Monsanto uses open communication to motivate workers and bring about change
Envision your corporate CEO arriving at work each day in a plaid shirt and khakis. His office is a modest cubicle with no privacy on the 9th floor - possibly not too far from yours. It may sound like a dream sequence from a Dilbert cartoon, but it's exactly what Monsanto CEO Robert Shapiro envisioned for his company.
In 1998, Monsanto transformed itself from a traditional chemical manufacturing company to a life sciences corporation focusing on agricultural products.
This transformation not only changed Monsanto's image, but its culture as well. To successfully make this metamorphosis, the executives at Monsanto had to ensure that its longtime employees, who were unfamiliar with the "life sciences" concept, became comfortable with and informed about the field that the company would soon embrace. When Monsanto made its final decision to reinvent itself, corporate communications execs had to move quickly to define this emerging industry. "Since the life sciences is a new field, he who goes first, will define it," says Jay Byrne, director of corporate communications.
Among its challenges was that Monsanto would be the smallest life sciences company in the industry, up against giants like DuPont and Dow. And internal surveys showed that employees were skeptical about the new cultural values they were about to embark upon.
Honesty is the Best Policy
The internal communications team began by conducting a benchmarking survey of the company's 28,000 employees to gauge their preferred avenues for getting information. Monsanto already had many outlets for employee communication but needed to guarantee it was on target. In fact, the survey - and others conducted later - proved invaluable, as Byrne's team realized that employees were suffering from information overload.
"We had over 70 communications vehicles, so we consolidated 22 newsletters into one and found e-mail newsletters were best for our employees," says Byrne.
The survey also revealed that employees preferred a USA Today-style paper with clear, concise information. That revelation prompted Monsanto to eliminate both video and audio tools to communicate with employees. Instead, the company began to rely on face-to-face communication and frequent "morning coffee talks" during which top executives chat with employees about topics ranging from a new product launch to big-picture strategic issues.
The most significant change that emerged from the culture transition was Monsanto's open policy about company issues. This policy stems from Shapiro's belief that the more you trust people, the more productive they will be. "We believe the employee determines what they need to know," Byrne says. "You don't covet or allow people to hold privileged information."
The company believes it's important to empower employees.
One technique Monsanto uses is posting both the talking points and the executives' remarks about any company announcements on the corporate intranet. This gives employees the right to privileged information and dissuades them from feeling out of the corporate loop. The company's intranet browser displays the following words: "Everybody Needs Complete and Utter Trust Once in Awhile" - and they are words Monsanto is promising to live by.
The open communication policy pervades all areas of Monsanto's employee outreach. Employees are encouraged to send - and do - e-mail to Shapiro and letters to the monthly paper about problems or concerns. They also participate in the "rumors database," a place to post comments and ideas about topics ranging from the company's stock price to religion.
Trust is not just a buzz-word at Monsanto; the company seeks out ways to show employees that it trusts and values their work. When the company unveiled its new logo, for instance, it was emblazoned on a shirt for employees months before the official launch. "We wanted to tell employees 'we trust you, but don't share anything [with the outside],' " says Byrne.
Getting Noticed
The New York Times and Wall Street Journal picked up on Monsanto's unusually open atmosphere at the workplace. On March 3, the Times published an article titled, "Monsanto Visionary in a Cubicle," describing how even top executives at Monsanto work without offices or doors. The article also noted that a suggested merger with DuPont would be difficult given Monsanto's corporate culture.
Byrne says he hasn't done extensive "media relations" to get the top media attention. He claims it's more a "word-on-the-street" tactic than pure media pitching.
Monsanto now conducts benchmarking twice a year. Firms such as Boxenbaum Grates, Fleischman-Hillard and Shandwick conduct the polls. Boxenbaum Grates has not only been a key player in Monsanto's benchmarking strategies, but instrumental in bringing Monsanto to public attention.
Its most recent survey found that 80 percent of employees said they were getting good information. Byrne says anything above 50 percent is deemed effective. The poll also found about 75 percent of employees believed the information on Monsanto culture or values was either "very useful" or moderately useful."
(Monsanto, 314/694-3670; Boxenbaum Grates, 212/490-3383)
Adams Research, Arlington, Va., conducted the 1998 Monsanto communications audit. Here's an example of the questions used by the company to gauge Monsanto's internal communication. As you see from the chart below, employees were not getting enough
"face-to-face" communication:
| "Not Enough" | All | Asia Pacific | Europe Africa | Latin/ South America | St. Louis | Other U.S./ Canada |
| 5% | 4% | 5% | 7% | 4% | 5% | |
| Print At Office | 10% | 10% | 6% | 17% | 8% | 7% |
| Print At Home | 14% | 14% | 9% | 19% | 4% | 3% |
| Face-To-Face | 47% | 47% | 57% | 49% | 58% | 54% |
| Source: Monsanto | ||||||