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OpenPages is a provider of Governance, Risk and Compliance Management (GRCM) products. The compliance space has been thrust into the limelight since the collapse of Enron and WorldCom with numerous reports issued and pieces of legislation passed. Within the media, many commentators (some of dubious credentials) quickly jumped on the bandwagon, especially with Sarbanes-Oxley, and thus damaged the credibility of the entire market. Harvard started working with OpenPages, a new comer to the European marketplace, in March 2005. There was a clear requirement to set the company apart from its competitors by positioning it as a GRCM solution company first and foremost, and a Sarbanes-Oxley company second. This approach allowed us to target the whole of OpenPages’ potential customer base from the outset of the campaign and lessen the risk of becoming negatively associated with the ‘SOX backlash’.
Harvard immediately identified and built upon the key issues that OpenPages was happy to be associated with and could genuinely provide thought-provoking insight on. OpenPages’ standard of media comment and analysis quickly set it apart from its competitors. In tandem with this comment activity, Harvard took advantage of OpenPages’ burgeoning customer base through newsflow. Influential industry analysts were also targeted.
As momentum grew, tier one media contacts were targeted with opinion pieces surrounding the issue of strategic compliance and the importance of not simply adopting a ‘tick box’ approach. By taking such an advisory and educational stance, OpenPages was able to elevate itself above the noise generated by competitors. More recently, Harvard has worked directly with OpenPages’ CEO to deliver an executive media and analyst tour.
By adopting a considered approach to the campaign and resisting the ‘quick fix’ opportunity of jumping on the media bandwagon, Harvard has set OpenPages apart from its competitors. Having recently launched an Operational Risk product, it was been welcomed by a group of media and analysts who little under a year ago would have been sceptical about an organisation that may have been perceived as ambulance chasing. By establishing a heritage, building a profile and educating the media that there are strategic concerns around compliance, OpenPages’ has built up a foundation from which it is enjoying credibility and visibility.
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