Creating experiences that inspire lasting change

Russ Lidstone, Group CEO of The Creative Engagement Group

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Businesses are increasingly defined not just by their balance sheet but also by the way that their stakeholders experience them. And by stakeholders we mean almost everyone: employees, customers, shareholders, suppliers, partners, special interest groups and the wider community. With such a wide range of interested (and influential) parties to engage with, big business must deliver against three key objectives to be truly successful:

 

Firstly, articulate a compelling narrative about the company’s purpose, ambition and strategy.

 

Secondly, ensure internal and external stakeholders are engaged in and aligned to the strategy and objectives.

 

Finally, ensure that internal teams have the training and capabilities to produce solutions that deliver against the objectives and achieve commercial success.

 

It all seems clear, yet many organisations find it hard to engage stakeholders across all areas of the business in a consistent, creative and compelling way. Why is that?

 

Today’s world is faster, more complex and more connected, where many of the old assumptions no longer apply and no two challenges are alike. Senior leadership, marketing, learning and development, brand, comms and HR teams all need to navigate a rapidly evolving communications landscape. Working out which channels to use is also a real challenge, especially when you have omni-channel communication ambitions.

 

It’s true that large corporate structures can make it difficult to create synergies, efficiencies and effectiveness. The quest for simplicity is not just a communications challenge; it affects all areas of your business. It’s no wonder 70 per cent of complex change programmes don’t achieve their goals because of a lack of engagement, poor collaboration and bad management. Likewise, only 15 per cent of employees consider themselves to be engaged in their work.

 

That’s why many organisations need a trusted partner that can combine different skillsets to unite everyone behind a shared vision, understand strategic objectives and collectively commit to making them happen. In other words, a partner who can provide the strategy, creativity and delivery, and effectively engage with all stakeholders. This is why The Creative Engagement Group exists and why we’re different to our competitors.

 

Some agency networks say they are an integrated team, but if you dig a bit deeper you frequently find that the production, development and even the strategic expertise are outsourced. And even if they do have some of these capabilities, it’s likely that the agencies within the group are still “competing” for revenue. So, there is no single team.