Building company culture from home
As many of us are confined to our homes, we are rethinking the way we communicate, build connections, and interact with the people and communities around us. Obviously, this also applies to teams and organizations looking for new ways to bring their employees together around a safe, stimulating, and positive project. But how do you achieve this when your team is scattered across a network of brand new home offices? How do you get its members to feel they are working toward a common vision when we can no longer interact spontaneously or in person? Groupon's answer: local impact, catchy storytelling, and buzzing bees.
Spreading optimism
Buried under an avalanche of communications about compliance, protocols, and safety, it can be hard to find positive opportunities to interact with colleagues. And although these unprecedented circumstances require certain logistics and public health measures, Matt Kruse, Head of Social Responsibility at Groupon, believes you also need to find ways to revive employee morale and keep a company culture alive.
"Right now, we lack contact: not just with our colleagues, but also with the office life that shaped that culture. We absolutely need to seize every opportunity to remind people what makes this culture so great." – Matt Kruse, Head of Social Responsibility, Groupon
And what does Groupon do to achieve this? It continues to engage its employees through its urban beekeeping project. Installed in 2019 on the east side of its building in Chicago, Groupon's hive is one of the projects that has managed to maintain employee motivation and sense of belonging throughout the pandemic, thanks to virtual workshops and updates in MaRuche. In fact, more than two-thirds of the company's employees now participate in the beekeeping project, whether by getting involved in newsletter orchestration, with educational activities, or with stories about the bees shared on social media. In these challenging times and in this new work context, these humor-filled updates have become a real breath of fresh air for employees.
Betting on the power of storytelling
Stories are powerful vehicles for information and human connection. It is even said that messages conveyed through stories can be up to 22 times more memorable than mere facts. Groupon understood this from day one, transforming each experience and offer on its platform into told stories, sparking imagination and people's interest. The company is using the same communication strategy with its employees, and its hive has generated a tremendous amount of material to feed its own internal brand storytelling. For example, when unveiling the hive across the organization, the team launched a contest to find a name for the queen of their colony. Among the suggestions received for naming the one now called Queen Debbie? Queen Labeefa, Ruth Beeder Ginsburg, and Bee Arthur.
"We thought it would be really fun for a company built on play and incentives to create a fun contest with elements like stickers and t-shirts. Once we had her name, she had character and personality, and she was part of our story." – Matt Kruse, Head of Social Responsibility, Groupon
And in terms of character, Queen Debbie did not disappoint the team. In fact, Groupon's team quickly had a golden opportunity to captivate its audience during a surprising twist: there was going to be action. Seeing this as a chance to combine education and entertainment, the team crafted a well-written email that they sent to the entire company.
Big drama is brewing in the hive. A "coup" attempt occurred when another egg was laid, fed with royal jelly, and raised as the new queen. Debbie was not pleased. This process is called "supersedure," when the hive tries to replace an aging, sick, or missing queen. Fortunately, Debbie is none of these things, so her competitor was crushed with the help of Travis, our designated beekeeper (whose face has been masked to protect him from retaliation).
Groupon's team was completely hooked: hundreds of people responded to the email, the digital workshops filled up in record time, and people were ready to learn more about these tireless pollinators.
Starting locally
To create a powerful impact, we often have the impression that we need to do things on a grand scale. But at a time when finances are limited and going big is no longer an option or the logical solution, finding simpler ways to foster engagement and optimism within the community may seem impossible, which can prevent us from noticing the smaller opportunities we should be focusing on for this purpose. For Groupon's social responsibility team, their goal has always been to increase their local impact by mobilizing as many partners and collaborators as possible.
"Building connections between our partners is one of our priorities as a team. We really try to establish a clear vision with the various community partners, whether it's the local craft brewery or another nonprofit organization that could benefit from profits. For us, it's a way to close the loop." – Matt Kruse, Head of Social Responsibility, Groupon
The hive, of course, has provided countless opportunities to be creative locally. First, the team organized a fundraiser during which it sold its honey for five US dollars per jar and donated all profits to a local charity, the Garfield Park Conservatory. It then reached out to a local craft brewery, which agreed to brew a limited-edition beer with its honey. This beer would in turn be sold at a restaurant located in the same building as Groupon's offices, with the profits once again donated to the Garfield Park Conservatory. By thinking outside the box, the Groupon team was able not only to engage its employees and increase its reach within the community, but also to bring everyone together around a single cause and a positive story. In a context where it can be hard to feel like part of a team or company, these small efforts can go a long way toward helping people feel connected and remain loyal to that company culture we have invested so much effort in.
