This is the story of the company formerly known as itelligence AG. A German SAP and IT service provider with more than 10,000 employees in 28 countries, this SME with more than 30 years of experience and annual revenue of over 1 billion euros – whose mission it is to deploy, manage, advance and enhance SAP solutions to shape its clients’ digital transformation – has been part of the global IT giant NTT DATA since 2014.

When the C-suites at itelligence’s parent company in Japan decided to rename their subsidiary NTT DATA Business Solutions in late 2020 and roll out NTT DATA’s corporate design on a grander scale, the message was clear: the time to act and communicate is now. Times of change are always times of uncertainty. But they’re also an opportunity for a fresh start and communication, even when it’s just a company’s branding and a key visual on the surface.

On a rational level, the basic idea is simple: from red to blue. Using the NTT DATA branding makes it easier to do business. But, on an emotional level, the decision is a big deal. That’s because the complete rebranding will mean dealing with a veritable cultural shift, no matter what. Going from locally owned-and-operated showpiece of the regional business scene to just another cog in a multinational corporation’s wheel has the potential to drag an organisation down. Or inspire it to new heights.

Together with the marketing agency wob and the core team at today’s NTT DATA Business Solutions (strategy, marketing, communication, HR), we started by focusing on the creation of a brand platform. The mission it formulated – “We Transform. SAP® Solutions into Value.” – was the compass for everything to come. The path to getting there involved multiple in-depth workshops, followed by approval processes in cooperation with the Japanese parent company, the executive board and pivotal stakeholders such as the economic committee.

And then? We made communication the core and driving force of the transformation. While the experts hit the ground running in their areas, we checked in with each partner on a weekly basis using SCRUM-like methods to see whether we were headed in the right direction.

The team gained one strong insight in particular: what unites staff, stakeholders and customers is the desire for a successful transformation, inspiring us to come up with the mission “… making it work for YOU”. This positioning later served as the basis for a strong digital campaign headed up by wob.

We poured our expertise – internal communication, change communication and external PR – into a multi-stage, multifaceted plan of action. Internally, we started by concentrating on clearly formulated information, such as virtual town halls and video formats. What followed were orientation measures (dialogue events, Q&A sessions) coupled with a campaign to recruit and educate change ambassadors, accompanied by continuous, transparent communication on progress and training. While all that was going on, we also completely revamped the employee newsletter and took it digital. On that new digital channel, we talked to staff about the opportunities and uncertainties associated with #TRANSFORMATION2021. Special attention was paid to conveying the clear message that the change meant new possibilities rather than job cuts. For staff, it means better personal development opportunities and more internationality. And for the company, it means better market opportunities.

External communication was guided by playbooks, multimedia content and LHLK as a central hub for 28 countries, as well as a meticulously planned launch day that turned out a complete success. In addition, we positioned CEO Norbert Rotter as the face of the transformation and a thought leader in the SAP community.

And then? We started looking for strong images and formats to cement awareness of the brand and the SAP expertise it embodies. In the end, the team found just the right imagery to tell the story behind the journey. A few weeks before the new brand was set to go live, NTT DATA Business Solutions set sail. Literally. A branded catamaran toured the Baltic Sea, connecting staff, customers and the market with the positive new message. All technology aside, the new branding is about people, after all.

Stefan andJan are particularly proud that the key members of the NTT DATA Business Solutions crew all remained on board despite the many changes. The 27 per cent year-on-year growth in business at NTT DATA Business Solutions also fills them with pride.

The astonishing pace at which we got the job done continues to amaze us to this day. In less than six months, we planned and executed this behemoth project with no prior preparation under pandemic conditions, forcing us to communicate virtually from start to finish. In a nutshell: work and make it work – as a strong team. With the power of smart storytelling.

#TRANSFORMATION2021 has been honoured on multiple occasions. The accolades include the German Brand Award in four categories (including “Brand Strategy of the Year” and “Brand Revival of the Year”), as well as words of praise from the parent company’s headquarters in Tokyo that are enough to make anyone blush – with Rob Rasmussen, the global chief marketing officer of NTT DATA, calling the campaign “the best executive communication in years”. What could we possibly add to that?

The best time is now. At least it is for talented people who are looking to power up their careers in the present. That’s because they are no longer the ones who have to go hunting for a job. Today, the jobs come hunting for them. HR experts often talk about the war for talent, which is inspiring forward-thinking companies to approach suitable candidates rather than waiting for them to apply. Employers take advantage of career websites like LinkedIn, Xing and Kununu – as well as social media networks like Facebook, Instagram and Twitter – to showcase what they have to offer. Maintaining a presence in these marketplaces of social recruiting is a must for any business that wants to be taken seriously.

That is true of ams OSRAM as well – and perhaps even more so. The merger of ams and OSRAM in 2021 marked the amalgamation of two major players to form a global innovation leader in the fields of sensor technology and photonics. As a result, the new company finds itself in the midst of a fundamental transformation process that offers exciting new opportunities, both for the 23,000 or so people who already work for it and those interested in getting on board. asm OSRAM stands for innovation come to life, a fascinating glimpse at the world of tomorrow and the boundless possibilities that exist today. Harnessing that momentum takes the right specialists. Without them, the pace of progress grinds to a halt, making the human factor a risk for growth.

At LHLK, we’ve been working with OSRAM for eight years now. In that time, we’ve partnered up to turn quite a few spectacular projects into major successes, such as the unforgettable #LeadingLights campaign to celebrate the Eurovision Song Contest. This time, it’s our agency’s job to support our client as it rolls out its new identity. Pretty much everything has changed, from the name, product portfolio and positioning, to the company’s look and our contacts. Our job has also become far more challenging. The sporadic Facebook posts of the past have evolved into international social media campaigns with strong, full-video content and community management across every conceivable channel.

Our approach to B2E digital communication leverages two of our main areas of expertise to achieve a single goal. As experienced social media experts and specialists for employer branding, we are now working to get the best new employees interested in this future-focused company. We are managing all HR-related social media activities and actively making sure that we bring potential applicants together with the right contacts at ams OSRAM. We are enabling deep insights into people’s everyday work and giving the brand not just one face, but as many different faces as possible. In addition, we are tapping into our creativity to support current employees as they use a wide range of platforms to report on the exciting things they get to do, the career options and the many opportunities for growth. By doing so, we have unleashed a wave of identification within the company. And what could be more valuable in times of change than employees who love their jobs?

It fills Franzi, Khanh Vi, Sophie and Susanna with a special sense of pride to see how HR social media basics have evolved over the course of just a few years to become B2E communication on a massive scale that combines two corporate cultures and creates a feeling of unity. And it makes us happy to see how ams OSRAM is climbing employer rankings like Potentialpark and earning praise as a social media hero.­

Mobility is a big promise. It’s a promise that things are going to move forward. That’s why the petrol engine was a motor of prosperity and, for nearly 150 years, a German success story. But that chapter is coming to an end soon, to be replaced (for the foreseeable future) by electricity. To truly move forward, we need to move people and goods on rails rather than just on roads. We need to view mobility from a societal perspective rather than just an individual one. New engine concepts, better digital options, alternative services and the opening of private and public ownership are the catalysts for social change and the end of congested cities that rob people of the air to breathe. Now that’s a big promise.

A new age has begun. And LHLK has been there from the start. For 19 years, we’ve been helping to power a new approach to mobility. We’ve been showing people that they want and need e-mobility before they even know it themselves, and that sharing is part of the solution. We’re helping drive forward research, infrastructure and mobility services, and we always find the right words to describe the new and indescribable.

Today, our mobility client portfolio includes car companies and their suppliers, as well as dealers, retailers, associations, e-mobility service providers, software vendors, consultancy firms, infrastructure service providers, research institutes and government agencies. We’ve worked with DriveNow to establish and popularise car sharing in Germany. We’re the initiators behind PSM, the first association of sharing mobility providers in Germany. We’re helping tradition-steeped suppliers like Webasto on their path to becoming a provider of systems for electromobility or Euronics on their journey from electronics retailer to provider of e-mobility concepts. With the Trainline booking platform, we’re helping make train travel a real alternative. And we’re supporting the market roll-out and ramp-up of electromobility solutions by making sure the research findings of the German government’s Elektro-Mobil funding initiative get communicated.

We’re with our clients as we embark on a journey to a new, environmentally conscious era. We are proud that the breadth and depth of our projects makes us a strong source of expertise when it comes to mobility – and the heart of a network. We connect leading players to create genuine, deep added value that goes beyond the sum of our individual projects.

Sure, there were enough reasons for plenty of people to feel down in the mouth during the pandemic. Covid brought everyday life to a grinding halt and loneliness to the fore. High-quality home entertainment was the only way to avoid losing our minds entirely. We read every post, blog and article online, embracing the artiest of films on television channels hitherto seldom watched just to forget the misery all around. Even a living room full of designer furniture had the potential to become hell on earth.

By early 2021, nearly eight months into the pandemic, there was still no light at the end of the tunnel. With no end to the virus in sight and no government prospects for shared arts and entertainment, HD+ decided to lighten the mood. HD+, Germany’s leading platform for satellite TV, set out to confront the situation head-on – with the right kind of attitude for a brand that promises the best in entertainment. The mission was to bring a little fun back to the world with a healthy portion of unconventional communication, and consciously without any marketing or sales intent.

And that is where LHLK came in. We asked ourselves: What would we do if we could share a bit of fun, off-the-wall art with our favourite people to show them we care and send them our love – all while keeping the socially prescribed physical distance? Together with artist and HD+ advertising spokesman Friedrich Liechtenstein, we came up with Germany’s most entertaining video jukebox.

Thanks to easy-to-use web application and data-based video engine technology from Wonderlandmovies, users were able to generate personalised clips in a matter of seconds and send them to friends by messenger, e-mail or social media. The result was a unique and special way of keeping in touch.

The joy came through in mini videos featuring different preset lockdown characters in which the fabulous Friedrich Liechtenstein addressed the recipients personally and put on brief performances for them. Star DJ Richard Dorfmeister provided the soundtrack, while creative director and producer Christoph Sinemus made sure Friedrich Liechtenstein’s show looked right.

For us, the final weeks of the third-wave lockdown were the perfect time for this superspreader event. And by superspreader, we mean: spread the clip and have super fun. The launch took place on 19 May 2021. By mid-August, nearly 300,000 videos had been requested, reaching more than 25 million people in total. We drew up an integrated marketing plan consisting of media relations, influencer partnerships, social media communication and performance marketing (in collaboration with iCrossing) to underpin and distribute the campaign. Ultimately, the clips were also an ideal tool for HD+ field sales staff in their efforts to approach contacts, partners and multipliers.

Sabina, Khanh Vi, Susanna and Jan are particularly proud of having HD+ as a client – one with the sense of fun to not say we’d gone mad. And one willing to agree to the idea of offering a bright light at the end of the Covid tunnel that would magically draw people in. The feedback delivered by HD+, a brand with an expert feel for the world around it and a good sense of humour, is the cherry on the top of a strategic coup for us at LHLK. It shows how much joy and success can result from thinking far, far outside the box.