The Techniekroute Brand Identity
Defining brand success together in a multistakeholder project
Type of work: Brand Design - Co-design, facilitation, and strategy work
In the Netherlands, the 6 sectors in the technology industry are collaborating to attract new employees from outside the industry to help address the worker shortage. These 6 sectors are represented by 13 stakeholder organisations, such as unions, learning and development organisations, and employee representatives. They envisioned a name and brand that inspire people who might be interested in working in construction, energy, metal, metal technology, mobility or installation technologies.
Community Spirit
The key to success in a multi-stakeholder project is making sure that everyone representing their organisation is heard and feels listened to. We were designing in a political landscape of policymakers and communications advisors. During several co-design sessions with policymakers, we defined the design criteria for success to ensure the needs of the 6 sectors were met.
This, in turn, made coming up with the name “Techniekroute” a less political process. Together with the 13 communication advisors, we created the brand compass before defining Techniekroute's brand identity.
Intelligent Adaptation
Working remotely with 13 different professionals can be an organisational puzzle. To ensure everyone had the same opportunity to share their thoughts, we shared ideas and concepts throughout the branding process via online co-design sessions, with feedback collected through visual Typeform questionnaires. This helped us discover what worked early on, and we were able to explain why we adopted certain feedback and why we kindly ignored other feedback.
Longterm Stewardship
By creating ownership from the start of the process among policymakers and communication advisors, and by explaining our design choices, we created a brand that is clear, friendly, and approachable. We hosted inspirational sessions for people who will work with the identity to make sure they embrace the Techniekroute style.
How did nature inspire us during the project?
Even when a project does not directly relate to nature, we still take inspiration from it, such as with the Techniekroute branding project. Spending time in nature helps us create focus, declutter our minds and see what really matters. As creatives, our heads are always full of ideas. Going on design walks in nature allows us to slow down and de-stress, which helps us strategise our ideas more clearly and create relevant associations between our ideas.
Is your organisation or project in need of a new brand identity?