Sidetrade: Aligning a Rapidly Growing Global Team Around a Unified Communication Platform

When a company hits the mark and starts experiencing rapid growth, keeping a growing workforce on the same page can pose a challenge. In the case of Sidetrade, a fast-growing, international Fintech that revolutionized the Order-to-Cash process, this meant breaking down silos in dispersed offices and departments, and giving every employee a sense of identity and belonging—not to mention the critical updates they need.

Rapid Growth Means New Employees, New Teams, and New Objectives.

The Challenges: Creating a Sense of Common Identity & Belonging while Keeping Employees Informed

Sidetrade is a fast-growing international SaaS company with teams now located in seven cities around the world. With new employees joining the organization in locations across the globe, it was crucial for them to have a strong internal communication tool, to bring employees together and make information more accessible, and to break down any potential silos that might form. And for that communication tool, they chose Poppulo, with its easy-to-use newsletter and poll/survey features. The main challenges they had to address included:

• Define meaning of the Sidetrade direction for creating a sense of belonging.
• Getting employees engaged & excited across the organization.
• Connecting the Sidetrade community, impacting company growth.

A Common Communication Hub Made All the Difference.

The Solutions: Using the Newsletter, Live Event, & “Must-Read” Features of the Poppulo Platform.

In order to bring the entire organization onto a common, branded platform, Sidetrade partnered with Poppulo, utilizing a number of features designed to keep all employees informed and engaged with company life, while also creating a sense of belonging. Steps included:

• Working with Poppulo to create a road map for success (messages on all stages of the employee lifecycle, culture, core values).
• Giving kudos and saying thanks (recognition, rewards) to employees on a recurring basis with the Poppulo Praises feature.
• Giving the power of informed, engaged, and influential employees via the platform’s branded newsletter engine, and “must-read” news capabilities.
• Planning leadership sessions (town halls, firesides, etc.) with Poppulo’s Live broadcast and video features.

The Results? Silos Were Broken, and Employees Were Engaged.

By using Poppulo to create targeted channels designed to extend across offices and departments, and by encouraging sharing and communication on a company-wide basis, Sidetrade was able to avoid the negative effects of silos and boost employee engagement across the board, while fostering a common group identity in the process.

Specific Results:

• 82% of employees subscribed to the newsletter.
• 84% were engaged users by the last 3 months of 2021.
• Employee Engagement in 2021: 10K likes, 2K comments, 1.5K pieces of content created, 3K shares

If you’d like to learn more about the power of strong internal communication for helping rapidly growing businesses, feel free to download our white paper. And if you’d like to learn more about how Poppulo can take your company’s employee communication to the next level, just sign up for a free, personalized demo. We’ve already helped industry leaders around the globe, including brands like Coca-Cola CCEP, Primark, and L’Occitane en Provence, and we’d love to discuss ways we can help your business, too.