Case study - Office move

Design and implementation of a change and communications programme for KPMG UK LLP to move 5,000 employees from five London locations to two buildings.

The brief / challenge

The Juniper Co. was commissioned by the European Head of Infrastructure to communicate the rationale and overcome any internal opposition to the relocation of 5,000 employees.

The move involved condensing five buildings to two centres: one in the City and a second, dynamic new building in Canary Wharf.

The solution

We gave every employee a designated single point of contact for information regarding the move and used evocative storytelling to clearly convey the strategy; taking employees on a virtual journey through the process to create buy-in and understanding.

We implemented a Change Champion Network and brought the move to life through an interactive intranet. The Change Champions were responsible for disseminating information and ensuring everyone understood the ‘what, when, why, where and how’ of the move. Intranet content included a live web cam broadcasting daily progress in construction of the new building; FAQs; up to the minute photographs and filmed interviews with the COO and members of the Board – where they discussed the plans, shared their views and talked about how inspired they were by the new space.

In parallel, a series of supporting collateral was developed for our ‘8-week Countdown’ campaign which released of a series of messages on a weekly basis, and proved to be a powerful way to disseminate a lot of information in simple bite-sized chunks – links to the relevant intranet pages kept each message short and to the point.

The results

A smooth and successful relocation; stakeholders were engaged throughout, displaying confidence and enthusiasm

Teams ‘hit the ground running’ from day one, enabling business continuity for staff and clients alike

The ‘8-Week Countdown’ campaign was extremely successful and received positive feedback, in particular from the Change Champions who felt well supported.

Case study – ERP Change Management

Design and facilitation of change management and communications programme for KPMG LLP to implement a new Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system using SAP for 10,000 employees across Europe

The brief / challenge

The Juniper Co. was asked to work closely with KPMG’s internal ERP Change Management team to devise a change and communications programme to successfully facilitate the launch of an ERP system.

A pan-European project for a complex organisation, it was vital to be sensitive to intercultural differences and communication preferences.

The solution

The solution required meticulous communications research, planning and delivery to guarantee a smooth transition of the ERP implementation. This involved:

  • development of a step by step, detailed system demonstration (Talkbook)
  • change impact assessment research: 10 sessions with 25 people per sitting saw Juniper walk participants through the system, identifying positive impacts and documenting any concerns
  • stakeholder engagement briefings: to help build an expert team amongst partners and executives.
  • development of a fresh and inspiring programme brand
  • creation and launch of an engaging communication campaign to raise awareness among employees; answering the ‘bigger picture’ and the ‘How will it affect me?’ questions.

The results

Employee surveys showed awareness and understanding across all levels, functions and departments of the organisation; any areas where knowledge levels were low were immediately addressed

Employee engagement was illustrated through high attendance at training and positive ‘water cooler’ discussions

The new ERP solution deployed on time and has not experienced downtime since; within a month of launch the level of usage significantly exceeded target expectations

The approach was captured and used as a toolkit for roll-out throughout Europe.

Case study - EMA RDC Leadership Development Programme

Engaged by a Netherlands-based professional services firm, Juniper was charged with bringing a team of 12 individuals from an IT Services regional delivery centre together through a leadership development programme.

The brief / challenge

The goal was two-fold: both to enhance the communication between team members and to develop their leadership skills, to optimise their results and those working for them.

The solution

Already familiar with the working practices of the firm, Juniper designed a bespoke leadership programme based on the 3P leadership excellence model, which was delivered virtually over a period of six months during the latter stages of the pandemic.

The programme kicked off by establishing team values and purpose for the group, who were used to working remotely, sometimes siloed, on different projects.

Topics covered included :

· DISC personality profiling – knowing your style and understanding how to flex it to “match and lead” others

· Identifying and optimising motivational factors – getting the best from and your team

· Assertive communication – achieving a “win-win” by avoiding aggressive or submissive behaviour

· Positive influence – knowing your audience and planning communication to suit it

· Coaching for performance – using questioning and listening to understand and boost your team

· Conflict management – understanding your personal style to know how to get what you want

Coaching sessions with a choice of two facilitators (depending on “chemistry”) enabled individuals to speak freely about their goals, challenges, options, and actions, which they identified on their personal leadership journeys. Keeping a record of their learning allowed participants to chart their progress over the months, culminating in an opportunity to showcase their personal development and the resulting impact on the business to their performance managers.

The results

At the end of the six-month programme, participants were aligned on their purpose and upskilled to lead teams and projects successfully. Tangible results were immediately visible, such as increased productivity, whilst intangible effects such as team engagement were a valuable bi-product.

Case study - Personal Development Programme

Juniper was responsible for the design and delivery of a bespoke personal development programme for a Netherlands-based professional services firm, for two cohorts from the ITS Services department.



The brief / challenge

At the outset of an organisational Our client was charged Different cultural backgrounds, different lengths of service

Bring together people from different “pockets” of the organisation. New generation of leaders

Increase self-awareness and confidence

Outset of Cultural change programme as they move from waterfall to agile way of working.

The solution

Blended delivery

Covered personal brand

Evolution of each individual on the programme

Coaching with each participant – part of which with the individual and part of which with the performance to set stretching goals for the programme and beyond

Training needs analysis – get to understand the challenges, landscape, hopes and fears of the individuals

The results

  • Increased self-awareness
  • Agile transformation
  • Team cohesion
  • Open and honest communication
  • Concrete / clear next steps / goals - accountability with buddies to keep the learning and momentum going
  • People confident and wanting to be bold in their
boxes

“Through the many years Juniper has worked with KPMG, the team has built up a great understanding of how the firm works, along with understanding the structure of the business and the values that it lives by. The Juniper team, led by Nicki Kavanagh, used their key stakeholder contacts within the business to great advantage when implementing this comms campaign.

The content of the campaign was exactly right for the project and audience. Juniper responded quickly when the campaign needed to be adapted to suit changing requirements and offered sound advice, even when faced with a negative response, to ensure all opportunities were fully explored. Juniper showed professionalism and good humour throughout.”

Michelle Arnell, Business Stakeholder liaison and key client contact for this project

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"I had the pleasure of working with Nicki Kavanagh and The Juniper Co. for over a year, as part of a Pan-European ERP implementation of SAP affecting over 10,000 users.

I have absolutely no hesitation in recommending Nicki as a systems orientated communications lead.

Given the complex multi-cultural dynamics of the programme, Juniper provided highly imaginative and original solutions that transcended language and structural barriers, providing pinpoint insights and key messages to all end-users.

The programme was considered a success, implementing the full solution across all business functions.“

Phillip Dove, Senior Manager KPMG Advisory

growing plant

"We have partnered with The Juniper Co. many times on personal and leadership development. Over the past year, the Juniper team has worked with us to develop and deliver a personal development programme for 22 participants in two cohorts, at different levels. We can rely on Juniper to consistently innovate in learning design and delivery.

I have seen the programme participants embrace this opportunity – they are now stepping up by demonstrating their personal brand, communicating with clarity, taking responsibility, and adapting to different personalities and their needs. I am also seeing more strategic thinking in their approach to situations, particularly when proposing solutions, as well as greater teamwork. For example, when collaborating to create and deliver their end-of-programme team presentations.”

Richard Scholten, Head of Platform Enablement & Operations, KPMG International