(source: Unsplash)
Internal surveys among staff members carried out by Henkel Slovensko have repeatedly shown that corporate culture, colleagues and atmosphere at work are among the most positively evaluated features of the company as an employer.
It thus started to search for ways to use these attributes in external communication and strengthen its employer branding in a credible way.
“We decided to engage our own employees to share their experience of working with Henkel with the external environment, using their own voice and face,” said Michaela Tomášková, team manager talent acquisition and HRBP in Henkel Slovensko. “We believe that satisfied and engaged employees are the best asset of the company.”
The project titled Henkel Social Media Ambassadors proved successful. It was even picked as the winner of the 2021 HR Inspiration awards, granted by the HRComm platform to projects with exceptional and innovative solutions.
The three-member jury comprised of the CEOs of selected companies picked it from altogether 23 initiatives that made it to the shortlist.
Henkel Social Media Ambassadors project was picked as the winner of the 2021 HR Inspiration awards. (source: Henkel Slovensko)
Inspiration for other countries
Since many of Henkel Slovensko’s employees are active users of social networks, and some with a considerable number of followers, the company created a group of social media ambassadors who were offered professional training, tips and tricks to use the social networks for promoting their employer.
They picked 15 ambassadors who subsequently started using the #henkelslovensko hashtag on their social media accounts on various occasions. This includes posts related to the company’s corporate culture, brands and products, but also home office and the participation in various sports activities or volunteering.
“What we consider a total success was that the hashtag was soon used also by the employees who were not part of the group, which increased the frequency of posts where the company was tagged,” Tomášková said.
The use of the #henkelslovensko hashtag has increased by some 1,000 percent, and the most popular posts have even been shared by the official global Henkel accounts, according to Tomášková.
Meanwhile, the project of social media ambassadors caught the attention of other HR departments from several countries where Henkel operates. The Slovak department cooperates particularly with the Czech Republic and Hungary, where it is expected to be launched later this year, she added.
Training the leaders
The second HR Inspiration award went to the Semikron company for its Leadership Legacy Programme – The Strategic Vision and Building the Leadership in Practice, which received the most votes in an online poll.
This development project was launched in 2018, with the aim to build and strengthen the leadership for potential future leaders from various management levels who would be able to face new challenges, while sharing the same principles, cooperating and observing the same values, explained Martina Adamcová, HR manager at Semikron.
Semikron succeeded in training the new generation of leaders. (source: Semikron)
“The aim was to prepare the new generation of leaders for the successful management of the company, and strengthen their strategic perception and decision-making, personal responsibility and proactivity,” Adamcová said.
Thanks to the initiative, the company clearly set its values and principles and created a new generation of leaders and an environment that supports courage and motivation to succeed. It also gives chance for the participants to take part in real strategic projects.
As for the more concrete results, Semikron implemented eight initiatives which helped, for example, shorten the approval process for changes by 25 days or increase the awareness of the values and principles of the company.
At the same time, the departments and various management levels now better understand one another and cooperate, while many top managers turned into mentors, Adamcová said.
“The middle and lower management is encouraged to change their approach to the principles of a new culture and believe in the real team cooperation as a base for sustainable performance,” she added.
