OTTO Communications undergoes restructuring

Martin Frommhold, Division Manager of Corporate Communications at OTTO, says: “Even for large brands like OTTO, it is becoming increasingly complex to gain media recognition with messages and stories. To successfully communicate in this environment, you have to act quickly, recognise trends, think in a data-driven manner, and focus on micro-target audiences. This is exactly what our new, future-proof OTTOCOMMS Organisation represents: a strategically experienced comms task force that transforms data into stories in real-time and effectively positions OTTO in the public eye. We also serve as sparring partners, enablers, and consultants, developing channels and continuously rethinking internal communication in line with our corporate culture.” There are currently 25 people working in OTTO’s corporate communication department. The department has recently strengthened its capabilities, especially in data science, media design, social media, and B2B communication.

Next & Now: Sandra Backes and Ingo Bertram take on new leadership roles

A significant part of the departmental reorganisation involves the creation of two new departments, each with its own leadership positions: Sandra Backes leads the Comms.Consulting, Strategy & Channel team, or “Next” for short. Her team are responsible for strategic communication and channel planning, both internally and externally, as well as communication consulting and positioning for managers and departments. Ingo Bertram is responsible for the News, Content & Research team, or “Now” for short. His team handles content production, media relations, social media, and data research. As of now, the spokespersons are Annika Remberg (retail, B2B and marketing), Frank Surholt (sustainability, service and finance), and Eugenia Mönning (on maternity leave).

“With Ingo and Sandra, we have two experienced colleagues from the team stepping into these newly created leadership positions. I’m very excited about this because both of them bring immense expertise and have provided many insights for our communication work. They are also both wonderful individuals with a passion for the team, our talents, and of course, OTTO. It’s just a great fit”, adds Martin Frommhold, who has been leading OTTO’s communications for over six years.

360-degree communication with a focus on data

The OTTOCOMMS team will continue to focus on 360-degree communication, but in all areas, they are concentrating on stronger measurability of communication results: “In line with our restructuring, since the beginning of the year, we have been working with the OKR management method and are introducing a new target system at OTTOCOMMS. Our work is becoming measurable. This helps us to deliver the right story to the right target audience at the right time through the appropriate channel. This is often challenging, as OTTO is continuously evolving from a retailer to a platform with innovative business models. But that’s why we are promoting the use of data and expanding our skillset across all teams”, explains Martin Frommhold, who brought a data specialist into the team in 2020.

fischerAppelt provides support as a sparring partner

For this restructuring, OTTO sought external expertise from fischerAppelt, advisors, the strategy branch of the Hamburg-based communications agency fischerAppelt. The team led by Svenja Daniel and Birand Bingül supported the comprehensive transformation of OTTOCOMMS, providing advice on both content and organisational structure. Martin Frommhold: “We drove much of the reorganisation ourselves and in a participatory manner within the team. However, from the outset, we wanted to avoid being uncritical or professionally blinkered. Therefore, we sought a sparring partner who could consistently provide a neutral but professionally insightful perspective – and that’s precisely what Svenja Daniel and Birand Bingül from fischerAppelt, advisors, did perfectly.”