Kudos - July 1997 - Surf's Up!

CUPERTINO, CA -- Chris Espinosa started out making $3.00 an hour testing computer language in Steve Jobs' garage. "A princely sum for a 15-year-old in the 70s," says Espinosa.

After Apple Computer incorporated, he became the company's eighth employee. Little did he know that 20 years later he'd sit down at the now-legendary Macintosh to surf the funky waves of cyberspace, and choose his service award.

"Being the eighth employee, I tend to be the 'beta-tester' for the service award program because I'm the first one to receive an award at each new year level," Espinosa says. "For the new service award program to come up in its full glory on our internal Web site was really appreciated."

GOING PAPERLESS For years, Apple has been trying to create a paperless environment. So mailing printed service award brochures to employees went against the grain. And a printed brochure didn't allow Apple the flexibility to rapidly change its program as the company or award choices changed. But there wasn't any good alternative ... until the Web came along.

In the spring of 1996, Apple launched its internal internet called AppleWeb and jumped on the technology by completing its Open Enrollment for Flex Benefits electronically. The change from paper forms was an immediate success. Web enrollment simplified the complicated process of allowing employees to choose their health plans, life insurance, and other benefits. Flushed with the success of Flex Benefits Enrollment on the Web, Apple clearly saw an excellent alternative to the paper service awards brochure.

"We formed a partnership with O.C. Tanner," says Sue Cunningham, Apple's Manager of Health & Welfare Programs. "O.C. Tanner held several focus groups with Apple employees to get an understanding of our corporate culture, which might best be described as fun and loose."

"Our paper brochure not only let our employees see their award choices, it reflected the Apple culture and Apple's history," says Amber Miller, Senior Employee Communications Specialist at Apple. "We wanted the Web brochure to do the same."

After completing its research, the Apple/Tanner team came up with a theme that reflected the climate at Apple today -- "Transformations" -- and went to work designing the brochure. Miller dug around in Apple's archives for historical pictures to represent Apple's history on the Web site.

"The service awards site really reflects the Apple 'look' " says Espinosa. "It feels like part of our whole communications package."

Bigger Pictures, Funkier Descriptions, QuickTime® The new medium proved a great boon to designers. No longer limited to paper space, electronic images could be as large as needed to communicate award value and features. Products are grouped by year, but a simple mouse click on any item opens a full-screen view and a lively written description. Apple?s Miller personally customized the product descriptions. ?Why describe crystal as a ?Waterford Four Seasons Vase? when you can tell people it weighs more than ten pounds and sparkles like crazy?!?

An exciting feature is the use of Apple QuickTime® technology.

By dragging the cursor across a product photo on their screen, viewers can turn it to see the top, bottom and sides in three dimensions.

A BIG HIT The new Web brochure was an immediate success. "We have some 1,500 HR documents on AppleWeb, and the Service Award site is one of the most often visited," Miller notes. "It's fun for employees to look at the award choices and dream about what they will choose when they reach their next milestone. That wasn't possible when only those eligible for an award received a paper brochure."

At Apple's Silicon Valley headquarters, nearly all employees have a computer on the desk, so Web access is easy. Apple's manufacturing employees log on at kiosks. Some employees surf AppleWeb from home. In essence, every Apple employee has access. "Apple is unique and, of course, very computer- literate. And we had the computer networks already in place," says Cunningham.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Time to consider a Web brochure? Apple found these benefits:

Fast it's easy to keep the program current. Make product changes on the fly without reprinting a brochure.
Convenient people can order 24 hours a day from anywhere in the world.
Fun People like to explore the site. It's colorful and interactive.
Visible Everybody looks at the site, not just those with an anniversary near.
Digital A step toward a paperless environment for companies with the technology in place.

ONLINE ORDERING Apple recently added online ordering capability to the Web site. With a click of the mouse, employees place orders electronically. Order confirmations are returned via e-mail. "It took me a matter of minutes to look through the brochure and place my order," says Espinosa. "The pictures were beautiful, the scans really well done. It was easy to navigate and the ordering process was a snap."

From among the award choices, 20-year award recipient Espinosa selected an Apple logo lapel pin.

"I wanted to see how they would fit 20 diamonds onto that pin. It really has a 'wow' factor," he says. "I like wearing it, not because it inflates my ego or sense of accomplishment, but because it communi- cates the message to others that there is something that makes it worth it to stay here. I also wear it to trade shows and conventions. It's just a little more elegant than a t-shirt, which is what most people wear to show their association with a company."

Bill Auer, a 15-year veteran of Apple's Product Operations team, chose a telescope through the Web. "I started using internal e-mail about 13 years ago," Auer says. "It seemed like a logical progression to log on and get my service award. I've got the telescope set up and have looked at Jupiter. It's fabulous."

BEST AND BRIGHTEST Apple places a high value on long-term employment. "We need both the historical perspective and the knowledge of our long-term employees," says Cunningham. "Our service recognition program gives us one more way of reminding our employees that Apple is a unique place a great place where you can work surrounded by the best and the brightest. We have the most loyal customers in the world, and loyal employees are one reason why." From Apple's HR perspective, the Web brochure is a success. Says Cunningham, "Finding and keeping capable people that's our job. The fact that this is one of the most visited sites tells me people are thinking about upcoming anniversaries and seeing the message, 'we value you' that's recognition at its best."

Innovation and recognition ... great partners at Apple. Kudos to Apple for catching a wave with the first "surfable" service award brochure on the World Wide Web.