The Hydro Group

Global Marketing Communication

The aluminum and energy group Hydro has been in constant change for almost 117 years. In 2017, the company reached a new milestone when Hydro acquired SAPA, where Kallevig worked as communications manager.

Overnight, Hydro went from being a Norwegian-run company focusing mainly on Northern European markets to becoming an industrial company with a presence in 40 countries. This had a major impact on the way Hydro worked with marketing.

"Until 2017, Hydro was primarily an upstream raw material producer in a market driven by commodity prices. The company admittedly had a large aluminum division that sold specialty products in the market, but customers were few and contracts long, so the need for marketing communication was small. That changed with the acquisition of SAPA," explains Kallevig, who joined the transition into a new role in Hydro.

Suddenly, Hydro entered new markets where customers were numerous, contracts short and the need for communication and marketing completely different. This was the start for Kallevig and Hydro's new brand strategy, From commodity to global brand.

The value of branding

"We quickly saw that brand building would add value to the company. The challenge was to show how valuable this is for the company, which I believe is a fundamental problem in Norwegian business and industry today," says Kallevig.

It was therefore important for Kallevig to thoroughly familiarise himself with business challenges, markets and corporate strategies.

She connected with the management team and the commercial environment and built herself a solid platform and understanding before beginning the long run of internal anchoring.

"It is crucial to create an internal understanding of the value of marketing communications. What is it, why is it important and how can we use it to meet business challenges? Not least, it is important to convey that yes, branding requires time and money, but it is an investment that provides returns in the long run. These are key messages that I am still working on continuously, towards the management team and internally in general.

Have data you can refer to

Nevertheless, a marketing manager with this strategy may fall short. Kallevig's advice is therefore to always have concrete data to refer to.

"Communication, branding and reputation are about feelings and perceptions, and are not science in the same way as, for example, C02 emissions. It's not always about facts and figures, but about creating a perception in people's heads," she explains, and admits:

"It's not always easy, for example in an industrial group, to get this message through. But a good strategy would be to constantly share insights on the market, the reputation of the company and industry, what other companies are doing, and so on. Both towards the management team, and towards the rest of the organization. They deserve you to share your insights and knowledge with them so they can make good decisions about how we can use the corporate reputation as a way to strengthen the company.

She emphasises the value of regular meetings with Group management, where continuous updates on brand strategy, competitor analyses, reports and analyses of market activities can be provided.

"It's simply about educating management in marketing communication, how it works and why we need to continue to invest in this," says Kallevig.

Impact on the world market

Among many marketing and communication projects she would like to talk about, there are two impactful activities in particular that Kallevig wants to highlight. First, we turn the clock back to 2019.

"It almost sounds strange, but four years ago the environment, resources, circular operations and renewable energy were not very relevant topics for most of our customers. Hydro, on the other hand, had been working for many years to reduce emissions in our production and had products that stood out from a sustainability standpoint. We thought it might be a good idea to create a brand strategy and visual identities for these, so that we could easily create understanding and demand for products with environmental quality such as USP.

Four years later, this branding has helped shape the demand for recycled aluminum and aluminum produced with hydropower. There are now several competitors copying Hydro's product branding, and it can be said that an industry standard has been set based on these products.

Created a stronger employer brand

"There are certainly more explanatory variables out there. But we find that this strategic branding, which took place in close cooperation with many different departments in the company, has been central in shaping the market and today's demand for more climate-friendly aluminum products. And I hope that it has been solid proof to all of Hydro that branding is worth its weight in gold," Kallevig explains.

"Because it is of course important to us that we are paid more for these products as well, because they also cost more to produce and have a unique value.

The other activity Kallevig will highlight is an ongoing employer branding project. It is a well-known fact that there is a fierce battle for engineers and technically educated candidates, so the HR and communications departments in Hydro have joined forces to strengthen the company's brand as an attractive employer.

"While HR contributed expertise about the target groups, we came in with storytelling, targeted marketing and an inbound strategy for the candidates we wanted. The results in the pilot we have run have been formidable and show the magic that can occur when departments work together, and marketing communications are used correctly. Positions that had been vacant for a year and a half were filled in a short period of time," says Kallevig.

Lift your gaze and stand steady

In Hydro, brand and marketing are part of the communications department. Kallevig is joined by a team of seven employees with different areas of responsibility, and with different backgrounds and experiences. Some have long experience and insight to share, while others are almost newly graduated, but in return bring fresh eyes and new thoughts that challenge established practices.

“That mix is incredibly valuable to us. It gives us both expertise and fresh blood. But it is just as important to give each other trust, freedom and patience. Much of what we do is about creativity, and creativity cannot always be given hard deadlines.

She emphasizes that it is important for her not only to do management and administration, but to work closely with her team on projects and creative processes.