Ericsson is the world’s leading provider of technology and services to telecom operators. The company operates in 180 countries and has more than 90,000 employees.
Ericsson is the leader in 2G, 3G and 4G mobile technologies, and has a leading position in managing mobile networks. The company was founded in 1876 and has its headquarters in Stockholm.
Film for Ericsson
May 2011
Life on the road with Ericsson
JG Communication followed Los Lonely Boys on their tour through the Rocky Mountains. The idea was to show how Ericsson’s technology simplifies everyday operations for an enterprise that is truly mobile.
One of the aims of Ericsson’s external website is to show how the company’s technology transforms lives, businesses and society. As a former touring musician, I knew that mobile broadband in the US had made a huge difference to the business of tour management. With this in mind, we looked for a touring band whose road manager could demonstrate how one of the Ericsson-built networks in the US had made the whole experience easier.
Rockin’ in the Rockies
Glenn Felton, who was the tour manager for Los Lonely Boys at the time, seemed a perfect candidate to tell this story. So, we flew out to meet up with the group in Aspen, Colorado, and documented the production work behind a two-day leg of their tour in the Rocky Mountains.
Mobile management
As a case study in mobile-broadband use, the tour had some appealing and memorable qualities. First of all, it offered viewers a rare look at a real rock tour production crew, and an opportunity to appreciate the work behind the scenes. The tour manager is often online doing business late at night while the bus rolls along some desolate stretch of rural interstate highway. When the band reaches its destination the following morning, the tour manager must instantly get his “office” up and running in whatever semblance of a working environment they find themselves.
The video captures some of this “band on the run” feeling, while showing how Ericsson’s technology connects the tour to many critical local services and suppliers, as well as to artist management, the record label, key stakeholders and, of course, the fans.
Staff magazine for Ericsson
January 2007 - ongoing
A worldwide feature magazine
In autumn 2010, Ericsson employees were asked to grade the company’s internal communications channels. They gave a good rating to Contact, and therefore also to Ericsson and JG Communication’s ambitions of publishing a modern feature magazine with items of current interest and in-depth articles.
In January 2007, Ericsson decided to review its internal communication channels. One of the goals was to reduce the distance between the management team and the employees to help improve the commitment level and instill a more positive feeling about the company.
At the center of this initiative was Contact, which had been Ericsson’s internal magazine since 1939. The question was how Contact could convey Ericsson’s goals in a way that was tangible, accurate and easy to read. Another issue was how it could be used to explain how each individual employee and unit could contribute towards the company fulfilling those goals.
The huge task of improving the magazine began immediately, and this included extensive input from the magazine’s readers – Ericsson employees. A work group that included representatives from the customer was asked to submit requests regarding the new internal magazine.
A readers’ survey conducted by JG Communication showed that there was still considerable interest in having strategic material that was directly linked to the Ericsson organization – especially regarding coverage of services, products and trends that drive business.
The survey also highlighted that there was a great demand for a broader range of material, such as personal portraits, industry reports, competitor analyses and feature articles that placed Ericsson in a larger context – in other words, a more journalistic product.
Ericsson and JG Communication published the first issue of the new Contact in January 2008. Employees received a magazine full of relevant content in a format inspired by publications such as Time and Newsweek. The new approach to dealing with images, headlines and texts created an interest and encouraged employees to read on. It became a sharper internal magazine with a more familiar and honest tone – in other words, it was fully in line with the customer’s wishes.
The accolades then came thick and fast. In its 70th year of publication in 2009, Contact won in the Best Redesign of a Staff Magazine category at the Guldbladet awards – an industry competition organized by the Swedish Association of Custom Publishers (Tidningskompaniet) – and took the bronze medal in the North American Ozzie Awards for the Best Use of Illustration. In 2010, Contact won the Best Design category in the annual awards organized by the Swedish Association of Inhouse Editors (RIM).
However, the positive feedback from the readers in each subsequent internal survey has been even more important.
An overall print run of 65,000
JG Communication produces Contact, which is published six times per year in both English and Swedish. In 2010, the magazine had an overall print run of 65,000. Contact is one of several internal communication channels within Ericsson. The others are the Contact Online intranet, the electronic Contact Newsletter and the Contact TV video channel.
“A more familiar tone”
“A sober yet attractive design, more varied content and a more familiar tone all contribute to the facelift of the magazine. The spreads are carefully selected and reflect a cross-section of Ericsson’s global world. Despite Ericsson’s diversity, the publication conveys a sense of unity, belonging and commitment to a common goal. Purely and simply, the magazine has radically changed for the better.”
(The Guldbladet jury, 2009)
“A professionally designed magazine”
“The magazine is very professionally designed, clearly profiled and very coherent with clear strap lines, well-designed graphics and a pleasant range of contrasting colors. The design is well thought out from cover to cover, and gives a generous and substantial feel to the magazine which, despite containing a lot of text, is never gray or heavy.”
(The jury of the Swedish Association of Inhouse Editors, 2010)
Ericsson wanted to bring the attention of software developers around the world to its Developer Program. Working together with JG Communication led to the production of the Susie’s Sushi video.
JG Communication’s assignment was to produce a video that would both inspire more people to use Ericsson’s software development kits and that would provide examples of how telecommunications functions can be useful additions to various IT applications. It also had to attract interest as well as being fun and modern.
The result was Susie’s Sushi – a film about a programmer who creates success for both himself and for a sushi restaurant by using Ericsson’s applications for ordering, payment solutions and location systems. The film is now on YouTube, as well as on Ericsson’s external website.
Customers enjoy the humor
Yanling Li-Strandh, Marketing and Communications Manager for the Ericsson Mobility World Developer Program, has used the film a lot and often shows it during presentations and events:
“Employees and customers get inspired and appreciate the humor,” she says. “The video goes against the blinkered thinking that sometimes exists within our company. We must dare to push the boundaries more, with common sense, and this video is one step along that road. We’re very pleased with the end result.”
In January 2007, Ericsson decided to review its internal communication channels. One of the goals was to reduce the distance between the management team and the employees to help improve the commitment level and instill a more positive feeling about the company.