Customer Success Story

British American Tobacco

Achieved Results

Provides bite-sized learning content for 13,000 leaders.

Caters to a multicultural audience in seven languages.

Enables a self-directed learning culture with a range of learning tools, including audio.

Ongoing, professional support in promoting learning content internally.

Supports a culture of curiosity and innovation by exposing people to new ideas and perspectives.

We aim to inspire people to explore and experiment. getAbstract summaries and Journal articles support us in this mission by exposing people to novel ideas, new ways of thinking and different ways of working.

Anna Poluektov L&D Partnerships & Innovation Manager, British American Tobacco

About British American Tobacco

British American Tobacco plc (BAT) is a leading multinational consumer goods company with more than 50,000 employees worldwide. Although the foundation of BAT’s success is in cigarettes, the company has made it its mission to reduce the health impact of the business by offering less risky products to people who otherwise continue to smoke.

Business challenge

BAT is radically redefining its orientation as a business by integrating both existing and new capabilities. This shift is propelled by digital transformation, technology advancements and a focus on innovation. However, it is ultimately the individuals at BAT who will be responsible for executing this transformation. BAT aspires to build an “Empowered Organization” with a learning culture where functional capability building is complemented by self-directed learning.

Supporting this cultural shift at BAT is Anna Poluektov, the company’s L&D Partnerships and Innovation Manager. As BAT transitions from mandatory training to self-directed learning, Anna faces the challenge of cultivating a change in mindset. She states, "We seek to redefine learning as an ongoing daily activity that takes many shapes and forms – one is in the digital space through our digital partners." In her learning initiatives, Anna strives to impart the necessary mindset and provide tools for both leaders and employees to thrive within BAT's innovation-focused ecosystem.

How getAbstract helped

BAT’s Learning Experience Platform (LXP), Degreed, caters to 13,000 leaders worldwide – a highly diverse target group in terms of cultural background, age and interests. Anna appreciates the wide range of business-relevant topics covered by getAbstract, setting it apart from other providers she has worked with: “getAbstract’s content is culturally sensitive and addresses a multicultural audience. The fact that summaries are offered in different languages comes in handy for an international company like ours.” In the time Anna has worked with getAbstract, the range of content offerings has continuously expanded. Anna highlights two recent additions, noting that “audio summaries and the Journal have gained immense popularity.”

Anna has received consistent support from getAbstract's Customer Success Manager (CSM) in promoting learning content internally. For example, she could count on her CSM’s expertise in finding relevant titles to add to the company’s flagship playlists where board members share readings that have impacted their leadership journey.

In addition, getAbstract’s CSM recommends weekly topic channels, provides reading calendars and organizes theme weeks to generate interest in getAbstract’s bite-sized learning content. Although BAT’s LXP serves as the main access point for getAbstract content, summaries and Journal articles are also shared on social learning channels and with the Talent Community on the regular monthly Community of Practice sessions. Anna points out, "getAbstract's customer support in helping us promote content internally is exceptionally strong, requiring minimal work and effort on my part."

In the context of promoting self-directed learning, Anna finds getAbstract content to be highly suitable for supporting grassroots learning initiatives. “Summaries make for excellent conversation starters,” Anna explains. Currently, she is looking to utilize getAbstract summaries within Employee Resource Groups, which are being established to encompass diverse interests like parenting or LGBTQ+.

getAbstract summaries, along with their accompanying “Meeting in a Box” discussion guides, also lend themselves well for book clubs, which Anna considers to be “an excellent means to stimulate curiosity and social interaction.” Additionally, Anna emphasizes, "Since summaries can be consumed in just 15 minutes, using them as the foundation for book club discussions reduces the barriers to participation."

Anna understands that for a company whose future success depends on innovation, cultivating an atmosphere of curiosity and outside-the-box thinking is paramount. She emphasizes, "We aim to inspire people to explore and experiment. getAbstract summaries and Journal articles support us in this mission by exposing people to novel ideas, new ways of thinking and different ways of working.”