Jean Mukunzi
The road to success in Africa is paved with many obstacles, but it is
a road that Heineken has been willing to travel for 80 years. Africa is
a mystic continent, with its own identity and its own approach to
doing business.
BRIDGING THE DISTANCE BETWEEN AFRICA AND AMSTERDAM
For years, that was the approach taken by
Heineken's African operating companies,
but now a more competitive and challenging
international environment is calling for
change. Africa 2010 is Heineken's answer to
these challenges. It is a set of objectives for
the continent which, when achieved, will
bring to an end the situation where African
breweries operate in their own environment,
disconnected from the rest of Heineken.
To reach these goals, Heineken had to get
the African managers on board, which is why
the company developed the Strategic Action
Management Process, or STAMP.
'STAMP wasa way of bringing Heineken's
strategy to the company's managers in
Africa,' says Jean Mukunzi, a project manager
who develops training systems for Africa.
There were several elements to the STAMP
project: it created transparency by explain
ing to the managements of the African
operating companies precisely what
Heineken expected from them by 2010, it
identified and helped develop the abilities
needed to reach these goals, it motivated
the managers to pursue success in a difficult
environment and it fostered a sense of cor
porate identity.
STAMP I, launched in 1999, focused on
individual executives. Groups of 15 managers
at a time were invited to spend time in
Amsterdam, building relationships and learn
ing about the skills required for Heineken
International's approach to doing business.
STAMP II was launched in 2002. Instead of
focusing on individuals, it placed the empha
sis on teamwork, bringing together people
working on similar projects in different
breweries to improve their project manage
ment skills. For many managers, these trips
were a memorable experience. Travelling to
Amsterdam was a first for many of them, but
even more inspiring was the opportunity to
meet fellow executives, also in many cases
for the first time, and exchange ideas on how
best to achieve the objectives set by Africa
2010.
'When you can discuss problems with
someone doing the same job, it can help you
find ways to solve your own issues,' says Jean
Mukunzi, who took part in STAMP I as a human
resources manager for Rwanda. 'Meeting
colleagues created a sense of belonging,
and that is one of the big successes of STAMP.'
Performance of Heineken world-wide
Average time spent on employee training: 2.8 days/employee
Costs of training and education: €814/employee
