How Philips used video to bring employees together

By Kelly Kass

In 2005, Philips Electronics North America conducted a focus group of 100 of their 16,000 employees and found that although they were proud to work for the company, they actually had limited knowledge of Philips’ scope of business. Eighty per cent admitted there weren’t enough opportunities to experience Philips’ products, thus resulting in the inability to recommend them to others. They simply didn’t feel connected.

Furthermore, employees were not impressed with the creativity exhibited in Philips’ advertisements, nor did the spots create sufficient buzz around the office. They felt there wasn’t enough risk-taking in the internal communications program. The Philips image just wasn’t cool enough.

In spite of Philips’ large number of internal communication resources – from intranets to town hall meetings, those vehicles were unable to bring about the employee engagement needed for them to become involved with building the Philips brand.

What would help engage and unite a diverse range of employees from all across the United States? Video. And thus the Roving Reporter program was born.

The Roving Reporter

Through the use of the video program, Philips sought to educate employees about their products while creating a sense of pride about the company, as well as an increased demand for new technologies. Most importantly, it had to be fun and relevant and encourage employee participation rather than the drier, more passive internal communication vehicles people were traditionally used to.

“We were looking to build an employee brand ambassador program,” remembers Philips' original roving reporter and former Employee Communication Manager, Cameron Batten. “We found that employees needed more active participation in a more conversational way, as seen through their eyes.”

Rather than opt for a suit-and-tie approach with their videos, Philips chose an MTV/Big Brother style where young company managers-turned-correspondents would provide employees with a behind-the-scenes look each quarter at a product launch, press junket or other special event.

“Up until that point, employees knew nothing about how we launched a new product,” Cameron recalls. “We saw a need to look at cool things from a branding perspective where we could turn things around internally.”

Philips produced four week-long video series in total – from October, 2005 to October, 2006 - including reports from the Sundance Film Festival and FIFA World Cup. Each of the fifteen videos was broadcast on the Philips intranet. Pieces ranged from two to three minutes long and also included a co-host from the talent pool generated by the company. “Everyone has a chance to shine here,” Cameron enthuses.

Accessibility & Interactivity

While on-site, the Roving Reporter remained immediately accessible to employees. They could communicate with him via e-mail and instant messaging, thus allowing them to be part of the action.

To further enhance employee involvement, Philips created an interactive daily video blog, where employees took part in a trivia contest. Watching each piece would help them obtain the answers to the three to five questions which tested their understanding of key messages. As incentive and inspiration, those answering correctly were offered a shot to win the latest Philips products. “It was the first opportunity of putting a Philips product right into employees’ hands,” Cameron recalls proudly.

As a result of watching the videos, employees became more excited about the Philips brand. “They were more informed and therefore were able to speak more intelligently about our products,” Cameron explains. Once educated, employees could now better recommend the items to friends and family.

The Roving Reporter also helped increase traffic on the Philips intranet. During the 2006 Sundance event, the amount of hits jumped from over a thousand a day to 7,000 per day. To accommodate the 5,000 employees without computer access, DVD’s were created to ensure they received a piece of the action as well.

The Philips Roving Reporter has since given way to an internal biweekly global broadcast, Philips Netcast News (PNN), based at the company headquarters in Amsterdam. To accommodate internal audiences, subtitles are provided and content is customized to each region. “A Mister Ed (TV show) reference in America wouldn’t exactly register the same way in Hong Kong,” Cameron points out.

In spite of the cultural differences, he says, the videos themselves “create a common language” in the company, uniting employees from New York to Mumbai. “That language didn’t exist before video,” he explains.

Challenges of Video

Of course, the use of video hasn’t been met without a few other challenges along the way. “When you’re doing a video broadcast, you expect people will know how it works and understand the logistics of it. In reality, they don’t,” Cameron admits. Technology and program compatibility are frequent issues that arise, therefore “it’s best to cover all your bases and provide as many outlets for ‘old school’ and ‘new school’ as possible,” he says. That usually means creating Flash files or posting a Windows Media file on a local server.

Cost is another issue which frequently comes into play. In order to distribute the highest-quality of materials (particularly for town hall meetings and special announcements), Philips hires an outside production company to help make them shine. According to former Philips Communications Project Manager, Silvia Avella, the cost of hiring a crew for a one-day shoot can run them up to approximately $3,500, while professional editing services usually cost about $4,000.

For a more budget-friendly solution, Silvia suggests a DIY approach, particularly when posting videos on an intranet. While investing in a one-time cost for a video camera and editing system definitely eases the weight of your wallet, she warns it could “lead to disaster” if your staff don’t know what they’re doing. “The quality is noticeably less,” she points out.

To encourage more user-friendly approaches to video, Philips presented a workshop at its global conference last year, where employees learned what it takes to put together a video – from production elements to acquiring talent to logistical concerns. Silvia herself admits to learning quite a bit more about video thanks to working at Philips. “To see how a piece is created from start to finish, I’ve inherited a whole new skill set,” she remarks.

Statistical evidence

As a result of Philips’ internal video campaign, the percentage of employees understanding corporate messages increased from 52.0 to 66.3 from 2005 to 2006. Sales at the Philips Online Employee Store also went up by a whopping 120%, and according to Cameron, the video program has also helped contribute to an increase in employee engagement.

“Our Engagement score went up over the past year,” Cameron says. “Employees believe we have an outstanding future and their level of trust in leadership saw an increase from 50 to 65 per cent from 2005-2006,” he points out. According to Cameron, much of it has to do with “transparency and a better level of understanding” of the company’s vision and brand. “There’s not a filter in terms of decision making. Employees are able to see what’s going on, contribute to the decisions being made in front of them and understand why they’re being made. Something like that can only make you feel better when you come to work.”