Energy services company uses employee engagement hub to unite employees under single brand after multiple mergers and acquisitions

What they needed

ENGIE – formerly known as Cofely – saw their employee number rocket from 3,000 to 15,000 after numerous mergers and acquisitions, leading to multiple new business units each having their own benefits offering in place. ENGIE’s HR team responded to the expansion by partnering with Reward Gateway to provide an employee engagement hub which would cement the ENGIE brand and become the cultural heart of the entire business.

When the  hub launched in 2015, ENGIE was still known as Cofely and the team chose the name “myCofely” for the platform. There was a rush of interest in the first month with 3,000 employees signing up and then sign-ups began to slow down. The team ran a subsequent engagement survey which highlighted that a lot of employees were unaware of the offering and communications needed to be improved.

In 2016, the whole business was brought under the ENGIE brand, giving the team the opportunity to re-name their hub “myENGIE.” Of course, a name change only goes so far and the team wanted to use the rebrand to increase awareness of their benefits offering. A particular challenge when 8,000 of their workforce are offline, with no access to the company intranet or work emails, many employees also work shifts and unsociable hours with little contact from managers and employee turnover was at a high of 26%.

How we helped

ENGIE’s team use the “myENGIE” hub to integrate their entire workforce under one identity, showing them what it means to be an ENGIE employee. The first part of this saw the team using an annual benefits window to increase engagement with their employee engagement hub and focus attention on the ENGIE brand. Working in partnership with Reward Gateway, the team created a communication campaign designed to promote the window as well as create a buzz around the hub and encourage a conversation about “myENGIE” between employees.

Key parts of the campaign which ENGIE’s team used include:

• Annual benefits leaflet sent home to employees, advocating the use of personal email addresses and device registration.

• A series of themed posters and targeted communications to build momentum.

• A “myENGIE” prize draw encouraging employees to register for the chance to win tech-prizes or instantly redeemable retail vouchers direct to their hub accounts.

The second part of the team’s strategy was to use the hub to integrate their benefits offering with other areas of the business, encouraging cross-promotion and helping to create a more cohesive organisation. To do this, the HR team collaborated with their colleagues in the Corporate Responsibility team to feature company-wide initiatives – such as a step challenge and Cycle to Work scheme – directly from the “myENGIE” hub.

What they achieved

Sherwoods rapidly saw 100% engagement with Team Talk and now, 18 months later, employees have spent £60,000 through their employee discounts, saving them £6,000 collectively, and sent 947 eCards across the platform – with the most popular reflecting three of its values, “Committed,” “Honest,” and “Fun.” Sherwoods also won Employer of the Year at the South Devon Business Awards taking the company a step closer on their mission to become the Building Services Partner and Employer of choice across the South West.