Strategic Partners for
Learning Innovation

Saint-Gobain is a highly successful multinational company that strives to be ahead in innovation, providing its customers with forward-thinking solutions that incorporate intersecting technologies. Saint-Gobain depends on its diverse and skilled global workforce to keep it at the forefront of materials R&D.

The company was looking to improve internal communication within the group and encourage improved communication between international colleagues to boost knowledge exchange. Saint-Gobain wanted to be able to capture valuable information and route new ideas swiftly towards the relevant decision-making hubs. Saint-Gobain also sought to drive initiatives that would create a positive image for the manufacturing business and attract and retain the next generation of employees.

The L&D team at Saint-Gobain needed a suitable training partner and content provider to enable employees across the different international teams to develop personal communication skills. Saint-Gobain had implemented the Cornerstone OnDemand Learning Management System (LMS) and initiated a search for a language training provider that could embed training modules within the new structure.

The different departments and teams at Saint-Gobain are highly diverse and work according to different dynamics. The training solution needed to suit beginners as well as advanced speakers, employees with a fixed workplace as well as flexible, mobile workers.

Saint-Gobain and Speexx are continuing to work together and are now rolling out the Language Booster program in offices outside France. The program has a range of benefits:

• The learning platform enables individual learners to register for their own training. Speexx took on the role of monitoring trainee participation and engagement for HR at Saint Gobain.

• Much of the administration of learning credits is automated, considerably reducing the workload for HR.

• The development of the branded Language Booster platform as a highly recognizable learning hub helps HR promote the training and infrastructure throughout the different levels and regions within the company. Saint Gobain has found that the branded custom pages greatly help internal communication and engagement.

• Employees are responding positively to the opportunities for personal development and management teams will have access to enhanced talent pools because of the language skills being developed in-house.

Over 750 employees have completed the program to date and are continuing to progress, mainly in business English. The German, French, Spanish and Italian programmes are designed for middle managers that act as the link between the different regional company teams.

Saint-Gobain aims to increase the number of trainees in offices in China, Brazil, Italy and Germany – and to extend the platform functionality to allow individual employees to initiate training approval processes themselves.
Saint-Gobain has found its Language Booster program to be a vital tool for evaluating the linguistics skills that are key to management development programmes globally. It is also supporting a more mobile and flexible workforce. As frontiers disappear, collaboration is key for companies to compete in today’s digital world – and effective communication is key for collaboration and innovation.