Events:
Past Event Summaries

June Meeting Summary:
Can Employee Networks Work for You?
by Dawn Ronco

How can you keep employees in a large company connected, communicating and engaged? GlaxoSmithKline is doing it through employee networks. Three leaders from GSK discussed the success of this strategy at the June 10 meeting of the Triangle IABC.

Sheila Callahan leads GSK's U.S. Diversity and Inclusion initiative, through which the company provides the framework and cultural support for networks. She listed several active networks, including a Latino group, an Asian group and an Early Career group for younger employees. Each network has an executive sponsor and human resources liaison, but the employees establish a mission and run group activities themselves. They typically meet around the lunch hour but may opt to meet outside work hours for networking or community service projects. They communicate and advertise on their own dedicated intranet sites.

Reecie Dolan initiated and leads GSK's Prime Time Partners Network for employees in mid-career and beyond. That group's focus areas include retirement planning, healthcare, networking, transferring knowledge to younger employees and preventing ageism. Their programming revolves around those subjects. And here's a fun twist: One program featured members of the Early Careers network, who taught them all about Web 2.0.

Senior Communications Manager Robert Sutton discussed the importance of choosing the right channel and the right hook to communicate key messages. At GSK, the intranet is the central channel, as it's the portal to tailored sites for functional groups within the company. Sutton's team uses e-mail and voice mail (both sparingly) as well as webcasts and flat-screen monitors in particular locations. In many cases he recommends "bribes" — as we've all found, the chance to win a prize can command more attention than the most catchy graphic or well-written headline!

Laurie Bowser-Sever, chapter president, concluded the meeting with a plug for the roundtable lunches planned in July and Autust. These new forums will be a great way for us to network and get to know one another.

Dawn Ronco works as senior marketing and communications project consultant with First Citizens Bank.