Brandhouse partners with Global Vision to launch its intranet

Brandhouse, marketer and distributor of top premium drinks brands with sales of around R3 billion annually, recently selected local software developer, Global Vision, to design and implement its intranet. The Brandhouse intranet was completed and successfully launched to staff in December 2004.

Brandhouse is a South African joint venture between Diageo, Heineken and Namibia Breweries. Its portfolio includes brands such as Johnnie Walker, J&B, Smirnoff Vodka, Archer`s Aqua, White Horse, Windhoek and Guinness. The company has a strong internal communications focus, believing that engaging and informing its staff is crucial to the business. This focus is mirrored in the design of the intranet.

The company wanted the intranet to reflect not only the look and feel of Brandhouse, but also its values. According to Tori Richards, communications manager of Brandhouse: "We already had effective internal communications systems in place and weren`t looking to replace these. The objective of our intranet is not to replace human interaction, but rather to enhance and support it by providing staff with a platform that is useful, fun and entertaining. However, face-to-face communication will always remain the preferred channel of communication in our business."

Using its Chain Software Suite, Global Vision was able to construct the intranet to address the communication challenges within Brandhouse. Wayne Arendse, sales manager of Global Vision, says: "The modular nature of the Chain Software framework enabled us to do beta testing and deliver in an incredibly quick turnaround time of less than six weeks. Test groups of employees from different regions and job functions were asked to navigate the intranet and provide feedback. They were given 10 days to respond and we launched the intranet roughly a week after that."

From the outset, Brandhouse`s internal communications strategy was to make as much information transparently available to as many people as possible. The intranet covers a broad spectrum of information from maps to new offices, the company`s portfolio of premium brands, marketing schedules and all advertising material, whether in print or broadcast format, world beverage news updated daily, a user database with photos of everyone (personal), the day`s birthdays, hot media issues, to leave forms and other relevant HR information as well as sales graphs tracking the company`s daily volume sales. In the case of truly confidential information, pre-defined user codes in the software ensure the information can only be only accessed by authorised users. The intranet will also help facilitate cross-functional communication and ensure all staff, irrespective of their roles or areas in which they work, will be kept informed of news and marketing events.

Simon Litherland, managing director of Brandhouse, says: "The intranet was designed for our people and was one of our great communication successes of 2004."