IHI Corporation | Expanding Brand Awareness & Employee Retention

Commercial & Industrial, Real Estate, Digital Marketing, Marketing & Creative, Public Affairs
Challenge

IHI Corporation, a global engineering, construction and manufacturing company based in Tokyo, engaged Pierpont to manage announcements and internal communications around the acquisition of Kvaerner Americas’ EPC Center, an engineering and construction company.

Objectives

In addition to announcing the transaction in priority markets and managing coverage in industry-specific media, strengthening internal communications was a top priority  to show the experienced engineering staff at the EPC Center that IHI was committed to long-term success and encourage employees that they would move forward as a team.

Solution

Pierpont developed a comprehensive communications plan that included external strategic media relations and an internal communications plan to educate employees on the new company, its reputation and benefits, in order to encourage retention. Additionally, Pierpont produced a BBQ and Saké event that gave the new Japanese executive team the opportunity to meet staff at the EPC Center and enjoy a blend of the two partnered company cultures.

Results

The highlight of the event was a traditional Japanese saké barrel ceremony involving leaders from both companies opening the barrel and serving employees. The event was widely successful and well-received. More importantly, all key employees stayed with the new company during and after the acquisition transition.