Creating a Sustainable Organizational Communication System Message Campaign #1: [program name redacted]/[program name redacted]
Creating A Sustainable Organizational Communication System Campaign #1: [program name redacted]/[program name redacted]
Table of Contents I. Introduction ............................................................................................................... 1 II. Situational Landscape .............................................................................................. 2 A.Skyrocketing Cost of Employer-Based Premiums ................................................. 2 B.AMA Focus: Wellness and Disease Prevention .................................................... 2 C.Estimated Cost of Obesity ..................................................................................... 2 D.[client name redacted]’s Per-Person Cost of a Chronic Condition ......................... 3 E.Link between Physical Activity and Sick Days ....................................................... 3 F.Need for a Systemized Framework for Organizational Communication ................. 3 III. Bottom-Line Value to [client name redacted] ............................................................ 4 A.[program name redacted] Program........................................................................ 4 B.Organizational Communication ............................................................................. 4 IV. Goal of HR + CMC Collaboration .............................................................................. 5 A.Message Campaign Planning................................................................................ 5 B.Campaign Development ........................................................................................ 6 C.Consistency of Brand Personality.......................................................................... 6 V. [program name redacted]/[program name redacted]: Campaign #1 .......................... 6 A.Message Campaign Objective and Strategies ....................................................... 6 B.Media Channel Gap Analysis ................................................................................ 7 C.Priority Campaign Tools ........................................................................................ 7 VI. Consultant Fee .......................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Appendix: Employee Geographic Distribution Discussion Example
Lucy Erdelac
Creating A Sustainable Organizational Communication System Campaign #1: [program name redacted]/[program name redacted]
I.
Introduction Since 2008, the Human Relations (HR) department has disseminated information about [program name redacted] and [program name redacted] through a number of communication channels (e.g., GroupWise emails, direct mail to employee homes, a [program name redacted]-branded newsletter, presentations, a stand-alone website accessible via eNet and the Web, etc.). In [redacted], [client name redacted] announced that [program name redacted] would be a [program name redacted] employee benefit option that, if adopted by an employee by [redacted], will exempt him/her from paying an additional [redacted] for health insurance beginning in June 2010. Feedback that many [client name redacted] employees were disgruntled about the [program name redacted] initiative resulted in [client name redacted] contracting for two December [redacted] focus groups to identify the emotional drivers behind employee discontent. Despite HR Department’s multi-faceted communication effort, the 25 focus group participants cited that they first learned about [program name redacted]: From a co-worker: From an HR presentation: From a mailing:
18 (72%) 5 (20%) 2 ( 8%)
Of the 20 group members who first learned about [program name redacted] through coworkers or a mailing, none subsequently attended a [program name redacted] presentation. The following excerpt from the executive summary of the [redacted] Final Report identifies not only the emotional drivers, but adds environment context from the point of view of the employees who were group participants. “The dichotomy between “an employee-sponsored wellness & preventative medicine program” and “the [program name redacted] program” is profound. The former is positive, supportive, and caring about the employee. [program name redacted] is seen as threatening, punitive, and caring only about [client name redacted]. Although both Groups recognized and discussed the three separate parts of [program name redacted], the [redacted] Workbook (part of Step 2) generated the highest level of group interest as well as intense feelings of anger, betrayal, anxiety, and fear. Their passionate aversion to privacy invasion combined with the requirement to participate – or forfeit [redacted] to maintain personal privacy – resulted in emotions so negative as to overshadow any potentially positive aspects of the program. Unmasked fears of “Big Brother” fueled “crystal ball gazing” that predicts short-term/longterm corporate retribution against non-participating employees through denied cost-ofliving raises and promotions; canceled insurance coverage; and eventual layoffs or firings for non-compliance. Both groups expressed frustration that [program name redacted] was “not well thought out before it was introduced.”
Ensuing discussion between HR and Corporate Marketing & Communications (CMC) resulted in a decision to collaborate on developing a sustainable system for Lucy Erdelac
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Creating A Sustainable Organizational Communication System Campaign #1: [program name redacted]/[program name redacted] Organizational Communication. The new system recognizes that consumer-marketing techniques are required to help reach and influence the broad range of demographics and psychographics that exist within [client name redacted]’s employee base. The system will be simultaneously developed and trialed using the [program name redacted]/[program name redacted] Program. II.
Situational Landscape The landscape surrounding [program name redacted]/[program name redacted], [client name redacted] as a major healthcare employer, and [client name redacted] Organizational Communication are closely intertwined. A. Skyrocketing Cost of Employer-Based Premiums
The cost of premiums for employer-based health insurance has more than doubled since 2000. This growth level is 3 times more than the increase in employee wages.1 The average cost of an employer-based family insurance policy in 2008 was $12,680, which were nearly the annual earnings of a full-time minimum wage job. 2 If current trends continue, health care costs for large employers will increase 166% by 2019, resulting in a cost burden to those businesses of $28,530 per employee. 3 By 2025, one in every four dollars in our nation’s economy will be spent on health care– money that could have been invested in our nation’s businesses. Rising health care costs cut into employee wages and impede hiring and business growth.4 Job-based health plans cost the same for every employee on the plan, regardless of their health status.5 B. AMA Focus: Wellness and Disease Prevention
"Nearly half of Americans are living with often-preventable chronic diseases that limit their quality of life and cost the U.S. health care system billions of dollars a year to treat. Keeping up with screenings and immunizations can help detect and prevent many of these health problems early on.”6 C. Estimated Cost of Obesity
According to a study by researchers at RTI International, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),
1 Kaiser Family Foundation, Employer Health Benefit Survey, (Menlo Park, CA: Kaiser Family Foundation, [redacted]). http://ehbs.kff.org/ 2 Kaiser Family Foundation & Health Research and Educational Trust, Employer Health Benefits 2008 Annual Survey. (Menlo Park, CA: Kaiser Family Foundation, 2008). http://ehbs.kff.org/?page=abstract&id=1 3 Business Roundtable. Health Care Reform: The Perils of Inaction and the Promise of Effective Action. http://www.businessroundtable.org/sites/default/files/BRT_Hewitt_HC%20Reform%20Report_Sept[redacted]_Final ONLINE.pdf 4 P.R. Orszag, Growth in Health Care Costs: Statement Before the Committee on the Budget, United States Senate, (Washington, DC: Congressional Budget Office, Jan 31 2008), available at http://www.cbo.gov/doc.cfm?index=8948 5 http://healthinsurance.about.com/od/faqs/f/avgpremium.htm 6 Edward R. Lanston, MD, Board Member, AMA, 11/19/09. http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/news/news/amaencourages-preventive-services.shtml
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Creating A Sustainable Organizational Communication System Campaign #1: [program name redacted]/[program name redacted] obesity is now responsible for 9.1 per cent of annual medical costs compared with 6.5 per cent in 1998.7 The study also found that: The medical costs for an obese person are 42 per cent higher than for a person of normal weight. This equates to an additional 1,429 dollars per year: the costs for an obese person on Medicare are even greater. Much of the additional Medicare cost for an obese person is the result of the added prescription drug benefit. Medicare prescription drug payments for obese recipients are about 600 dollars a year more than for normal weight recipients. Obesity accounts for 8.5 percent of Medicare expenditure, 11.8 per cent of Medicaid expenditure, and 12.9 per cent of private insurance expenditure. D. [client name redacted]’s Per-Person Cost of a Chronic Condition
Typically, every health plan member who has a chronic condition (like high blood pressure, diabetes, or obesity) and does not follow the recommended standards of care, [client name redacted] pays an additional $12,000 (per person) in health care costs.8 E. Link between Physical Activity and Sick Days
Research conducted by the Human Performance Lab at Appalachian Sate University indicates that people who engage in near-daily moderate levels of activity (such as 45 minutes of walking) have fewer colds, upper respiratory illness, and up to 50% less associated sick days.9 F. Need for a Systemized Framework for Organizational Communication
Discussion between HR and CMC concluded that both [client name redacted] and its employees would benefit from the development of an organizational communication system that utilizes a strategic, branded approach to messaging. In a subsequent 12/09 conversation with this consultant, the HR/CMC team noted that in too many cases communication directed to [client name redacted] employees has occurred: With “program branding” instead of [client name redacted] branding Before communication materials are vetted for key message points; and before FAQs are released In an inconsistent manner with respect to: The message’s voice, tone, and manner When, where, and how (and how often) the message is communicated to employees Without consideration to the:
7 Obesity Healthcare Costs US 147 Billion Dollars A Year, New Study. Health Affairs, 7/27/09. http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/158948.php
[client name redacted]’s PowerPoint presentation to employees introducing [program name redacted]. [redacted]. 9 The Hidden Benefits of Exercise, by Laura Landro. The Wall Street Journal, 1/5/10. 8
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Creating A Sustainable Organizational Communication System Campaign #1: [program name redacted]/[program name redacted] Message’s strategic alignment with the Network’s stated mission, values, and objectives 24/7, multi-shift employment environment Internal messaging environment (competitive clutter for employee attention) Demographic diversity Lifestyle and psychographic differences that impact where and how they consume media (and therefore messaging) Variety of learning styles that need to be addressed in marketing III. Bottom-Line Value to [client name redacted] A. [program name redacted] Program
The [program name redacted] Program offers [client name redacted] the potential of $5 million in savings on its annual cost of self-insurance (assuming a participation level of 100%). This means that: Each employee who participates in [program name redacted] saves [client name redacted] $900.10 Each employee who does not participate in [program name redacted] costs [client name redacted] $380.11 If only 50% of [client name redacted] employees participate in [program name redacted], [client name redacted] would save $2.9 million12 in its cost to selfinsure. B. Organizational Communication
From both a financial and marketing point of view, [client name redacted] employees are its most important consumer target audience. Developing an Organizational Communication system to reach and influence them with controlled messaging is an important investment in [client name redacted]. As a group, these 5,500 Philadelphian consumers: Have excellent health insurance Include patients of [client name redacted] healthcare providers Are incented, through medical insurance co-pays, to choose an [client name redacted] PCP Have immediate, daily proximity to the healthcare services offered by the [client name redacted] Work within a controlled messaging environment
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$5 million / an estimated 5,500 employees = $900.09. $20 per paycheck x 26 weeks for each non-participating employee = $520. $900-$520=$380. 12 ($900 x 2750) + ($520 x 2750) – ($380 x 2750) = $2,860,000. 11
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Creating A Sustainable Organizational Communication System Campaign #1: [program name redacted]/[program name redacted] Can be easily reached en masse; and through marketing segmentation, be targeted for specific sub-group or individual messages Are financially and emotionally invested in the good corporate health of [client name redacted] Influence the healthcare provider decisions of family members and friends In addition, many of these 5,500 individuals are literally the frontline faces, voices, and embodiment of [client name redacted] to the public. As a result, employees influence the decisions of area residents in their selection of the [client name redacted] and its healthcare providers. IV. Goal of HR + CMC Collaboration Create a robust and sustainable Organizational Communications system to reach and influence all [client name redacted] employees. The system will use consumer-marketing strategies and media planning practices in a multi-faceted communication approach that recognizes the broad range of demographics and psychographics that exist within [client name redacted]’s employee base. The system will be developed and sustained through a process of continuous learning and improvement. A. Message Campaign Planning
Campaign strategy start with the end goal in mind: Goals and Timing What is the campaign’s goal? (Awareness? Persuasion? Reinforcement?) What is the campaign’s desired launch and duration? (with an eye toward whether measures of success can be achieved in the desired duration) Target Whom will the campaign target? (i.e., all employees? A segment, such as only employed physicians? Etc.) Is the target audience already aware of (or predisposed positively or negatively about) the campaign’s topic or program? Who or what has the power to influence employees and as a result enhance the value of the campaign’s message? Communication Objective and Support Define key message, benefit to employees, and support for that proposition Recognize key message content in context with the current real and/or employee perceived [client name redacted] work environment Align message with existing Network mission, values and goals Review campaign in light of any complementary, competing, or “annual” messaging that is currently being promoted within the organization Lucy Erdelac
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Creating A Sustainable Organizational Communication System Campaign #1: [program name redacted]/[program name redacted] [As appropriate to campaign,] include references to the “national conversation” that pertains to the topic (e.g. healthcare reform as it pertains to [program name redacted]) Measure(s) of Success What is the measure of the campaign’s success? (i.e., awareness of the campaign’s key communication points? Persuasion that results in specific actions being taken? Potential measures of campaign success might include: Quantifiable results within a given period of time (should be used whenever possible) Employee awareness of campaign topic AND ability to recall its key communication points (based on pre- / post-campaign survey results) Non-managerial employee focus groups staged mid- to post-campaign on multiple campuses B. Campaign Development
Identified points will form the basis for developed campaign communication materials. In addition, message voice, tone, and manner will be consistent with [client name redacted] branding. Over time, it is anticipated that the majority of message campaigns will be planned and deployed in a manner similar to that of a consumer advertising campaign (i.e., that a campaign will be launched, maintained and monitored in a systematic manner). C. Consistency of Brand Personality
No matter the campaign, all messaging will convey One Voice and a professional tone that is appropriate for communicating with a highly valued consumer audience. In this way, a singular Brand Personality will be used for any communications vehicle used in any campaign. V. [program name redacted]/[program name redacted]: Campaign #1 [program name redacted]/[program name redacted] is the first campaign to be launched through the Organizational Communication system. A. Message Campaign Objective and Strategies
The communications objective is to refresh and reintroduce this employee benefits program by: Reviewing, updating and/or refining key communication points and their support in light of learning gained through employee focus groups and physician feedback Identifying physician and employee advocates to reinforce and endorse key communication points Branding the program:
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Creating A Sustainable Organizational Communication System Campaign #1: [program name redacted]/[program name redacted] Update/refine existing communication materials based on use of a variety of media channels (Direct mail, Groupwise, Web, Collateral, Presentation, etc) Incorporate key communication points and support using tone and manner that reflects a variety of message opportunities (program statistics, national conversation, health and wellness tips, etc) ďƒ˜ Defining measures of success: Employee adoption of [program name redacted] Employee awareness of and positive perception of key communication points
END OF WHITEPAPER EXCERPT
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Creating A Sustainable Organizational Communication System Campaign #1: [program name redacted]/[program name redacted]
B. Media Channel Gap Analysis
Organizational communication needs to reach and influence a target audience that is: Geographically dispersed Demographically diverse Inclusive of subgroups: That work outside of 8am-5pm Have little or no computer literacy Do not use computers or have access to computers in association with their [client name redacted] employment Of highly educated clinicians
That meet regularly and often
It is vitally important to identify what gaps currently exist in [client name redacted]’s ability to reach and influence its employees. The information required for a gap analysis resides within the HR department. By analyzing employee demographic and geographic distribution data and overlaying pre-existing [client name redacted] media channels, communication infrastructure gaps can be readily identified. Specific demographic data will be determined in team discussions in order to focus on only those aspects that are judged to add value to the gap analysis. An example of the type of statistics that would prove valuable in a geographic analysis is attached as an Appendix. C. Priority Campaign Tools
While the [program name redacted]/[program name redacted] campaign ultimately will be determined by team discussion and management decision, the following campaign materials are the most likely to be needed. Need 1. Director & Manager Education (Note: to occur one week before each manager is expected to present program to staff in a team meeting using the webinar video)
Lucy Erdelac
Associated Campaign Materials Concise PowerPoint® vetted in advance via focus group(s) for key communication points and manager response (which will be used to refine FAQ and manager training piece). This ppt will include managertraining tips for their staff meetings. One-page employee handouts / FAQ “How to talk about this to your staff” training tool Plug & Play Webinar-style presentation (for use in staff meetings) that positions the Manager as Hero (e.g. introduction to include “Thank you for letting me attend your Manager’s staff meeting….)
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Creating A Sustainable Organizational Communication System Campaign #1: [program name redacted]/[program name redacted] Need 2. Presentation for Employee Events (Note: since “water cooler” talk will naturally occur, planning must include development and distribution of materials for nonattendees) 3. Groupwise Emails
Associated Campaign Materials Concise PowerPoint® (same as above but without additional manager training tips) Announcement posters to pre-sell the event(s) One-page employee handout / FAQ Webinar-style presentation for eNet dissemination with PDF downloads for use by employees who did not attend the event
Hyperlinks to eNet or a website from which carries:
Concise campaign information, along with An online FAQ and/or PDF download(s), and An “ask a question here” box for gaining employee input
And as appropriate, a video or audio podcast that can be seen, heard, or downloaded to an mp3 player for listening 4. Take one brochure for distribution in cafeterias, doctors' offices, mailings to home, paycheck envelopes, etc.
5. Website/eNet FAQs
6. Identify Physician Advocates
Working Title: “Why Doctors Endorse [program name redacted]”
Information and Physician Advocate quotes about each of the three healthy steps. Focus is to assure non-clinical employees that health screening, workbook and outreach are positive, safe and in the employee’s best healthcare interests. In addition to positive FAQs, develop responses to the negative employee perceptions captured in the focus group research report. Three to five high-profile [client name redacted] physicians will be invited to be Advocates for the [program name redacted] program. Their professional involvement and endorsement will contribute to the [program name redacted] message campaign:
7. Opportunistic focus groups
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By actively supporting the program and allowing their quotes to be used in organizational communications By helping to seed the [program name redacted] message through all healthcare providers who treat employee patients As appropriate, small groups of employees will be invited to participate in focus groups to determine whether the intended message points of the campaign are clearly communicated in its materials.
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Creating A Sustainable Organizational Communication System Campaign #1: [program name redacted]/[program name redacted]
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