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Anne-Marie de Couvreur from Groupe AMI shares how and why she and her two partners chose to be completely transparent with their employees in this interview.
As part of the summer break, the impact.info team invites you to (re)listen to one of our episodes published this year.Anne-Marie de Couvreur , the leader of the new Groupe AMI.
Enjoy listening!
Juliette Boulegon
impact.info journalist
Published on 22 August 2024
Transcript Audio in Français — text automatically translated· AI-generated transcript
0:00 Hello, this is Juliette, and welcome to the podcast for those who want to make 0:10 a difference within their company. 0:12 The more transparent leaders are with their employees, the more engaged those employees become. 0:17 If you agree with this statement, you will surely agree with Anne-Marie 0:22 De Couvreur, our guest today. 0:24 Anne-Marie co-founded MediaMeeting 20 years ago, and her long entrepreneurial experience 0:31 allows her to assert today that to manage companies well, one must be 0:36 as transparent as possible with employees. 0:38 I am Anne-Marie De Couvreur, I am 56 years old, I was born in Tulle in Corrèze, and I am 0:46 the president of the Audio-Médias Impact group, which is the leading audio media group 0:50 with an impact in France. 0:52 My job, which is also my passion, is radio. 0:56 In 2004, with Frédéric Courtine and Jean-Louis Simonnet, my friends and partners, we had 1:02 our first child, we created a start-up called MediaMeeting, which is 1:06 now the leader in corporate radio in France. 1:10 And then in 2014, we adopted our second child, we bought FP 1:16 Audio, which is called A2PRL, the leading audio press agency in France, and then 1:21 in 2021, we had our third child, Airzène Radio, which is the first national 1:26 100% positive radio station. 1:28 So Anne-Marie, I have the impression that within the AMI group, we advocate this importance 1:34 of transparency, but how do we do it? Can you give us some examples? 1:38 Transparency, Juliette, is the foundation of the company, it is the foundation of management. 1:43 So indeed, we advocate transparency, but we do more than advocate it, we implement it 1:47 daily. 1:48 So we have a few tools. 1:50 First, we work orally in our company, for a pretty simple reason. 1:54 When we write on paper, we write about 37 words per minute. 1:58 When we type on a keyboard, we are at 80 words per minute. 2:01 And when we verbalize, as we are doing now, we are at 200 words per minute. 2:06 First, we create podcasts. 2:07 So we have our Quad 9, which is our monthly podcast, released on the 9th of each month. 2:13 It's a 5-8 minute format, which is a nice, engaging format. 2:17 We share news, employee profiles, humor, testimonials. 2:22 Then, two or three times a year, we do a live show for direct dialogue. 2:27 It's called Next Year. 2:29 And there, we really talk about the company's news, strategy, perspectives, 2:34 difficulties. 2:35 And all employees can ask any questions live, and the leaders 2:40 commit to answering them directly in the show. 2:44 And then, we have something that our CSE created, which I really like, called 2:48 Radio Amigo. 2:49 It's a temporary event web radio for parties. 2:52 It's two or three times a year when the news requires it, and it's really very 2:57 pleasant. These are festive moments for the company. 3:00 And we have, of course, physical, social, and managerial dialogue, like all 3:05 companies do. 3:06 Anne-Marie, with all these tools, I imagine there are still levels of information 3:10 to communicate. 3:12 I believe we can say the same thing to all these employees with complete transparency 3:17 and even that we must say things with complete transparency. 3:20 But we need to choose the right medium, the right time, and the right way to say the 3:25 things. Let's take a compelling example, Juliette, of the financial results for the month. 3:30 Well, for the executive management, we present them with 50 figures, an action plan, 3:36 a mobilization plan, analysis, things that will allow them to create 3:41 action plans and get moving, them and their teams. 3:45 And on the other hand, we give the same financial results to the employees, but in 3:51 five figures, explained to limit misunderstandings and integrated into a program 3:57 that will be an attractive program, with music, portraits, a bit of humor. 4:02 Simply, we present it with the right medium, at the right time, and in the right way. 4:08 And Anne-Marie, how do we maintain this trust? 4:11 Well, quite simply, Juliette, by working on three axes. 4:15 The content, the form, and interactivity. 4:18 On the content, we really need to work on being transparent, sincere, and pedagogical. 4:25 It's very important to explain things simply so that people can 4:29 understand. And that requires prior preparation. 4:32 On the form, authenticity is key. 4:35 And oral communication is great for that. 4:36 It's a living medium, it's a medium where you can feel the breath, you can feel the 4:40 life. 4:42 And so, when you work well on your form, you can be authentic and moving. 4:47 And that's really great with employees. 4:49 And then, interactivity is also really important. 4:52 I'll let you in on a secret, Juliette, too many companies still do not accept 4:57 direct interactivity with their employees. 5:00 I'll give you an example. 5:01 We have a lot of them at MediaMeeting, but I had to choose Carglass Live, for 5:05 example, which is the interactive show with all the employees of Carglass, between 5:10 the general management and the employees. 5:12 We share information, we share news. 5:15 All questions are addressed. 5:17 Here, we are engaged in a true exercise of direct dialogue, in the noblest sense of the term. 5:23 With all that, are there still examples where it didn't work with certain employees? 5:27 So, let me take the case of our company, Groupe AMI. 5:29 I can't say it didn't work. 5:32 Transparency, honestly, always works. 5:35 However, I will confide in you, Juliette, that we sometimes had to suspend transparency for strategic reasons. 5:38 In 2022, the group was conducting extremely complex financial and legal operations. The level of unknown parameters is very high. 5:42 We have a lot of uncertainties, a lot of complexities to manage at the same time. It's not possible to share so many uncertainties and complexities with teams without unduly worrying them. 5:44 Of course, immediately, the volume of rumors in circulation rises. 5:49 They worry us. We are all three concerned, but we still can't say things because they are not sufficiently advanced. And this lasts for us all year 2022, until the moment when on February 1, 2023, we close our legal and financial operations. 5:53 It's closing day. 5:57 The tension starts to ease among the founding partners. 6:02 I spend the following days truly preparing internal communication. 6:07 And a week later, we are in a Next Year meeting with all the employees of the group, where we tell them about the entire past year. 6:11 And we had a Next Year meeting that lasted over 2.5 hours, where we addressed dozens of questions. 6:14 So, transparency always works. 6:17 There are just moments when it needs to be delayed a bit, and then come back to it as quickly as possible. 6:23 And can you assure me that practicing transparency has a positive impact on a company? 6:28 Assure is an important word, Juliette, but I can at least give you some indications that we have collected, that we collect at Media Meeting. 6:29 We developed the first private podcast platform in France. 6:32 It's called Bubblecast and it's packed with audience trackers. 6:37 And in Bubblecast, we observe the behaviors of our employee listeners. 6:41 We will look at the grouping of Mousquetaires with Thierry Cotillard, the president of Mousquetaires, who created his strategic news podcast. 6:44 It's on Sunday evenings at 7 PM. 6:49 The members are at home in peace. 6:51 And there, we truly have considerable audience scores, between... 6:54 6:58 6:59 7:05 7:06 7:10 7:13 7:17 7:21 7:26 7:29 7:33 7:36 7:38 7:43 90 to 100% audience on Sunday nights for Thierry Cotillard's podcast on his 7:48 strategic news. 7:50 Why? Because what he says is important, even essential. 7:54 And he says it with his guts, with his convictions, with his humanity and with 7:59 the energy that drives great successes. 8:02 Another example, well, Carglass Radio, Carglass Radio, which is the daytime radio for 8:07 employees that supports the technical teams of Carglass in all 8:11 the workshops across France. 8:13 And there, we have a 90% audience, truly, with listening durations 8:19 per listener of over six hours a day. 8:21 And it has been going on for years and Carglass Radio is an immense success. 8:26 So, I can assure you, Juliette, that when the program is transparent, 8:31 well-produced, attractive, and touches people in the right way, it is very 8:37 likely a success in terms of audience. 8:39 And that is very different in terms of work. 8:41 Anne-Marie, I want to undertake differently. 8:44 Do you have any advice for me? 8:47 With your teams, with your clients, adopt a very oral communication style. 8:51 Be transparent with your teams, with your clients. 8:55 People want us to simply tell them the truth. 8:58 And never forget the discipline of preparing each of your interventions. 9:02 Like in radio, in management and in sales, a successful intervention is one that has been 9:07 thoroughly prepared so that we can say powerful things with a minimum of words and that we can 9:11 truly seek the most real impact possible. 9:15 And with all that, Juliette, I believe you will create a truly beautiful project with 9:19 impact. 9:23 When I was 16, I was already dreaming of radio. 9:25 You know, I used to listen to programs at night in my bed in Corrèze with a 9:28 little radio hidden under my pillow. 9:34 And I was very lucky. 9:37 I had the chance to win a game on RMC, a cruise in the Arctic. 9:38 I spent 12 days on the incredible Mermoz. 9:42 It truly marked my life. 9:46 I believe that, without telling me, radio was already waiting for me. 9:49 In any case, I now know that I was waiting for it. 9:53 Well, thanks to Anne-Marie, who is, I remind you, the leader of the Groupe AMI. And this meeting, you can find it in our HR section, which 9:57 brings together all the episodes focusing on concrete solutions for more engaged teams. 10:01 10:06 10:09 Embed this interview on your site
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