Internal communications with a twist

Picture this: A 150-year-old mining company undergoing seismic strategic and cultural change after suffering significant damage to its reputation. More than 50,000 employees across 35 countries, many working shifts at remote sites without regular internet access but receiving excessive and varied communications. How do you cut through to ensure they engage with critical messaging to stay safe, understand their part in improving operational performance, and build a more inclusive and respectful corporate culture?

This was the challenge facing Rio Tinto’s Group Employee Communications team, and the catalyst for a major transformation of our internal comms suite. Our goal was to create informative and inspiring content and experiences that build pride in, and understanding of, our journey as a business, and that empowered our people to deliver our purpose of ‘finding better ways to provide the materials the world needs’. Material Matters was born – a unique communications identity connecting our people to what matters most to them, and a nod to Rio’s role producing the materials essential for countries to decarbonise and grow their economies.