posted by Bethany Haley @ 4:29 PM
Robin Tooms, Managing Director and fellow blogger, was featured in the July 25-31 issue of the Houston Business Journal in the article, “Public Companies Increasing Digital Dialogue with Shareholders.” We are seeing many of our clients turn to the web to further enhance their IR communications, therefore the content is both timely and relevant.
However, after reading it, I thought it would be helpful to add some color (actual examples) to some of the ideas and thoughts that are presented.
Content: “The best sites educate visitors on the key drivers of the business and demonstrate the investment proposition…” IBM and GE are perfect examples of doing a great job of providing investors with information and an investment perspective from the company. As far as general “robust” content, General Motors has been recognized three years in a row as a best-in-class IR website because of its depth of content.
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Technology & Data Manipulation: “Great sites allow investors to calculate ratios, generate graphics showing trends, etc.” Baker Hughes has just redesigned their IR site (actually the entire corporate site too) in order to provide investors with this capability.
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Two-way Communications: “Use interactive design to enhance the story… Can technology be used to provide clarity and context to the numbers? Can video or animation b ring life to the story…” Baker Hughes‘ online annual report demonstrates this – specifically with an interactive map. Pride International reinforces the successful execution of its business strategy through an interactive online annual as well. Even outside of IR sites, you are seeing many companies use interactivity, animation and video to help tell the story.
Usability & Navigation: “The site should be easy to navigate and intuitive.” – well, every site should be that way! Transocean does a particularly good job of segmenting the IR homepage to the most common linked to/accessed areas. Another feature that I am seeing more of, and appreciate, is “mini” advertisements for quarterly earnings or for special events. GM and Baker Hughes do this on their homepages.
Timeliness: “We are in the real-time era. Each company should make its financial information and data easier to find.” All of the sites mentioned above do an excellent job of this (of course thanks to companies like Thomson, Shareholder.com, B2i, SNL, etc. for “real time” data feeds). However, it is up to the IR and communications team to make sure that the right information is getting out there at the right time – specifically when the information can provide more context to the numbers being provided from the data feed provider. Dell is the one (and only) company that goes above and beyond by supplementing its IR site with an IR blog, “Dell Shares.”
If you have an account, you can view the full article.
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7.07.2008
posted by Robin Tooms @ 9:54 PM
HR.BLR.com, a comprehensive resource site for Human Resources information, is featuring a whitepaper on HR Branding using information from Savage’s HR Branding Field Guide.
Many HR pros, especially in small- to medium-sized companies, might say, “Oh, we don’t have an HR brand.” They may think they have yet to develop one. But that’s a misconception. Want it or not, you already have an HR brand. Is it a good one? Is it aligned with your business and recruiting strategies? Let’s look at what’s involved, according to Bethany Haley, president of Savage Branding & Corporate Design.
“HR Branding: A Field Guide” is the title of a booklet created by Savage to help organizations identify the essence of what they are as a place to work–a combination of culture, reputation, benefits, and internal relationships. As the booklet says, HR branding “is an emotional attachment that makes employees long-term partners in achieving your company’s goals.” In addition, the partnership only succeeds when the brand “rings true and is reinforced across all touch points that the employee encounters at your company.”
A strong HR Brand is essential for every aspect of the employee lifecycle: recruit and retain the best, create long-term loyalty, empower your people as ambassadors (both during and post-employment) and leverage their knowledge for the next generation. What’s your next step? Read the full whitepaper for tips on how to enhance your HR brand, or visit the our HR Branding site to see if your HR Brand is up to par.
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7.02.2008
posted by Robin Tooms @ 7:39 AM
I was reading about Terry McKenzie, Senior Director of Employee Communications at Sun Microsystems, and how she uses blogging for internal communications with Sun’s employees. Granted, Sun is a very “blog-friendly” company with over 4,000 blogs running on blogs.sun.com, so it’s no great surprise that they also see the value in blogging for employee communications. What’s interesting is that her blog is publicly viewable too. From both a media and recruiting standpoint, those of us on the outside can easily peer into the culture as Sun. Terry is able to comment on corporate events in a very personal way. Terry is, after all, an official spokesperson for employee communication so her comments do carry some weight. Additionally, employees comment on her post (some anonymously), so it also functions as a valuable tool to get candid employee feedback too.
While every company might not be ready for such a public exchange of information, the benefits of an internal blog can’t be overlooked. An internal blog can help your employee communications by being “real” (employees will know otherwise!), providing employees with a way to connect on a personal level with corporate goals and contributing to an honest and open exchange of ideas.
