Horton Hears a Shoe- How Zappos Even Wowed a New Yorker.

If you haven’t been following BRANDEblog, you may not be up-to-date on my Zappos experience, starting with the HBR article, Why Zappos Pays New Employees to Quit—And You Should Too.

Here’s the backstory-
I read the article- After 1 month of training, Zappos offers employees $1,000 to quit- but guess what! Now it’s $2,000. The idea is that if employees take the money, they’re not Zappos material and would have a negative impact on the culture. Less than 3% take the option.

I was intrigued and found a prez from CEO Tony on slideshare. At the end, he invites viewers to send him an email and he’ll send you a culture book. I did, along with a plug about who BRANDEMiX is, and an offer of help in his Employee Communications any time in the future.

He wrote me back, and told me I’d be getting the book and hearing from Christa, the head of recruiting.

I got the book and heard from Christa. Also got a follow-up email from distribution, confirming that they sent the book and inviting me for a tour any time I was in Henderson.

Fast forward to last Thursday-I’m in Vegas and call Christa about a meeting. She says “sure”- sends a limo to pick me up.
The limo driver calls me to confirm, knows 7 out of 10 company values without peeking at her badge.
Christa tells reception she’ll be down to meet me in 4 minutes- she is.
She gives me a tour.

She misses seeing herself on TV on the Oprah show

Treats me like a queen.

Hands me parting gifts like a book bag and 4 business books with her recommended reading
Shows me the Zappos application and tells me why one of their evaluation questions asks how lucky people consider themselves to be
(To find out why, read here)

And shows me the Executive Offices

As Horton says, “I meant what I said and I said what I meant. An Elephant’s faithful, 100%.”

The Zappos culture is made up of individuals who are 100% committed to delivering customer WOW. They recognize that everyone, even vendors, are customers. They have lived up to my scrutiny and exceeded my expectations of how to internalize a culture and bring a vision to life.

I will buy from Zappos, I will recommend Zappos and I look forward to using them as a case study of how internal culture drives business success. I would be lucky to have them as a BRANDEMiX client.

Internal Communications- 3 Steps to Building Your Internal Brand

It takes great planning to successfully plan and execute a great internal communication strategy.

Here are 3 simple steps to help you build relevant, meaningful internal communications plans that work. But, for extra simple, call us.

INTERNAL BRANDING COMMUNICATIONS PLANNER

1. Background/Business Objectives/Behavior changes

• Who needs to do what differently
• What do they need to change
• Stop, start, do more, less

2. SWOT analysis

• What forces are producing the current behaviors
• How might people react to this new communication

3. Deliverables

• Key issues for next 6 months that may require communication
• Precise media, audiences they reach
• Time frames/Resources required

Download more details.
BRANDEMiX_INTERNAL_COMMUNICATIONS_PLAN.pdf

you're Laid Off- Sung In the Key of B Flat

I take it back- there is such a thing as over-communicating.

If you hate your job and hate your company, and you can’t retire on your 401k anymore, at least be thankful if you don’t have a company song.

No such luck for the employees of Shell--

Their song, from a team-building course in Asia, and is causing Shell’s more buttoned-up executives in Europe to cringe, is called “Growing and Winning” and is set to “We Are the World”.

Listen for yourself at your own risk- you can even sing along if you want to-

“We have moved on, growing day by day/Sharing strengths, we practice what is best/We are all a part of Shell’s global family/Doing work aligned with everyone.”

Another company chorus comes from Henkel: the name behind some of America’s best-known brands from Dial soaps to Purex laundry detergents. The Henkel corporate song "We together" has been recognized with the American "Stevie International Business Award 2005." as the best corporate song in the world. Donald Trump, was among the judges. Maybe he should be fired for this one.

The best I can say is that in the spirit of Globalization, you can have it your way-

I have to scoot- BRANDEMiX is looking for the best internal communications jingle writers. Send samples here.Mission Song Samples

The $700 billion Branding Blunder

Those of us in communications followed with interest the branding campaign that went awry in Washington as Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr. called his $700 billion plan to shore up the nation’s shaky financial system the Troubled Asset Relief Program. Everyone else called it the bailout.

In a recent NY Times article:
The politics of governance in Washington is as much about marketing as anything else...by the time it was first rejected by the House — the White House, Congressional leaders and both presidential candidates — had long since lost the perception battle to critics on the Internet and radio and television talk shows. And if there was any broad agreement, it was that the plan needed to be rebranded to have any hope of resurrection.

“The hurdle is overcoming the word ‘bailout,’ ” R. Bruce Josten, executive vice president of the United States Chamber of Commerce, told The Times. “It has continued to be used by members of Congress. You see it in the press today all over the place. This is not a bailout; this is Treasury buying toxic assets that they will dispose of over a period of time and resell.”

Even maverick (don’t get me started) Senator John McCain agreed. “The first thing I’d do is say, ‘Let’s not call it a bailout. Let’s call it a rescue,’ ” he said on CNN. “Because it is a rescue. It’s a rescue of Main Street America.”

“The messaging was about as wooden and wonkish as it could be,” Patrick Griffin, a former White House lobbyist for President Bill Clinton, told The Times. “Poor Paulson — that was not his forte. And they started behind the eight ball. I never understood why they took so long to have the president engage.”

These two google trend maps show the failure of the Communications plan.

BAILOUT

RESCUE PLAN

Who says Communications aren’t important!

BRANDEMiX for President!

New Employee On-Boarding Study- Be Part of It and Get Back from It.

The purpose of this project is to better understand (a) what all new employees need to learn in order to be successful, (b) what companies are doing to help orientate and onboard their new employees, (c) which of those activities are most effective, and (d) when within the first months of employment those activities should occur. To examine these issues Professor Howard J. Klein from The Ohio State University is asking employers to tell him about their on-boarding practices and then allow him to survey their new employees about their on-boarding experiences. Participation involves having one person to fill out the “company” survey, which is online and should take no more than 20 minutes to complete. The new employee survey takes no more than 30 minute to complete and is also on-line (although a paper and pencil version can be provided if necessary). In return for participating Professor Klein will provide a summary of his findings which will allow the participating companies to evaluate and benchmark their on-boarding practices. For more information about this project, contact Professor Klein at klein_12@fisher.osu.edu or (614) 292-0719.



Jody Ordioni

p/ 212.947.1001
F/ 800.304.4891

www.brandemix.com

Proud to be a Woman-Owned Business Enterprise

jordioni@brandemix.com
BRANDEMiX
Bonding Through Brand Strength

Heard it Through the Grapevine

Americans are nearly twice as likely to speak to a friend or colleague than their organization's HR department if they have an issue at work, according to the latest Ouch Point(R) survey from Opinion Research Corporation, an infoGROUP company.Though 66 percent would opt to speak to their manager about an issue, 39 percent prefer to turn to friends and only 22 percent would go to their HR department for help.

One of the survey's more surprising findings is that over one quarter of respondents (26%) expressed doubt about the ability of their HR team to keep personal details confidential.

"Our research demonstrates the need to improve the quality of the relationship between employees and the HR department," said Vicki Wheatley, Vice President, ORC Employee Engagement Practice (US). "The critical role HR plays within an organization should not be underestimated, as the success of any enterprise depends significantly on the extent to which its workforce is engaged with and dedicated to its mission."

It might be time for Human Resources practitioners to rethink their role and that of the HR department, not only for the purposes of contributing to the organization's bottom line, but also for their own survival.

Some advice from about.com

Determine Your HR Department's Current Reputation and Brand

Ask yourself some important questions:

• Do you know what your HR department's reputation is among the employees? When HR is mentioned, do managers picture savvy strategists, backward bureaucrats, or pleasant, people-pleasers?

• Do employees understand and appreciate the importance of the HR department in furthering the organization's mission and objectives?

• Does the HR department make an effort to market its services to the organization? If it does not, then it has the reputation it deserves. You can, however, easily correct this reputation.

  Talk to Employees to Learn the HR Department Reputation and Brand

  The key is to open up conversations with all levels of employees, and present yourself in the role of facilitator instead of enforcer. You have to get out of the HR office and into the world of your organization’s employees. Finding these answers requires dialogue, which means that HR must communicate. That communication must consist of equal parts of listening and promotion.

  First, HR must listen carefully to what its customers need. Then it must promote what it has done and can do. HR staff must educate the organization about its capabilities and potential contributions. No one knows your capabilities as well as you do.

  Employees, for the most part, still see HR as "those people who handle benefits and do interviewing." To position the HR function for the next decades, every HR practitioner needs to take on a public relations role-starting with your own employees. Think of yourself as a product and do some smart marketing.

  The marketing of the HR department requires you to demonstrate your problem-solving skills, so others will know you do much more than simply process papers. The best form of advertising is the actions you take. By your actions, processes and programs, you can promote the HR department as a flexible, adaptable, solutions-oriented partner, a resource to whom the organization can turn when it needs problems solved.

Maybe you know a department that might benefit from BRANDEMiX Branding!

Who Cares About Talent Management?

Maybe you’re as surprised as we are to see the results of a trend report on Talent Management culled by Google Search.

The US comes in 9th in average worldwide traffic generated by the phrase. Number 1 is Joannesburg, SA and the 5th most trafficked city is Las Vegas. (No doubt my impressive friends at Zappos at the head of the pack.)

Although the broad definition of talent management includes the general practice of recruiting, developing, deploying and retaining all employees across the organization- the term means different things to different people. In fact, some of the available information implies that organizations employ a software-based approach to the process— employing such outdated metrics as cost-per-hire and time-to-fill to measure success.

One group trying to make a difference in the field is the New Talent Management Network.

Founded by BRANDEMiX’s valued friend Marc Effron, VP Talent Management at Avon, the New Talent Management Network (NTMN) is a group of senior talent management professionals interested in advancing this field and is now more than 500 members strong.

They share three primary goals:
* Improve talent management effectiveness by conducting original research that benefits the TM community
* Coordinate opportunities for local, free networking among TM professionals
* Increase the capabilities of TM professionals and raise the bar for this profession

Unlike other talent networking groups, the NTMN is 100% free and all research and other features will always be free. If you have a Talent Management job to post— they’re always free.

The 2nd Annual Survey on the state of Talent Management is launching soon. If you’re one of the ones who cares (even if you’re not living in Las Vegas) sign up for the group and take the survey. Or download the results from last year’s survey. Or, read the executive summary of Talent Management Magazine’s January 08 State of the Industry report. soi_summary.pdf

At BRANDEMiX, we care about you.