Global real estate group, Lendlease, revamps its employee office space with Signagelive digital signage [+VIDEO]

Global real estate group, Lendlease, has transformed its employee offices and workspaces across Europe, undergoing a digital makeover with the help of Signagelive-powered digital signage. A gradual process that was first initiated back in 2013, the cloud-based digital signage solution has since grown to include Signagelive Web Triggers for real-time messaging at the touch of a button, and an integrated Signagelive and ClickShare communication and collaboration system. In total, the Signagelive-powered network now manages multiple screens across their buildings, including thirty-three in the Paddington office hub alone.

The effect of this digital transformation has, according to Lendlease Senior Communications Manager for Europe, Amelia Lara Letterman, been to add value to the company’s work environments, and build, in every location, “a true office of the future.”

The I.T challenge

This Signagelive project was first rolled out in response to Lendlease’s need for a more flexible and streamlined solution. Lendlease I.T Digital Workplace Manager for Europe, Andrew Crickett, recalls the original on-premises equipment that was “all server-based” and, consequently, hard to maintain. According to Andrew, it often required investment in additional hardware and software. With Signagelive, the company has, Andrew says, been able to fulfill its mission, which was to “move to a solution that was cloud-based, easy, accessible” and also, that didn’t need “too much additional technology on site with different players and external peripherals”. Ideal for use with the Samsung and LG System-on-Chip displays in place, it has been, Andrew confirms, an “easy platform to implement” across the company’s offices and locations around Europe and the UK.  Designed for scalability, Signagelive has, in effect, provided Lendlease with a future-proof yet cost-effective solution that can grow with the business.  

The communications challenge

However, it wasn’t just the need for a more streamlined and user-friendly solution that prompted the move to Signagelive. As Amelia Lara explains, the company also had an ambitious employee communications strategy to fulfill. This was to “increase engagement, scores and harness a greater sense of value”, and foster a “sense of belonging and ultimately a reason to invest and stay” in the business. With the help of Signagelive’s advanced cloud-based content management system (CMS), Lendlease has been able to carry out three steps to do this. It has, according to Amelia Lara, entailed using Signagelive-powered screens to celebrate the “progress and successes” of Lendlease teams, and highlight customer successes. Finally, with this platform, Lendlease has been able to demonstrate the “interconnectedness” of its business functions, sites and people, and give staff a “big picture” overview of the company strategy. Signagelive has also been able to support more of the high-quality “fast-paced visual” content that has proven to be most effective for the Lendlease workforce.

Signagelive innovation

It was not, simply the advanced functionality of its content management system (CMS) that made Signagelive the right choice for Lendlease. According to Andrew, it was also additional innovations, like Signagelive Web Triggers, which have helped take the company’s employee communications to the next level. With the Web Triggers, he says, the Lendlease team can now use buttons to manually override the scheduled content and trigger “alerts on screens” for “live events”. This has given the communications line-up an immediacy and relevancy that boosts engagement and interest from staff.

Thanks to the integration of Signagelive with ClickShare, Lendlease is also now able to unlock the full potential of its existing ClickShare devices and create an all-in-one collaboration and communications hub. In Lendlease meeting rooms, every ClickShare device is, with the help of Signagelive, able to deliver digital signage, as well as support wireless collaboration. In the words of Andrew, the combined solution ensures that “One piece of kit does it all”.

Lendlease feedback

Since its installation and deployment, the Signagelive digital signage solution has, it appears, made a significant difference in the day-to-day running of Lendlease’s internal communications. Tasked with managing the communications schedule, Lendlease Lead Community Manager, Sara Cubeddu has found the “easy” login process and seamless remote management capability to be practical and convenient: “ I can log in anywhere – so I can just use it from home if I’m stuck at home for whatever reason and, I can still manage my screens and see what they’re broadcasting.“ Another highlight for Sara has been that, to update content across every playlist, she only has to edit the original nested playlist.

Amelia Lara-Ledermann
As Amelia Lara-Ledermann explains, the company was also determined to realise an ambitious communications plan, which was to “increase engagement scores, as well as to harness a greater sense of value, and belonging.”

“This has all, according to Amelia Lara-Ledermann been achieved, with the help of Lendlease’s Signagelive-powered network,

Through the use of our digital signage, we’ve been able to celebrate the achievements of our staff, highlight customer successes and inclusively share the big picture overview of our company strategy. We’ve also been able to support more of the high-quality, fast-paced visual content that has proven to be most effective for the Lendlease workforce.

Amelia Lara adds: “We’re now able to deliver the latest updates, as they happen, but also, more than this, to present them in a world-class way, so they genuinely engage, inform and inspire our staff.” In fact, Amelia continues,
The feedback has been fantastic, with many colleagues commenting that this digital signage solution has helped create an inviting and welcoming office space and communicate information in a useful and interesting way. For many, it has also been a great platform on which to celebrate team member achievements, and get to know colleagues from other departments, as well as different areas of the business.

Moreover, Lendlease has been able to measure the success of the company’s communications strategy: “The feedback loop Signagelive provides has been incredibly insightful, enabling us to ascertain and quantify engagement.”

Andrew Cricket – Digital Workplace Specialist

“With Signagelive, the company has, according to Lendlease I.T Digital Workplace Manager for Europe, Andrew Cricket, been able to fulfill its mission, which was to “move to a solution that was cloud-based, easy-to-use and didn’t require too much additional technology on site with different players and external peripherals”
With the Web Triggers, he says, the Lendlease team can now “use buttons to manually override the scheduled content and trigger alerts on screens for live events”.

The future of the network looks bright, and Andrew suggests, may hold further opportunities: “Signagelive, with its continuous developments, continues to give us everything we need to stay one step ahead of the competition. We’re already looking at new modules and functionality, including new apps for reporting like the Microsoft Power BI app, which would open up a whole new level of capability within the business.”

Sara Cubeddu

Sara Cubeddu says, “From the moment I first started using the platform, I found it quick, easy and convenient to manage. I can log in from home or any other location, and still manage my screens and see what they’re broadcasting.” Another highlight, according to Sara, is the nested playlist feature: “The ability to update content across every playlist, simply by editing the one nested playlist, has been game-changing, saving a significant amount of time and effort.”

Signagelive Business Development Manager, Jon Gilbey, concludes that Signagelive has been particularly effective, because it’s so user-friendly for the people that will ultimately be using the system – that is the internal communications and marketing managers. With Signagelive, management is “quick and easy to deliver” and “often automated”, and, when used with Signagelive Web Triggers enables content to be delivered in “real time at the touch of a button.” Furthermore, with Signagelive’s “dedicated tailored training”, Lendlease new starters have been able to gain an understanding of Signagelive “from the very get go”, while other staff have been able to learn about new “features and functionality”.