| brewing up a success story for Carlsberg |
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25 January 2008 The Internal communications team at Carlsberg is toasting the success of Cheers – the tabloid newspaper of choice for the brewing company’s 3,000 UK employees.headlines began producing the 12-page quarterly paper last March, for a workforce which includes warehouse operatives and draymen, sales people and brewery staff. Now a survey has shown that by changing the style from a management-led magazine, to a chatty, friendly format, the workforce has taken it on board. headlines conducted the communications survey at one of Carlsberg’s largest depots, Gravelly Park in Birmingham. Employees in a wide range of roles were asked their views on the way Carlsberg communicated with them – and Cheers was voted the most reliable and relevant communication channel. The publication was a big departure from the previous magazine, which was regarded as a ‘top-down’ communication tool where all news items were selected and approved by management and cascaded through the company. Cheers takes a completely difference approach. The focus is on the workforce, recognising their contributions, successes and achievements, and informing them of the developments within Carlsberg and the industry relevant to them. The first challenge of Cheers is to win the attention of its audience – and it is deliberately positioned as a fun, slightly controversial read. Many of the articles are written in a tongue-in-cheek style. There is friendly, good-natured banter, with some long-standing in-jokes, such as the frequent appearance of certain members of staff. Lisa Wright, Internal Communications Manager at Carlsberg UK, said: "Cheers has become a real talking point and that in itself shows that the paper is a success. Cheers is helping us to drive a culture of engagement and involvement, and it's a great fun read!" headlines, medina house, 318 silbury boulevard, milton keynes, mk9 2ae tel: 01908 393 303 website: http://www.corpnews.co.uk |
