The Cranky Middle Manager Show #137 Brand Engagement with Ian Buckingham
Today, Wayne Turmel talks to Ian Buckingham, author of Brand Engagement- How Employees Can Make Or Break Brands about how employees connect (or not) to their company’s brand and the impacts on business and morale. Also, we once again salute those crazy Mongols and squawk about the weather.
To Listen In Your Browser, Click the Icon Below
To Download For Later, Right Click Here
Show 137 Notes
0:00 Welcome one and all to The Cranky Middle Manager Show… put down whatever report it is that rules your life. Today we talk Brand Engagement…. we salute Mongke Khan luckyrecipient of one of the few truly successful off-sites in history, and engage in some unproductive but satisfying daydreams.
2:28 The quote of the week is from John Lock and his Essay Concerning Human Understanding people will shoot down ideas just because they’re new. Not exactly news but doesn’t it feel good to know it’s ALL people, not just your company? No? Get over it.
Don’t forget to visit www.crankymiddlemanager.com and subscribe to our newsletter, visit the store, check our our Manifesto and why we’re here….
3:11 Welcome Ian Buckingham, author and brains behind The Bring Yourself To Work Fellowship. Okay so there’s bring your kid to work, bring your dog to work, I would have thought this one was a no-brainer….. Yes, I know Employee Engagement is the official annoying buzzword for 2008 but it is critical. We’re talking today about employees connecting with the company’s brand.
One example is a company’s bad idea to send zeppelins to England to advertise… not in 1939 but the result was about as pleasant…. And of course, re-orging in December does nothing to spread the love…. Management by balance sheet alone does NOT lead to engagement.
10:43 What is brand engagement? In a broad way it’s looking like everyone else (think IBM, Disney and the like) but it’s identifying and working within the culture. Lots of examples in this episode…we like that. This example is about top-down brand management when it doesn’t work.
13:03 How do middle managers connect to the brand since that’s usually a high-level job? It helps if they’re involved in the first place, but let’s assume that ship has sailed… If your brand ID is pioneering, try not to kill ideas in their crib. (See our quote, I do put thought into those you know….). Ian has an idea, and of course I have to dredge up 3M here in the US.
18:31 What are some short-term things a manager can do to help connect his team to the company’s brand? Learn to tell stories and not just in memos. Take the time to understand what your company really does, why you have the policies you have…. then be able to tell the story to your team in real language what they’re about.
23:07 Ian’s Resources:
Ginger Grant’s book “Re-Visioning the Way We Work- a Heroic Journey”
Don’t forget to check us out at www.greatwebmeetings.com. Helping people’s web meetings suck less since….well, January but we’re good at what we do.
Herman the Ermine says, “Don’t let the weasels get you down”.