Background 

In early 2022 Danone launched the Renew Danone strategy, led by CEO Antoine de Saint-Affrique, to realign the company’s business model for sustainable growth through greater alignment between purpose and performance. Danone’s purpose, unchanged since 1972, is to bring health through food to as many people as possible. A key enabler of this strategy was a cultural refresh, rooted in Danone’s HOPE values (Humanism, Openness, Proximity and Enthusiasm) and the introduction of new behaviours that reflected the company’s renewed goals.

Approach 

To support this Danone’s Culture Global team initiated an in-depth listening exercise, involving 95 interviews including Senior leaders , 45 workshops with over 700 Danoners , and a survey with insights from more than 60,000 employees. This revealed that while employees valued the HOPE values, only 20% fully understood them and only 40% observed the desired behaviours consistently in their workplace.

Based on these findings Danone launched its Culture Change management plan underpinned by “Danone is what I do.” This emphasised that each employee plays an active role in shaping the company’s culture through their everyday actions. The plan refreshed the explanation of the HOPE values and introduced five new behaviours: Put Danone First, Lead with People, Keep it Simple, Be Accountable and Walk the Talk. These behaviours were designed to align with the Renew Danone strategy and drive performance.

“Danone’s cultural transformation empowers every employee to shape the company’s future through their daily actions and behaviours”

The approach included three key phases. First, the company rolled out communication materials, such as a memorable event launch, videos from the COMEX leadership and various digital resources, to raise awareness. Next hands-on and experiential training sessions lasting 1.5 days were provided by zone to embed the new behaviours . Finally e-learning modules were developed to give employees a deeper understanding of these behaviours.

Outcome

To date 26,550 Danoners, representing 51% of the workforce, had completed the e-learning modules, which received a satisfaction rating of 4.5 out of 5. In addition 186 face-to-face training sessions were held across 23 cities, training 90% of executives and 80% of directors, with a satisfaction rating of 4.6 out of 5.

The cultural transformation has already led to a marked improvement in the prevalence of the 5 new behaviours. Compared to 2022 there was a 25% increase in employees frequently demonstrating “Put Danone First” ; 17% of increase for the “Lead with People Behavior”; 5% of increase for “Keep it Simple”; 22% rise in “Be Accountable” and, finally, a 22% increase vs 2022 on “Walk the Talk” Behavior. Employees have embraced these changes, incorporating the behaviours into their daily work, as evidenced in meetings and interactions across the company.

Danone’s culture transformation continues into 2024, with plans to embed these behaviours further into the company’s daily routines and processes, ensuring lasting change and ongoing success.