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AstraZeneca develops its employer branding communication together with Oddwork

AstraZeneca pushes the boundaries of science to deliver life-changing medicines. Now that an updated communication platform is to be developed for the candidate market, Oddwork has been given the opportunity to create it.

GOTHENBURG, 27 OCTOBER 2019

ASTRAZENECA’S CHALLENGE & AMBITION
AstraZeneca has a strong and well-established global Employer Value Proposition (EVP) based on the organisation’s purpose WE PUSH THE BOUNDARIES OF SCIENCE TO DELIVER LIFE-CHANGING MEDICINES. A purpose that, together with the values We put patients first, We follow the science, We play to win, We do the right thing and We are entrepreneurial , permeates the entire organisation. The challenge facing AstraZeneca Södertälje has been that communication towards the talent market has primarily appealed to researchers. At the production site in Södertälje, there is a need to also attract other target groups such as operators and marketers.

AstraZeneca’s ambition has therefore been to develop an UPDATED COMMUNICATION PLATFORM whose content captures the soul of the other parts and service areas of AstraZeneca Södertälje (e.g. marketing, operations and talent acquisition), while reflecting the organisation’s global EVP and working everywhere from career sites to billboards, job ads and social media.

ACTION PLAN
It quickly became clear (not least after a tour of AstraZeneca Södertälje) that the very strongest ambassadors for AstraZeneca’s soul are its own CULTURE-CARRYING EMPLOYEES. Employee pride at AstraZeneca Södertälje is very strong, and many have worked there for many years, or even their entire careers.

AstraZeneca Talent Acquisition and Oddwork therefore decided to identify together a group of 45 STRONGLY CULTURE-CARRYING EMPLOYER BRANDING AMBASSADORS from AstraZeneca Södertälje’s different service areas. Together with Oddwork’s employer branding team, a workshop format was then designed and run with one specific purpose: to capture the soul of AstraZeneca Södertälje. This workshop, together with talent, industry and competitor analysis, now forms the building blocks of the updated communication platform that Oddwork’s employer branding team is currently creating.

THE TEAM’S COMMENTS RIGHT NOW (ONGOING PROJECT):
– This is a fantastically exciting project from several perspectives. During our joint workshop, it was a privilege to experience the pride that lives within AstraZeneca, and to see how all participants share the same view of AstraZeneca’s culture and values, whether they have been part of the organisation for three weeks or 30 years. The communication platform is now being developed according to plan, and we look forward to the final presentation in December, says Douglas Afzelius, Employer Branding Advisor at Oddwork.