Key Wins

• Increased employee engagement after year of campaign

• Employee-nominated teams featured each quarter

• Greater internal awareness of key customer wins, new technology

“out-performing” campaign focuses on the bright spots to give employees reasons to believe in a brighter future

Rebuild employee confidence and trust in the future of Sun Microsystems 

Sun had just endured several straight quarters of losing profits that had taken a toll on employee morale. Attrition was up, layoffs were a recurring event, and Sun’s culture of competitive innovation was wavering. How could a cross-functional team of brand and HR experts rebuild employee  confidence, trust and amplify the good things happening at Sun? 

The program needed to engage employees in being part of the story

Emphasizing bright spots shared by the employee community was our key insight to turning the tide. The team created an internal hub where employees could nominate coworkers. Each nomination told the story of out-performing, whether it was out-selling, out-servicing, out-innovating or out-revving the competition. Each part of the narrative reinforced the culture of Sun competitiveness, maverick appeal and history of success.

Every employee touchpoint

Employees were greeted day one with a bold declaration of “Out-performing starts here,” opposite the main entrance to headquarters. Massive interior sign installations carried each team success story. Additional program implementation included postcards, table tops and water bottles for the cafeteria. 

Out-performing mindset reflected in company performance

Coming off back to back yearly losses of nearly 75%, Sun began the turn towards profitability the next year following the Out-performing Program.