AB Inbev: What have we learned? II

Cheering workers: lay-offs are cancelled for the mean time (photo De Standaard: http://www.standaard.be/artikel/detail.aspx?artikelid=5F2L76QS)

Today we saw a Stella truck leaving the factory and blowing the horn. AB Inbev cancelled the lay-offs. For a while, I reckon.

The Belgian shareholder families (de Spoelberch) called HQ. Jo Van Biesbroeck (managing director Western Europe for ABI), whom they trust and is trusted by the unions, stepped in and did a very sensible thing: cancel this shenanigans. The home market of Stella bleeded. The company lost money every day. It had to stop, rather sooner than later. That is leadership too: saying ‘we were wrong to do it this way, let’s try something else’.

So another great tip for managing a crisis:

8 YOU’RE IN CHARGE, SHOW IT

Don’t wait for a major shareholder to call your boss who will overrule you. Next time, you need to negotiate again. If you’re still there. If you are a non-compromising CEO, maybe your HR director should do the talking.

9 EXPLAIN WHY (&FAST)

If you need to change something, explain why that is needed to all stakeholders. Note that they need time to adapt to the new situation. Impacted groups will react. It is never a one shot. Focus on the solutions. Work them out together. More chance that it leaves your decision intact.

10 THINK TO THE FUTURE

If the market shrinks, that doesn’t necessarily mean your volumes shrink. Ask West-Vleteren or Duvel Moortgat how they do. If your product portfolio is full of  commodities, yes then you will shrink too.

Read Seth Godin. Follow Fons Van Dyck. Look at Starbucks. The latest of their coffee bars are non-rebranded takeovers. That is sensible in a crisis: reduce branding costs. You can do fancy stuff when the economy gets better and you need costs anyway. (Apparently Starbucks offers 300 different types of drinks. That’s roughly the amount of different Belgian beers.)

So, thank you AB Inbev for this story and what we can learn from it. Hope it won’t happen again.

And for the rest, I’m happy to have Stella again. There were only 3 bottles left.

Thank you AB INBEV: What have we learned? What can you do?

Conflict without any rules (De Standaard 21/10/2010)

The AB Inbev lay-offs saga continues to continue. My take on what we have learnt so far. Will update with more data soon. Had to get it online

1 THE PROBLEM IS NEVER A PROBLEM
Your handling of the problem is. Your reaction to it: not explaining; sealing the factory gate; playing it legally.
Unions have matlock abilities, you can win in court but not in sympathy.

2 JUDGED IN A BLINK
Be first.
People judge in seconds.
If you don’t believe this, read Malcolm Gladwell’s BLINK.
Once the judgement is made, people will not easily give it up. We hate to be wrong.
Don’t let the unions set the story. Workers are easily identified with. They have a face. You are a big building with a big logo.
You understand soccer: Belgians sympathize with the underdog. You start the game ‘Big corp vs workers’ with a handicap.
0-1. You need to score fast and twice to win the game.

3 LAY-OFFS ARE NOT BLACK SWANS
Don’t say these lay-offs came unexpected. You saw them coming for months. If not, one can imagine easily lay-offs being a possible thing to happen to a company.
The financial crisis hit us more than a year ago. Market research, like the one form think.bbdo, announced changes in consumer spending.
Get your scenarios into place. Get them on paper. Get them approved. Excercise them.
Use role play for media statements and negotiations. Play both sides.

4 YOU ARE RIGHT. YEAH RIGHT
Off course you are right. Your fixed cost needs to go down to ensure future competitiveness.
But that’s not an emotional story. Find a metaphor.
Like ‘At home you don’t have your central heating running all year either. When it’s too cold or too hot, you want to be able to adjust.’
We’re right at the beginning of a long hot summer.
Then tell what you will do for the layed-off workers. Golden handshakes. Replacement counselling. Etc.

5 MANAGEMENT COMMITMENTS
Not all things are pleasant to do. It comes with the territory.
Take responsibility for growth. Both top line and bottom line. If you want to lower your bottom line with lay-offs, it is your right. But take the consequences too.
Get media training. Excercise. Act. React. Be open and care-ful.

6 EVERY TOUCHPOINT COUNTS
You’re the same company as in your ads. You risk to lose more than golden handshakes.
The factory gate (on the evening news) is a consumer touchpoint too.
Just like your bottles, crates, pubs, festivals, soccer games etc.
It will cost you. Competitors are vultures for market share that is otherwise scarce.
Act early and decisive.
Listen. Listen really good. And explain, explain, explain.
Trust your people. You have good people, let them do their jobs well.

7 PLAY AT HOME
Keep the discussion inside your walls. Treat the unions with respect. Understand that they have to do what they have to do.
Talk, don’t fight (verbally).
Don’t count on external people like politicians. Nobody cares about you. Everybody works for him/herself.

NEXT: NR 8, 9 and 10