It was the kind of relationship where we really got underneath the organisation.

We looked at what the business stood for, where it wanted to go, how its different brands connected and how it needed to communicate with employees, customers and other audiences.

When the organisation was later acquired and merged with another business, a lot of that earlier work became incredibly useful. The brand strategy had already created greater clarity around the organisation.

It helped define:

• What the business stood for
• The value it brought
• How its brands and services fitted together
• What made it different
• How it wanted to communicate
• The direction it was moving in

That gave the teams a much stronger foundation when they began looking at how the two organisations could align.

But it also made me think about the role brand should play much earlier in the acquisition process.
Brand is not something to consider at the end

Brand can sometimes be treated as the visible part of a merger. Which name do we use?Which logo stays? Do we need a new visual identity? Or they just merge the logos together!

When should we update the website? What should the launch look like? These are all important questions, but they are not the first questions. Before deciding what the new organisation should look like, there needs to be clarity around what it is becoming.

The bigger questions are:

• What are we bringing together?
• What is valuable within each organisation?
• What do customers already recognise and trust?
• What are employees proud of?
• What should remain?
• What needs to change?
• What do we want the combined organisation to become known for?
• What story will connect the two businesses?

A new logo cannot answer those questions.

But a clear brand strategy can help the leadership team work through them.
Employees need to understand the direction too

When significant change is happening, it is not enough for the leadership team to understand the direction. Employees need to understand it too.

The leadership team may have spent months discussing the acquisition, reviewing information and making decisions. They understand why it is happening and what the future organisation could become. Employees have not been on that same journey and they may only see the announcement.

They may hear that the organisation has been acquired or is merging with another business, but still be left wondering, What is changing? Why is it changing? What are we working towards?

More importantly they will worry – Will my role change and where do I fit within the new organisation?

Without clear communication, people naturally fill in the gaps themselves and that is where rumours, uncertainty and mixed messages begin.

It can also create a real gap between the direction agreed in the boardroom and the experience employees have across the organisation.

Internal communication cannot be an afterthought

A merger or acquisition is not only an external communications exercise. It is not simply about preparing the press release, updating the website and announcing the new structure.

The internal story matters just as much and employees need a clear and honest explanation of what is happening, even when all the answers are not yet available.

They need to understand the vision behind the change and how the organisation plans to move forward with opportunities to ask questions, raise concerns and contribute.

This does not mean every decision can be made by committee, but involving people and listening to their experiences can uncover things leadership teams may not otherwise see.

It can highlight:

• Important cultural differences
• Valuable ways of working
• Areas of employee concern
• Strengths within each organisation
• Gaps between the intended brand and the employee experience
• Risks that could affect the transition

A clear internal communications approach helps people understand the change and a good engagement process helps them feel part of it.

Protecting what is already valuable

One of the biggest risks during a merger is losing the value that already exists within the organisations involved.

There may be a desire to move quickly and create something new and sometimes that is absolutely the right decision. But before replacing names, identities or messages, it is important to understand the equity within each existing brand. What do customers trust? What reputation has been built? What relationships matter?What do employees feel connected to? And what would be lost if everything changed overnight?

Protecting brand equity does’t mean refusing to move forward it just means spending a little time identifying the strongest parts of each organisation and deciding how they can support the future.

That may result in a completely new brand or it may mean retaining one of the existing brands. It could lead to a refreshed identity, an endorsed brand structure or a gradual transition. The answer will be different for every organisation.

The important thing is that the decision is based on evidence and a clear future direction, rather than personal preference or which organisation has the strongest voice in the room.
The brand needs to connect the inside and outside

During a merger or acquisition, there can be a temptation to separate the external brand from the internal change programme.

But the two are closely connected.

The promise being made to customers needs to match what employees are being asked to deliver.The values shared externally need to reflect how decisions are made internally.

The future vision needs to make sense to the people responsible for bringing it to life. If customers are told the merger will create a simpler, more joined-up service, employees need the systems, information and support to provide that experience.

If the new organisation says people are at the heart of the business, employees need to feel informed and involved. If the brand talks about innovation and progress, the internal culture needs to allow new thinking and change.

Otherwise, the story may sound good, but it will not feel believable.

Brand can create a roadmap for the change

This is where I believe brand strategy has a much bigger role to play as it can help an organisation create clarity around:

• The future vision
• The positioning of the combined organisation
• The value it offers
• The audiences it needs to communicate with
• The culture it wants to create
• The messages leaders need to communicate
• The things that need to change internally
• The brand architecture and identity required to support the future

This creates a much clearer roadmap and helps leadership teams understand what needs to happen, in what order and why.

The visual identity and communications then become part of a wider piece of work, rather than isolated outputs.

What would I do earlier?

Looking back at the experience, there were some things that could have happened much earlier.

I would have brought brand, culture and communications into the conversation closer to the beginning.

I would have started by understanding the existing equity, strengths and culture within both organisations.

Over a number of years, I worked closely with a large organisation across brand strategy, positioning, EVP, rebrands, communications, design and events. I would have worked with the leadership team to create one clear story about the direction and why it mattered.

I would have involved employees earlier, listening to their concerns and helping them understand what the change meant.

I would have connected the internal and external communications plans.

And only then would I have looked at what needed to change across the brand and visual identity.

Because the logo is not the strategy. It is one expression of it.

This is an area I am going to be talking about much more.

How brand, culture and communication can help organisations grow, change and bring their people with them.