Business Challenge
When your product has been on the market for more than 130 years, keeping it fresh and relevant requires an outstanding staff. Montenegro needed a way to keep employees enthusiastic and deeply invested in the company’s success.
Transformation
Montenegro built an intranet solution that offers employees a forum for developing, discussing and proposing ideas aimed at improving workplace morale and fine-tuning company procedures.
Results
Boosts employee morale
by giving all employees an opportunity to suggest improvementsImproves communication
among staff, capturing conversations on a single, user-friendly platformEnhances company culture
by addressing challenges with an open, collaborative approachBusiness challenge story
Fostering communication among employees
Things have changed considerably since Montenegro’s founder, Stanislao Cobianchi, first wrote down the formula for the company’s complex, aromatic liqueur in 1885. Though the formula, still in its handwritten format, remains under lock and key at Montenegro’s headquarters, the company itself strives to operate in a thoroughly modern manner.
In late 2016, Montenegro began looking for a new way to bring its employees together. The company used its existing intranet, based on IBM Connections and IBM Web Content Manager software, primarily for the dissemination of information, and employees rarely contributed to it. Recognizing the potential advantages of a robust employee intranet, Montenegro approached Wintech for help in changing the focus of the platform from informational to collaborative. Specifically, Montenegro wanted to expand its intranet by developing a way for employees to submit and discuss suggestions for improving business processes and building employee morale.
“ Working with Montenegro, we were able to develop an intranet that enhances the company culture by giving employees an opportunity to share ideas and work together. ”
— Lisa Franzoso, HR Communications and Development Specialist, IBM Business Partner Wintech S.p.a.
Transformation story
Providing a forum for ideas
After meeting with the team at Montenegro, Wintech helped develop Eureka, a new feature of the company intranet that provides employees with a place to submit ideas for improving the company’s processes, culture and more. Eureka supports a multiphase approach for bringing new ideas to fruition. First, employees can submit their ideas to the new tool anonymously, filling out an online form that allows them to explain the specifics of their ideas, list any expenditures that might be required and request input from others in the company.
Next, a cross-functional team reviews the anonymous submissions, selecting the most viable and processing them using the IBM Connections software’s social collaboration tools. Each idea is assigned a promoter, who develops and oversees a workgroup charged with carrying through on the idea. For example, soon after Eureka was launched, an employee submitted a plan for helping Montenegro become more ecologically responsible. As a result, Montenegro put together a workgroup that developed a recycling program and launched a company-wide campaign aimed at decreasing the amount of paper employees use.
Results story
Working together to make positive changes
The Eureka program has improved morale among Montenegro employees by giving them a voice that they know will be heard. The solution also improves communication among employees by offering them a place to discuss new ideas openly and without judgement.
Lastly, says Lisa Franzoso, HR Communications and Development Specialist for Wintech, the Eureka solution “enhances the company culture by giving employees an opportunity to share ideas and work together to develop new initiatives.”
Montenegro S.r.l.
Established in 1885, Montenegro is a beverage company based in Bologna, Italy. Its signature product, Amaro Montenegro, is an aromatic liqueur distributed all over the world and known for its distinctive bottle and a unique flavor comprised of 40 botanical elements, including orange peels and vanilla. Montenegro employs about 350 people, and its annual revenue is approximately EUR 250 million.
About Wintech S.p.a.
IBM Business Partner Wintech was founded in 1987 in Padua, Italy. The company is proud of its more than 30 year history as a trusted systems integrator for companies all over Europe. Wintech works with a wide range of customers, including small businesses, banks and the public sector.
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