Garance: Uniting Teams with a Multichannel, Interactive Program

Garance, an independent mutual insurance group specializing in savings and personal risk coverage, has been supporting its 250,000 members for nearly 40 years. With strong values of transparency, responsible management, and proximity to its clients and employees, the company places innovation at the heart of its DNA.

In 2024, the summer closure of offices during the Olympic Games posed a major challenge. Indeed, this situation could have led to reduced engagement and a loss of connection between employees. Garance did not view this constraint as an obstacle but as an opportunity to rethink collaboration methods and strengthen its company culture.

With this in mind, the Garance Games & Learn (GGL) were born: an innovative initiative blending education, coaching, and gamification, structured around the internal communication platform Garancity, developed with Poppulo.

The Challenge: Maintaining Engagement and Cohesion During the Summer

With the temporary closure of its offices, Garance had to find a way to:

• Maintain cohesion and employee engagement, even remotely.
• Experiment with new ways of working, especially through digital and collaborative tools.
• Familiarize employees with AI and underused Microsoft tools.
• Promote well-being and innovation through stimulating challenges.

This is why Garance chose to go beyond traditional internal communication. Instead, it opted for an engaging, interactive experience combining training, gamification, and coaching, aligned with its values and CSR commitments.

Poppulo: A Solid Foundation for an Innovative Program

As they were already using Poppulo for internal communication, Garance naturally chose to build on this platform (renamed Garancity) to bring the Garance Games & Learn to life.
This decision proved highly effective, as Poppulo offers all the features needed to support an initiative that is educational, collaborative, and engaging:

• A centralized, familiar space for employees: Garancity was already a reference point for internal communication. It centralized all challenge-related information, team exchanges, and access to training and engagement content.
• Proven engagement mechanisms: With its leaderboards, challenges, and reward features, Poppulo encouraged collective participation and sustained momentum throughout the summer.
• An intuitive and accessible interface: Already adopted by teams, the platform required no additional learning curve, enabling a smooth and rapid rollout.
• Perfect alignment with Garance’s culture: By supporting experimentation, learning, and collaboration, Poppulo aligned perfectly with Garance’s commitment to innovative management, learning, and quality of life at work.

At the heart of the initiative, Garancity became the rallying point for the GGL. But the experience went beyond digital: with in-person events, posters in the offices, and regular newsletters, Garance orchestrated a truly multichannel campaign that energized its entire communication ecosystem.

A Summer Program That Was Fun, Educational, and Engaging

1. A Collective and Unifying Launch

Just like the Olympic Games, Garance kicked off the Garance Games & Learn with an opening ceremony. On July 4, all employees were invited to a friendly, festive outdoor event. The goal was to create a strong moment of connection before the office closure.

Activities included:

• Formation of 24 teams, each representing a country with a flag and anthem.
• Sports and team-building activities (pétanque, mölkky, ping-pong).
• "Customer Experience" workshop linked to Garance’s management strategy.
  

2. Activities Blending Learning, Coaching, and Gamification

From July 5 to August 26, during the office closure, all the employees took part in 13 challenges over 7 weeks, combining training, well-being, and entertainment.

Main challenges included:

• AI Masterclasses: Training on practical uses of artificial intelligence.
• Effective Prompting: Workshops on how to interact with generative AI tools like ChatGPT.
• Well-being & Sports: Sophrology workshops and shared fitness activities.
• Creative Challenges: Photo contests (e.g., “Best Supporters,” “Best Remote Work Outfit”).
• Microsoft Tools Exploration: Discovering and adopting underused tools.
• Managerial Culture Manifesto: Testing and integrating new collaborative practices.

To ensure ongoing engagement throughout the 7 weeks, Garance leveraged all of Garancity’s features:

• User-generated content to contribute to the challenges.
• Quizzes for individual and team challenges.
• Campaigns and CTAs (Calls to Action) to boost participation and encourage app downloads.
• Team leaderboards, thanks to gamification features, updated weekly via a newsletter using Poppulo’s built-in tool.
• Rewards for the most engaged employees.
• A team chat space for discussion and experience sharing.

The result: More than 10,000 interactions recorded, with July becoming the second most active month of the year on the platform!

3. Closing Ceremony: Celebrating Success and Sustaining the Initiative

On September 19, the GGL concluded with Garance Day, an event celebrating winning teams and outstanding initiatives.
A festive wrap-up that highlighted the program’s positive impact and opened the door to new collaborative initiatives at Garance.

Results: A Significant Impact on Engagement

Thanks to the Garance Games & Learn, the company turned a challenge into an opportunity to strengthen teamwork and collective learning. The initiative led to strong engagement on the Garancity platform and increased adoption of digital tools.

Here are some notable figures:

• 10,000 interactions recorded during the summer (+15% vs. previous months)
• July became the 2nd most active month of the year, with 6,849 interactions.
• 34% of employees joined the team chat space for faster, more fluid communication.
• 150 participants in AI masterclass workshops, showing strong interest in the topic.
• 83% of teams earned points, reflecting broad participation.
• 57 participants in the “Best Supporters” photo contest and 70 in the Olympics quiz.

Enthusiastic Feedback from Employees

Employee feedback emphasized the GGL’s positive impact on teamwork and skills development:

• “The Garance Games & Learn really strengthened the bonds between colleagues and sparked a positive dynamic across the company. Initiatives like this change how we collaborate and interact, even remotely.”
• “This program successfully blended learning and fun, something rare in companies. The playful approach and team challenges made it motivating and engaging.”
• “The GGL brought a real breath of fresh air to our professional routine. I loved the photo challenges and quizzes, which added a touch of fun and lightness while encouraging learning and innovation.”

This success paves the way for new initiatives combining gamification, training, and collective intelligence to foster a culture of sustainable innovation.

A Project That Opens New Avenues in Internal Communication

Entirely designed by Garance’s communications team and enhanced by the engagement features of the Garancity platform, this initiative transformed a constraint into a collective and innovative momentum. This project: combining innovation, learning, coaching, and gamification, marks a major step forward in experimenting with new ways of working.

What’s next? The initiative could inspire future programs that incorporate even more interactivity and collective intelligence.