GEO AWARD WINNERS

Created to celebrate Telefónica's centenary, Plan100 exemplifies creativity, inclusivity, and forward-thinking. The communication strategy, anchored by the slogan "Yo creo, yo me apunto" ("I believe, I'm in"), engaged employees through four distinct phases. By making employees the protagonists of the campaign, Telefónica fostered a sense of belonging and pride.

A standout feature of Plan100 was the innovative use of NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens), designed by an employee, as exclusive digital assets commemorating the company's history. This modern approach appealed to younger generations, adding excitement and exclusivity to the plan. Despite the challenges posed by a remote working environment, Telefónica successfully reached its global workforce of 100,000 employees, showcasing the plan in multiple languages and engaging senior leaders from various locations.

The judges applauded Telefónica for its inspirational campaign, revitalizing a mature plan to mark a significant company milestone. They praised the engaging communication strategy, highlighting the involvement of employees in the design process and the use of NFTs to inspire younger generations. Overall, Telefónica's Plan100 stands out as a shining example of effective communication and employee engagement in share plan initiatives.

DoorDash's innovative approach to equity compensation communication has garnered recognition for its creativity, effectiveness, and impact. Facing the challenge of educating a diverse, global workforce on equity and taxation, DoorDash's equity team embraced creativity and innovation, revamping its entire communications program.

Simplifying language and adopting a friendly, relatable tone ensured maximum engagement across different employee lifecycle stages, from new hires to RSU vesting events. Targeted campaigns with creative headlines and eye-catching visuals reduced confusion and led to a significant decline in inquiries. DoorDash provided easily accessible resources, including interactive wiki pages, engaging ‘RS(YOU)Tube’ video playlists, live webinars, and informative tax guides, enhancing employee understanding and engagement.

Judges were impressed by the company's comprehensive approach, innovative digital assets, and impactful engagement strategies. With success in engaging employees across 35 countries and providing personalized learning experiences, DoorDash stands out as a leader in effective communication strategies, setting a new standard for equity plan communication excellence.

Coca-Cola's "KO Shares" plan’s innovative approach to employee engagement strategy went beyond information dissemination, aiming to create an immersive experience for employees worldwide.

With its catchy tagline ‘Buy 1, Get 1’ and alignment with the NYSE stock symbol (KO), the branding demonstrated creativity and consistency. Clear goals of boldness, employee focus, and simplicity guided the communication efforts, which included extensive materials like brochures, presentations, videos, FAQs, and digital assets, all translated into multiple languages.

Personalization played a crucial role, with targeted email strategies tailored to individual employees. Ground teams further supported the rollout through daily interactions, town hall meetings, and virtual sessions.

KO Shares saw high enrollment rates, strong engagement metrics, and an impressive 90% renewal rate for the following year. Judges commended the campaign's engaging branding, comprehensive approach, and employee-friendly communication materials, such as the upbeat video and detailed how-to guides.

Overall, KO Shares illustrates how effective communication can foster employee participation and a culture of ownership globally. It reflects Coca-Cola's commitment to empowering its workforce and promoting inclusivity.

The judges praised the campaign for its engaging branding, clever tie-ins with the Coca-Cola brand, and comprehensive communication strategy, highlighting its success in driving participation and fostering a sense of ownership among employees.

SThree’s outstanding communications initiative was meticulously designed to align employees' interests with the company's success and enhance financial literacy among its workforce.

Through clear communication channels such as emails and an intuitive intranet platform, SThree ensured that employees could easily access comprehensive information about the share plan, fostering informed decision-making. The plan was made accessible to all employees, regardless of jurisdiction or financial literacy levels, promoting a sense of belonging and engagement.

By framing participation as an opportunity to invest in the company's long-term success and employing innovative communication methods including videos from the CEO and regional champions' support, SThree achieved a remarkable 38% uptake globally, surpassing the targeted 20-25%.

The judges commended SThree's comprehensive communication strategy, noting its informative and easy-to-follow approach. They appreciated the added incentive of free shares and the absence of a waiting period to join, indicating a commitment to inclusivity. While the basic elements were well-executed, they suggested stronger analysis and follow-up on underserved groups for future improvements. Notably, the microsite was highlighted as an impressive feature of the communication program.

Anglo American's MyShare employee share plan communication program has been recognized with an award for overcoming a complex set of challenges. The plan required implementation in 15 countries and multiple languages, with a particular emphasis on communicating with employees in South America and China. The launch was complicated by economic uncertainty and a lack of understanding among many employees about share plans and ownership.

To address these challenges, Anglo American created an engaging communications campaign with a clear narrative that emphasized the plan's benefits. The campaign was rolled out in four stages, utilizing various communication assets to educate and inform employees at different levels. As a result, 73% of eligible employees accessed their MyShare account to accept their Free Share Award, and 36% opted to invest their own money in the Purchase and Matching Shares Plan.

The judges were impressed by the campaign's thoroughness across events and phases, and how it reflected the company's corporate culture. They also noted the early engagement with local coordinators and managers, which was viewed as a strong point. The follow-up questionnaire proved valuable in identifying areas for improvement in future campaigns, and the use of multiple communication methods to reach employees who don't have access to online tools was seen as a smart and effective strategy.

Overall, the judges were impressed by the campaign's attention to detail, inclusiveness, and potential for continued improvement.

The Coca Cola communications program was created to engage all employees globally, regardless of their job role or location. The comprehensive campaign included launch communications in nine languages, a 90-second animation video, posters and flyers, a Shareworks guide, tax guides, webinars, and intranet portals in local languages. 

The program's success was attributed to creating a meaningful connection between employees and the business's broader vision, elevating excitement about ownership, and making it easy to understand and participate. The program achieved a 37% take-up rate globally, with New Zealand's being the highest at 58%.

Colleagues across the business gave overwhelmingly positive feedback, indicating that the communications were engaging and easy to connect with, leading to an impressive take-up rate. 

The judges were impressed with the comprehensive and well-executed nature of the communications. They felt that the program's focus on inclusivity and accessibility was evident and that the communications were designed to engage a diverse audience, with an effective rollout strategy that considered different learning styles, including animation and accessible step-by-step guides. The integration of the company's core values into the communications was also effective in creating a meaningful connection between employees and the business.

The judges appreciated the consistency of branding with the company's culture and the crisp, modern, eye-catching, and fun materials that conveyed important information.

The RS Group communications program has been recognized by the judges for its innovative approach to creating a global all-employee share ownership plan. The program was designed to resonate with employees across the globe, who come from diverse cultures, ethnicities, genders, ages, and backgrounds. The key objective was to create a simple, impactful, and inclusive plan that would be accessible to all employees, regardless of their location or role within the company.

To achieve this, the communications approach was intentionally relaxed and plain-speaking, avoiding corporate terminology and instead mirroring the RSWay branding. All communication and plan documents were translated to maximize inclusivity, and materials were delivered online, via email, and through the company's SharePoint site, with hard copies provided where necessary. The program also included workshops for employees to learn more about the plan and ensure maximum engagement.

The program successfully granted awards to 7,753 employees in 32 countries, with a 100% take-up rate. Each employee received a free share award over 100 shares, with an approximate value of £1,000 at grant. The plan was designed to be easy for employees to participate in, with no unnecessary barriers, and awards vest in 2025 subject to continued employment and a performance target to grow the company's profit CAGR%.

The judges were impressed by the program's inclusivity, simplicity, and impact, as well as the vibrancy of the materials and the alignment with the company's culture. They noted that the program tackled a difficult topic like PSUs with very simple messaging, making it accessible to all employees. Overall, the RS Group communications program stands out as a comprehensive and innovative approach to creating a global all-employee share ownership plan, and is a deserving winner of its first award