Challenges and solutions

Challenge: A Fortune 500 company faced operational and financial challenges that would lead to its first-ever corporatewide layoffs. Employees would see this action as severe and confusing – completely counter to the corporate culture.

Solution: Ongoing messages and appropriate media for both departing and surviving employees that explained, why, how and what. Then, an anniversary campaign followed the next year to reconnect employees to the company and their jobs, to acknowledge how each employee contributed to the turnaround of the company. Elements of the anniversary communication program were so well received that they have become annual activities.

Challenge: A chamber of commerce was contemplating whether to stop publishing its money-losing magazine in an era when city magazines were gaining popularity. Doing so would eliminate its primary connection with its members.

Solution: Upgrade the magazine to compete with other consumer publications by instituting readership surveys and developing action plans based on the data as well as updating the design, among other sound publishing practices. The improvements led to an increase in advertising, doubling of subscription sales (to non-members) and three national magazine awards.

Challenge: A university wanted to connect with its alumni, but the downsized staff of the university relations office had its hands full. The struggling alumni newssheet needed attention.

Solution: The first step was to work with the dean to identify objectives for its alumni program and ways communication would help achieve those objectives. One result was a refined alumni newsletter to show the growing national stature of the school, explain the services and programs that alumni can participate in or contribute to, feature alumni who have reached prominence in their careers in endorsing the university in helping them achieve, and involve alumni through letters to the editor and alumni news submissions. Alumni begin reading the newsletter at astounding rates, as evidenced by a 200 percent increase in submissions. The university relations office, at first hesitant about outsourcing the newsletter, became a partner and reused content from the newsletter for other audiences.

Partial client list

More than 100 businesses that have tapped our expertise over the years, including:

American Chamber of Commerce Executives

American Payroll Association

Barnes Group

Carter & Burgess

City of Scottsdale

Dallas Chamber of Commerce

DePaul Covington Hospital

Clarke American

Frito-Lay

GTE

Hallmark Cards

IBM

Junior League of Dallas

Loyola University School of Law

Mead Corp.

Miller Brewing

Mutual Benefit Life

Nortel

Pepsi-Cola

Ragan Communications

Royal Bank of Canada

Southern Baptist Hospital

Shell Oil Co.

Texas Credit Union League

Towers Perrin

Tulane University

Union Carbide