Omnicom firms tackle corporate culture

Hong Kong - To help employers manage the "unprecedented organizational" change sweeping through the corporate landscape, Fleishman-Hillard has partnered with branding agency Bernard Hodes to launch Talent Asset Impact.

Rachel Catanach (pictured), SVP, general manager & partner at Fleishman-Hillard Hong Kong, said the impact of the credit crunch and the resulting economic turmoil on corporate business is significant.

She said the deeper, long-term effects on employee loyalty, motivation and engagement in their company's objectives are only just being felt.

The Omnicom firms have identified the emergence of a "corporate culture crunch" as companies undergoing restructuring are challenged to maintain employee engagement and motivation to achieve higher productivity from fewer resources.  

"Employer brands are under attack and the working culture is being eroded," Catanach said.

She added effective employee engagement is critical to help people effectively cope with organizational change, which often leads to issues such as low morale, productivity, job satisfaction and cultural tensions.

As thousands of employees have been retrenched in Asia since September 2008, the highest since the Asian financial crisis, Catanach said some organisations are facing difficult integrations while surviving employees are expected to remain productive with no assurance of a job in future.

In this scenario, she said leaders cannot afford to relegate employee communications to the back seat. 

"Used well, employee engagement communications can be a strategic and critical tool on the path to recovery, " she added.

Chris Plowman, regional director for Hodes Asia Pacific, explained that genuine employee engagement is critical and entails thoughtful planning and sensitive implementation.

He pointed out it's not merely about defining the messages you want to communicate internally but being creative and innovative about how these are communicated from senior management in a convincing, believable and persuasive way.

"But on top this, consultation with and the involvement of people affected by the changes is an important determining factor," he said.

He said Fleishman and Hodes have combined their expertise to provide a stronger offering primarily targeting companies in distress but applies to any companies that require effective employee engagement communications not only now but as economic and employment markets continue to change.

The joint offering from Fleishman-hillard and Bernard Hodes called Talent Asset Impact is designed to help employers manage the impact of downsizing, mergers in an increasingly uncertain business environment for employees and culture of their business.  

Some of their clients include implementing a global employee engagement program for HSBC Commercial Banking, servicing ExxonMobil Hong Kong for its brand integration and creating bottom-line results with change management for Glaxo SmithKline.