerns the entire company such as news from the global intranet, certifications, messages from the Board and recruitment advertisements. HR encourages global mobility within the company, which means that attractive positions are published. > Regional information: News about activities in the region. > Local information Displayed in large factories with over 300 employees. Information on when operations have achieved targets, joint coffee breaks, shared activities, environmental certification, etc. We often have a new feature every day. The central information is in English. Local information is in the local language.

4 HAVE THE RESULTS BEEN AS YOU EXPECTED? It was no surprise that digital displays are an effective information channel that is popular with the staff. We knew that before the displays were installed in the various facilities. We started by testing a screen here in our head office. That gave us a good idea of how this information channel works in practice and we got positive feedback from staff. EXPECTATIONS It is positive now to note that offices abroad are showing interest. REQUIREMENTS ADVICE DO YOU HAVE ANY ADVICE TO GIVE TO A LARGE COMPANY WANTING TO MAKE A SIMILAR INVESTMENT? Start by creating a communication plan, focusing on information flow. What content will be displayed? For example, our content is updated automatically from various sources. We take information from both global and local intranets, trade journals, etc. This means that the channel is largely autonomous. At the same time, we constantly have up-to-date content. A consistent flow of new content is required to maintain the attention of staff. No one wants to read old news. It s also worth investing in nice templates. The content should be easy to read and the design attractive and appealing. It is a good idea to check with staff what content they would like to see. WHAT WERE YOUR REQUIRE- MENTS OF US AS A PARTNER? We were looking for a partner with the capacity to offer this service to all of our 24 countries. Although we have started in Norway and a few other countries, the idea is that all countries will eventually want to use the channel. We also needed a publication tool with English as the menu language and the option for other languages. There had to be an option for integration with other news sources. These updates will occur both regularly and at specific times. The option to select the number of displays by country, region, etc. Finally, we wanted readymade templates to ensure that all content displayed complies with the Marine Harvest graphic profile.

5 HOW HAVE STAFF RESPONDED? When we visit factories and plants, employees often comment spontaneously. They are positive and say that this is something that was really needed. Now that they have this information channel, it is even clearer how important it is. It gives them the latest information from the intranet, industry news, vacancies, etc. The information is easily accessible and they don t have to search for it actively. WHAT ARE THE PROSPECTS FOR THE FUTURE? We are currently satisfied with our information flow and how it is displayed graphically. The future is more about getting displays to more offices in other countries. We are actively working on this. As we are such a large organisation, we also hold global communications meetings. At these meetings, we always provide information on the advantages of digital information displays. We are currently running pilot schemes in Scotland, Poland, Ireland and Belgium. This gives staff there greater understanding of what the displays entail. The next country on the list is the US, which will soon be testing this information channel. WHAT DO YOU VALUE WHEN CHOOSING A PARTNER? We value good communication. Ease of communication and continuous dialogue on the project. Quality and technology are things that we tend to take for granted. We like the way MultiQ answers questions fast and is helping us develop the project. " IF YOU KNOW WHAT IS HAPPENING IN YOUR COMPANY, YOU HAVE GREATER UNDERSTANDING AND COMMITMENT, PLUS A STRONG SENSE OF BELONGING "

6 BRINGS COMMUNICATION TO LIFE MULTIQ MultiQ supplies digital services for public environments. Our clients get an effective communication channel that arouses attention, is easy to administer and can be integrated with other systems.