In 2010, we launched Cadbury Spots v Stripes, the single biggest sponsorship programme ever in the history of Kraft Foods and Cadbury in the UK, with the aim to get the nation playing games again.
At the same time as launching our sponsorship programme, our business was in a period of change, but Kraft Foods' global CEO Irene Rosenfeld confirmed Cadbury's Olympic sponsorship as one of her first actions. At a time when there was a lot of change, the commitment meant that our colleagues' energy and passion for the Olympics was reenergised. Nick Bunker, president of our UK and Ireland business, recognised the opportunity of leveraging our two strong cultures through London 2012, and used our sponsorship as a catalyst to support integration and energise colleagues. We have asked them to do a lot over last year and a half, during integration and beyond and so we committed to using London 2012 to support in engaging our colleagues:
• Inspire colleagues by bringing our consumer programme internally;
• Bring an innovative approach to reward and recognition;
• Re-energise our fitness and wellness agenda and unlock opportunities within our local community.
Making the most out of a huge opportunity like this required a dedicated team, not just from the HR function but across the board: from operations to marketing. As I'm sure you'd expect, our plans for engaging our employees have been varied, and at times more complex than we'd anticipated. A few examples of where we've got it really right stand out to me: our 'Race Season' and 'Game of the month' initiatives; rewarding our people with the opportunity to carry an Olympic torch; and our support of Paralympics GB potential days.
We brought the excitement of the Olympics to our colleagues first. At the launch of our Spots v Stripes consumer campaign, we ensured that our colleagues were at the heart of the programme. An example of this was our Race Season activation; where over 1,800 employees across every department from manufacturing to marketing participated in world record breaking attempts. From the fastest bed maker, to the most successful tea bag thrower, the events we held across our UK&I sites, helped bring the fun and excitement of this highly successful consumer activation to our colleagues at all levels of our business. We've seen operational leaders at each of our manufacturing sites, encouraging production line teams to be involved, and our senior leadership team has taken part in the record breaking challenges.
Our Olympic and Paralympic activities weren't limited to our factories and research kitchens. One volunteering opportunity that particularly resonates with our employees is our work with Paralympic GB. For a number of years we have supported Paralympics GB to organise potential days where potential Paralympians can come along and try different sports. Since we began this journey, we have had over 400 employees involved in volunteering to support Paralympics GB at the potential days. Colleagues have been inspired and motivated by the example and determination of the incredible young people they have met, and have brought this motivation and fresh perspective back into our business.
Our colleagues also raise money to support Paralympic Sport. Since 2010, Kraft Foods in the UK has supported 56 riders to take part in the Ride Across Britain challenge. Our riders have raised over £75,000 to date. For many of our colleagues, the challenge had been a longstanding personal ambition, which would not have been possible had it not been for the business' support. It has brought us together by cementing strong relationships across the business between both riders and supporters. We've discovered that actions can speak louder than words when it comes to motivating people to get behind our wellness agenda.
As well as helping to support the sporting stars of the future, we have also used London 2012 as a way to recognise our star performers. Last year, we asked the business to nominate colleagues to carry Olympic and Paralympic torches. Over a hundred nominations were received, from which eight colleagues were chosen for the once in a lifetime opportunity to carry Olympic and Paralympic torches.
Olympic sponsorship is a huge opportunity to cement our brands in the public consciousness and to develop a positive culture within our business. . Our aim was also to reward our teams for all their hard work, drive engagement, and enable our colleagues to get involved with something they wouldn't usually do: London 2012 has helped us get there faster. Our next aim is to keep this level of momentum going within the business, and to build on these levels of engagement.
Our plans to support London 2012 will ramp up throughout the Olympics, as we're providing an opportunity for 1100 people from across the Kraft Foods global business to work at the Games, bringing with them 40 nationalities, speaking over 70 languages
Our brands are at the heart of our business, and we want our colleagues to feel passionate about them. However, I firmly believe that sponsorship doesn't have to be purely about brands - it's also about people. This is just a flavour of the many different activities we've organised for colleagues as part of our London 2012 sponsorship, but ultimately the Olympics have provided a unique moment that has the potential to make a lasting difference to our business, inside and out.
Diane Tomlinson (pictured) is HR director at Kraft Foods UK & Ireland
