The following article is by Patrícia Villas-Boas, People & Communication Director at Schmidt Light Metal Group, an Employer Branding College Graduate and member of the Global Alumni.
One of the most popular concurrent sessions at World Employer Branding Day 2020 was “Building true culture at SLMG through employee empowerment,” presented by Patrícia Villas-Boas, People & Communication Director at Schmidt Light Metal Group from the beautiful World of Wine facility in Porto, Portugal.
Figure 1: Patrícia Villas-Boas, People & Communication Director at Schmidt Light Metal Group
Schmidt Light Metal Group has supplied the European automotive and ancillary industry with complex and demanding aluminium high-pressure die cast components for more than 25 years, delivering more than 80 million parts which perform on the streets worldwide.
Patrícia shared the enduring story, challenges and successes in the journey to build a company culture that resonates true to all employees across Schmidt Light Metal Group which has facilitated by deconstructing the impact of employee empowerment for the long-term success of an organization
Bringing values to life that impact company culture and performance not just on paper is one of the key strategic functions many companies fail to deliver which can lead to a workforce that has very little engagement in the strategic objectives of the company and are just turning up for a pay check.
Realising there were no short fixes, Patrícia and her organization activated a two-year, ‘Living our Values’ program where everyone, from boardroom to shop floor, participated and engaged with each other, creating new bonds and cementing a values-based culture. For any chance of success and sustainability, everyone needed to be involved in the change management process to build a new culture. It had to be true and it had to be genuine.
Figure 2: Schmidt Light Metal Group Values
In the video below Patrícia shares how this employer brand strategy has proved invaluable as the COVID-19 pandemic created the most challenging business environment in the past 100 years and how it has empowered employees, turning them into real advocates for the organization by creating a common identity.
Video Presentation: Building true culture at SLMG through employee empowerment