Dow Chemical spotlights video communications strategy
With nearly a webcast a day, the company’s execs are speaking directly to employees. Investors are better informed. And staffers? They’ve cut down on texting while walking.
This article was produced in partnership with Qumu.
Remember the old children’s game Telephone? Dow Chemical’s Chris Duncan does.
The kids whisper a message, one by one, all the way around a circle. Then they find out how distorted the meaning is by the time it reaches the last kid.
That’s no way to conduct employee communications, Duncan says. Which is why Dow is so enthusiastic about webcasts by senior leadership. Everyone hears the news directly from the bosses.
“One of the big benefits of these tools is that we can clearly articulate what we want our employees to do to reach our company goals,” Duncan says. “This gets everyone on the same page; it has been the fastest, easiest way to do that.”
Dow is completing a five-year plan to revamp its video communications, using software and hardware by Qumu, an enterprise video communications company. Just one sign of how important video has become: Last year, Dow shot 353 webcasts—more than one per business day.
Replacing a satellite network
Dow has scrapped its satellite video network—which required staffers to gather in conference rooms to view broadcasts—in favor of webcasting that’s available at every desktop.
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