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Building Stronger Workplaces: Strategies for Employee Engagement and Brand Growth 

Overall takeaways from the track follow, but click the below links to dive into each session:

  1. Supercharge Your Company Performance with AI-Powered Intranet: Bart Borkosky, Chief Research officer, OvationMR & Jordan Katz, Chief Insights Officer, Simpplr
  2. Enhancing Employee Engagement with General Mills: Applying & Leveraging Research Methodologies Internally: Dany Eldik, Plant Manager, General Mills
  3. Building a Customer Journey Driven by Insights and Powered by Strategy: Antoinette Staples, Senior Director, Customer Insights & Success, McKesson
  4. AI & Analytics are not the Panacea for Corporate Growth: Steve Jagger, Partner, MSW Research, New York
  5. Unmasking Fraudsters: AI-Powered Insights to Stop Fraud and Save Money: Prateek Mehta, Lead Product Manager, Fraud Prevention, Tremendous
  6. Using Discover’s Brand Health Tracker to Expand Brand Image and Drive Growth: Paula Chona, Senior Principal, Consumer Insights & Sarah Eaton, Consumer Insights Lead, Discover Financial Services

Key Takeaways 

  1. Employee Experience is Central to Organizational Success: Investing in workplace culture and employee engagement is crucial for retaining talent and driving productivity. 
  1. Data Integration Fuels Smarter Decisions: Holistic approaches to data, including customer journey mapping and brand health tracking, enable organizations to optimize products and services. 
  1. Co-Creation Is Key: Engaging employees and customers in the research and product development process ensures solutions resonate with real needs and drive impact. 

Employee-Centric Culture: Building an Environment Where People Thrive 

One of the most powerful messages from TMRE 2024 was the importance of putting employees first. The session “Building a Workplace Where People Thrive” emphasized that company culture is more than a buzzword—it’s a strategic asset. General Mills shared how they treated culture like a brand and utilized consumer insights methodologies, including appreciative inquiry and digital diaries, to improve the employee experience. By focusing on strengths and positive experiences, organizations can create environments that empower employees, foster pride, and reduce turnover. In this session, leaders were encouraged to ask the right questions: What makes employees feel valued? How can we co-create solutions with them? 

The theme of putting employees at the center of business decisions was evident throughout the event. General Mills’ use of appreciative inquiry revealed the power of focusing on what’s working well within the organization. Rather than just surveying employees about what needs to change, they used positive stories and digital diaries to gain deeper insights into employees’ lives and motivations. The result was a holistic, employee-driven approach to workplace improvements, from flexible scheduling to more transparent communication. This wasn’t just about making the workplace more enjoyable—it was about making it a place where employees could thrive and contribute meaningfully to the company’s goals. 

From Data to Strategy: How Research Powers Smart Decisions 

The integration of data into business strategies emerged as another critical theme at TMRE 2024. The session “From Scorecard to Strategy” highlighted Discover Credit Cards’ transformation of their Brand Health Tracker (BHT) from a static KPI tool to a dynamic strategic asset. Discover’s revamped BHT didn’t just measure brand health—it provided actionable insights to drive product development, marketing campaigns, and long-term strategic decisions. The company integrated all products into a single survey, updated key performance indicators (KPIs), and added flexibility to address emerging business needs. 

The real breakthrough came when Discover’s driver analysis identified a key opportunity: promoting the “credible bank” message to support their checking product relaunch. This was a perfect example of how leveraging data can unearth hidden opportunities. Discover combined qualitative and quantitative research to get closer to the consumer’s needs, ultimately influencing both product features and the messaging behind the launch. This session proved that data-driven decisions, when thoughtfully integrated into brand strategy, can be a game-changer for product launches and business growth. 

Going Beyond Engagement: The Power of Co-Creation 

While the data-driven sessions were impactful, the importance of co-creation was also at the forefront of the discussions. It wasn’t enough to just track metrics or analyze consumer behavior—engaging employees and customers in the process was the key to real, sustainable change. Both General Mills and Discover highlighted the value of co-creation in their respective efforts to improve workplace culture and enhance brand health. 

General Mills, for example, didn’t just conduct research on employees—they worked with them directly to implement solutions. Workshops with plant managers, HR leaders, and employees themselves helped bring these insights to life. This participatory approach ensured that everyone had a stake in the success of the cultural initiatives. Discover similarly engaged customers in the product development process, using research to co-create features that would truly resonate with their target audience. This approach of involving people in the process not only increases buy-in but leads to more impactful outcomes, whether in improving employee morale or launching a new product. 

The Shift to Holistic Understanding

The event also emphasized the need for a more holistic view of both employees and customers. In an age where data is abundant, the true power lies in connecting disparate data points and looking beyond surface-level insights. Whether it was General Mills’ use of digital diaries to understand the full spectrum of employee identity or Discover’s integration of multiple research methods to understand customer behaviors, the focus was on building a fuller, more human-centered picture. 

The shift from isolated metrics to interconnected data isn’t just a trend—it’s a necessity. As organizations strive to align their products and services with the needs of both customers and employees, understanding the nuances and emotions driving behavior becomes essential. General Mills’ focus on the multiplicity of identities within their workforce illustrated how employees are not just defined by their job titles, but by the roles they play in their broader personal lives. Similarly, Discover’s in-depth research into customer pain points revealed the importance of features like early pay and overdraft buffers, which went beyond traditional marketing and met the real-life needs of consumers. 

The Future Is People-Driven 

TMRE 2024 demonstrated that the future of business strategy is about more than just numbers or technology—it’s about people. Whether focusing on employee experience, refining brand health metrics, or co-creating solutions with customers, the key to sustainable success lies in deepening relationships. The sessions underscored that while tools and data are crucial, it’s the human element that drives real innovation. The takeaway for businesses was clear: invest in understanding people—their motivations, needs, and experiences—and the returns will speak for themselves. Whether through cultural initiatives or data-driven strategies, making people the center of your efforts is the best way to thrive in today’s competitive landscape. 

10 KEY ACTIONABLE TAKEAWAYS

  1. Employee Experience Focus:
    • Action: Conduct an appreciative inquiry session with your team to identify positive aspects of your workplace culture.
  2. Data Integration:
    • Action: Integrate data from different sources (e.g., customer feedback, sales data) to get a holistic view.
  3. Co-Creation:
    • Action: Involve employees in brainstorming solutions for a specific workplace challenge.
  4. Employee-Centric Culture:
    • Action: Implement one employee-driven initiative based on feedback from the appreciative inquiry.
  5. Data-Driven Decisions:
    • Action: Analyze your brand health tracker data for actionable insights related to a specific product.
  6. Beyond Engagement:
    • Action: Co-create one new product feature with a group of target customers.
  7. Holistic Understanding:
    • Action: Conduct research to better understand a specific customer pain point.
  8. People-Driven Future:
    • Action: Develop a strategy to improve employee retention based on insights into their motivations.
  9. Appreciative Inquiry:
    • Action: Use digital diaries to gather more in-depth insights into employee experiences.
  10. Brand Health Tracker:
    • Action: Review and update your brand health tracker KPIs to ensure they align with current business needs.

Contributor

  • Seth Adler

    Seth Adler heads up All Things Insights & All Things Innovation. He has spent his career bringing people together around content. He has a dynamic background producing events, podcasts, video, and the written word.

    View all posts

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