When Companies Highlight General Culture
1 April 2008
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For companies, general culture serves a purpose of training, internal communication or employee motivation. Credits
To help their employees take a step back and better understand their environment, companies give them the opportunity to open their minds through seminars or debates involving specialists in the human sciences.
Sociologists, historians, ethnologists, psychologists or urban planners who discuss the evolution of housing, the art of travel, the aging population or the notion of taste: no need to go to the Collège de France or listen to France Culture to elevate the mind.
Employees in the tourism, real estate or mass distribution sectors attend seminars on general culture topics as part of their work. These themes may be far removed from the daily life of business or the office, but they find their use in the company, explains Philippe Sachetti, associate director of the Kuryo communication agency which has created a department dedicated to this activity (Kuryo 4C). "Employees are increasingly specialized by their initial training and the missions assigned to them. They have their noses glued to the handlebars, focus on limited and short-term objectives. By attending these seminars, they understand phenomena that go beyond the concerns of their profession but impact how they practice it." At Kuryo, general culture is therefore used for training, internal communication or motivation.
"Thinking together"
Companies would be wrong to think that observing their surroundings, reading books or the press are enough for employees to acquire this general culture that allows everyone to situate their mission in the company and society. "Consumers and citizens are changing faster and not everyone reads. There, we bring employees from the same company to think together about problems, with the input of good specialists," continues Philippe Sachetti. Kuryo 4C is beginning to find its mark in this niche, reaching equilibrium in 2006 with €350,000 in fees.
Its clients are recruited from all sectors. Thus, the agency organizes an annual road show for its client Century 21: in five cities in France, nearly 3,000 employees from franchised agencies come to listen for a day to psychologists, sociologists or demographers talking about the challenges of housing through their discipline. "Operational training focused on professions for the network is not enough. The cultural dimension helps our agents better understand their clients and the meaning of their profession," assures Hervé Bléry, CEO of Century 21.
Igniting curiosity
The employees of this network have thus been led to reflect on the notion of suburb or the tendency towards procrastination specific to the buyer of a property (they postpone their decision for fear of making a mistake or in the hope of finding something better). So many themes that agents are confronted with in their daily lives but which they consider with academics from a new angle.
For its part, the distributor Leroy-Merlin has set up a new activity with Kuryo, called Leroy-Merlin Source, which aims to bring together the knowledge of housing experts. Again, it is a question of opening minds, igniting curiosity and increasing the competence of the company's 12,000 employees by encouraging them to connect to a website and participate in public debates bringing together customers and employees in stores.
Urban planners, geographers, architects, and sociologists intervene on themes such as the impact of the aging population on housing. These debates, which take place just after the stores close, offer "a moment of conviviality and exchange, disconnected from commercial activity," insists Marie-Reine Coudsi, head of communication.
Do employees appreciate this cultural veneer they are given? Apparently yes: 92% of Century 21 participants said they were satisfied or very satisfied with the seminar. At Leroy-Merlin, feedback also shows that debates on housing interest store staff. In short, culture is proving successful. And that probably changes employees from sports or coaching shows on motivation, team building or stress management...
Posted on April 1, 2008
Le Figaro, March 3, 2008
lefigaro.fr
To help their employees take a step back and better understand their environment, companies give them the opportunity to open their minds through seminars or debates involving specialists in the human sciences.
Sociologists, historians, ethnologists, psychologists or urban planners who discuss the evolution of housing, the art of travel, the aging population or the notion of taste: no need to go to the Collège de France or listen to France Culture to elevate the mind.
Employees in the tourism, real estate or mass distribution sectors attend seminars on general culture topics as part of their work. These themes may be far removed from the daily life of business or the office, but they find their use in the company, explains Philippe Sachetti, associate director of the Kuryo communication agency which has created a department dedicated to this activity (Kuryo 4C). "Employees are increasingly specialized by their initial training and the missions assigned to them. They have their noses glued to the handlebars, focus on limited and short-term objectives. By attending these seminars, they understand phenomena that go beyond the concerns of their profession but impact how they practice it." At Kuryo, general culture is therefore used for training, internal communication or motivation.
"Thinking together"
Companies would be wrong to think that observing their surroundings, reading books or the press are enough for employees to acquire this general culture that allows everyone to situate their mission in the company and society. "Consumers and citizens are changing faster and not everyone reads. There, we bring employees from the same company to think together about problems, with the input of good specialists," continues Philippe Sachetti. Kuryo 4C is beginning to find its mark in this niche, reaching equilibrium in 2006 with €350,000 in fees.
Its clients are recruited from all sectors. Thus, the agency organizes an annual road show for its client Century 21: in five cities in France, nearly 3,000 employees from franchised agencies come to listen for a day to psychologists, sociologists or demographers talking about the challenges of housing through their discipline. "Operational training focused on professions for the network is not enough. The cultural dimension helps our agents better understand their clients and the meaning of their profession," assures Hervé Bléry, CEO of Century 21.
Igniting curiosity
The employees of this network have thus been led to reflect on the notion of suburb or the tendency towards procrastination specific to the buyer of a property (they postpone their decision for fear of making a mistake or in the hope of finding something better). So many themes that agents are confronted with in their daily lives but which they consider with academics from a new angle.
For its part, the distributor Leroy-Merlin has set up a new activity with Kuryo, called Leroy-Merlin Source, which aims to bring together the knowledge of housing experts. Again, it is a question of opening minds, igniting curiosity and increasing the competence of the company's 12,000 employees by encouraging them to connect to a website and participate in public debates bringing together customers and employees in stores.
Urban planners, geographers, architects, and sociologists intervene on themes such as the impact of the aging population on housing. These debates, which take place just after the stores close, offer "a moment of conviviality and exchange, disconnected from commercial activity," insists Marie-Reine Coudsi, head of communication.
Do employees appreciate this cultural veneer they are given? Apparently yes: 92% of Century 21 participants said they were satisfied or very satisfied with the seminar. At Leroy-Merlin, feedback also shows that debates on housing interest store staff. In short, culture is proving successful. And that probably changes employees from sports or coaching shows on motivation, team building or stress management...
Posted on April 1, 2008
Le Figaro, March 3, 2008
lefigaro.fr
