A longtime leader in digital audio, DTS brings the sound of countless movies to life and plays a role in the performance of most audio brands. Yet, despite its behind-the-scenes prominence, the company was relatively unknown. It needed to gain traction with key audiences, from consumers and equipment manufacturers to music and film producers.
CHALLENGE
The company’s name reflects its origins in the film industry—it was originally called Digital Theater Systems—and it was time to change that mindset by finding the best way to speak directly to end users, so they could better understand the presence and value of DTS technology in their lives.
HOW WE HELPED
Tenet took a two-pronged approach to helping DTS advance its brand. First, our strategists worked with DTS to explore positioning opportunities in new application areas such as car audio, personal computers and other related entertainment businesses. Second, we enabled the company to enhance its visual presence by bringing DTS technology to the forefront—a key element of becoming more consumer-focused.
The “technology inside” approach to visual branding is well established, having been used successfully by DTS competitor Dolby among many others in related industries. Tenet strategists expanded on this by recommending a more personal positioning, using the tagline “Surround Yourself” to emphasize the high-quality experience that DTS provides.
Tenet’s creative team developed a new graphic identity and launch campaign to raise excitement for the brand. We also helped redesign and fine-tune the DTS and DTS-HD logos. The new design and brand architecture made the identity more prominent and easier to use on audio equipment, in software and in expanding digital communications channels. This provided the company with a clear presence in the lives of consumers—a subtle reminder of DTS as part of their entertainment experience.
OUTCOME
Thanks to more effective positioning against its competitors, DTS has been able to maintain the value and price of its technology as well as differentiate itself from arch-rival Dolby Labs. Today, DTS technology is built into hundreds of millions of electronic devices worldwide, unlocking theater-quality audio for consumers everywhere.
Highlighting the real-world value of industry standards
OVERVIEW
The Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA) is an industry-led consortium of consumer electronics, telecommunications, computing and mobile device companies focused on creating seamless interoperability and connectivity for consumers. Looking to drive membership and consumer engagement, the organization brought in Tenet Partners to help.
CHALLENGE
DLNA was having difficulty gaining consumer awareness and visibility. With little articulation of the organization’s vision and value in evidence, an important opportunity to help the industry grow was going largely untapped.
HOW WE HELPED
Given the natural complexities of a member-driven standards group, DLNA’s Board needed help setting a clear course for advancement of the brand and mission. Through a series of facilitated workshops, Tenet unearthed a critical gap in brand positioning, and at the same time established a series of strategic imperatives for brand development including clarification of the DLNA value proposition and helping manufacturers leverage the brand in helping consumers understand the value of interoperability and its impact on the products they buy.
Tenet conducted field work including visits to trade shows and retail stores, along with one-on-one interviews with consumers and industry professionals. We observed pockets of interest in DLNA, but not broad-based enthusiasm among many of the key participants. Explicit support for DLNA was evident in select manufacturers’ communications—LG and Samsung, for example—but by no means all. While other member companies acknowledged support for DLNA, most had little visible presence of the certification in their communications. And the largest challenge was that few people could articulate DLNA’s benefits clearly.
Diving deeper into the challenge, Tenet conducted a global quantitative research study that focused on understanding the issues consumers had expressed during the qualitative interviews. Part of the study tested visual and verbal concepts and assessed the brand equity of the DLNA Certified mark. Building on the resulting insights, Tenet then led a collaborative process to articulate a clear brand strategy, messaging and design approach, and to build consensus with the DLNA membership.
OUTCOME
The program helped DLNA regain momentum as a vehicle for achieving a common objective in delivering a better consumer experience. Key to that success was a deeper level of engagement with all stakeholders to embrace and support the organization and its mission. By June 2015 the organization claimed membership of more than 200 companies, and over 25,000 device models had obtained “DLNA Certified” status.
After BancorpSouth and Cadence Bank – both leading financial institutions serving the southern United States – completed their merger in late 2021, a new corporate brand was needed to unify the company internally and signal the arrival of a new and stronger organization to customers and communities across the region.
CHALLENGE
The challenge for the new Cadence Bank brand was to communicate a value proposition that would capture the experience that made the organization stand out as something different.
The brand also had to unify the organization while retaining the strong equity of both legacy brands in terms of visual identity, service and culture—and provide a springboard for the future.
HOW WE HELPED
Research quickly revealed common strengths across the two legacy organizations that differentiated them: deep expertise, a focus on listening first, personal service and strong relationships with customers, among employees and within communities. Taken together, these attributes helped both organizations provide guidance in the way that’s most meaningful and helpful to their customers.
Tenet saw a warm, personal approach distinct from that of many larger financial services companies: an urge to meet people where they are on their financial journeys, develop and sustain long-term relationships, and provide the flexibility required to meet individual customer needs. It is not uncommon, for example, for customers to be greeted by name when they go to a branch.
This shared culture and the personality attributes that shape it led to a new brand promise: “Ease your day. And your mind.” The concept of ease was central to positioning as well, providing a way to tell a rich and nuanced story that goes beyond “we make banking easy.” At Cadence, ease is as much a mindset as an operating principle. It’s as much about creating convenience as it is about putting customers’ minds at ease.
The visual, sonic and verbal brand identity stands out in the marketplace as something fresh and new while being rooted in the proud history of both companies—showing how two leaders have joined under the new Cadence brand. Together, these elements evoke a strong sense of people and community that complements all aspects of the customer experience. It puts weight and credibility behind the new tagline: “Helping opportunity take shape.”
Notably, Tenet designers found a way to echo the highly recognizable BancorpSouth gumtree logo with a completely new take on the iconic symbol. Since the Cadence name was retained, it was important for BancorpSouth employees and customers to see themselves reflected in the new logo. By evoking the gumtree through color and perfectly balanced shapes working in harmony to complement the name, the logo provides a clear link to the past while moving the brand forward.
The brand rollout was supported by an extensive communications and employee engagement program, including regular communications on a dedicated internal microsite and the company intranet. Tenet and the Cadence team also implemented a “train the trainer” program for Cadence Bank brand ambassadors—selected individuals who went on to immerse thousands of employees in the new brand, focusing attention on the Cadence Bank culture and values, and the part that employees play in the customer experience.
OUTCOME
The resulting brand is a clear reflection of the very best of legacy BancorpSouth and Cadence, coming together to create a new, modern and human-centric financial services organization. According to the client, the brand has generated an overwhelmingly positive response from thousands of employees and customers, and has won awards for the bank.
“One of the aspects we’ve liked most about Tenet Partners’ approach is their ability to effectively balance art and science when developing our new brand. They are exceptionally strong in both areas, which is rare for a branding agency.” – Jackie Hooper, SVP, Chief Marketing Officer, Cadence Bank
When Dow decided to incorporate sustainability into its brand strategy as a key competitive element, it turned to Tenet Partners for help. In a project that grew in scope over time, the Tenet and Dow teams collaborated to develop a robust framework to support what Dow is doing today as well as its ongoing sustainability evolution. The result is a fully-evolved set of brands that bring the framework to life.
CHALLENGE
Dow’s sustainability branding strategy went far deeper than putting a sustainability spin on its existing portfolio. Dow chose to tangibly demonstrate its long-term commitment to environmental sustainability by creating a brand architecture around the idea of “Sustainability Science.”
While a vitally important global initiative, this was not to be an overhaul of the existing Dow architecture and identity. The key challenge was to both fit within and complement the existing Dow enterprise brand; the sustainability brands had to be unmistakably “Dow” while also being distinctive.
HOW WE HELPED
The multifaceted project started with brand architecture. In a highly collaborative engagement, the Tenet strategy team took Dow’s ideas as a starting point and developed the concept of “sustainability pillars” under an overarching Sustainability Science umbrella that encompasses all sustainability activities at Dow. Each pillar is dedicated to a specific area of focus: carbon reduction, bio-based materials, recycled content, circular design, biodegradable materials and resource efficiency.
With Dow being a large, matrixed organization, consensus building was crucial. Working closely with Dow, the Tenet team developed a complete sustainability brand architecture, brand platform, pillar descriptors and brand names, messaging, logos and a visual system along with governance planning and implementation, including employee training.
All work was based on qualitative research as well as an extensive verbal and visual audit of Dow and its competitors, including Dow’s corporate sustainability initiatives and reporting around its 2025 and 2050 sustainability goals.
Using these insights along with the existing Dow brand guidelines, Tenet focused on key strategic, verbal and visual opportunities that would enable Sustainability Science to fit seamlessly into the overarching Dow brand while having a life of its own. The nomenclature, messaging, logos and flexible, scalable visual system are consistent with Dow brand guidelines while referencing sustainability benefits.
By uniquely expressing elements already present in the Dow brand such as color, the new system conveys a nature-inspired feel that separates the sustainability brands from Dow’s corporate identity while dovetailing with it – a system within a system. As a result, Sustainability Science enables Dow to both retain the integrity of its core enterprise brand while opening up new pathways for the future.
OUTCOME
With a strong and distinctive sustainability-focused branding approach that is unmistakably “Dow” while carving out its own distinctive niche, Dow is clearly communicating its commitment to the future both verbally and visually. The company is now introducing its sustainability brand and governance across all business units, communication functions and with partner agencies globally in preparation for a global rollout.
Meeting people where they are, and where they’re going
OVERVIEW
When two credit unions joined forces, the new organization saw a valuable opportunity to enhance its position in the financial services market by creating a bold, customer-focused brand rooted in the legacy companies’ collective ethos of service to individuals and communities.
CHALLENGE
When the State Employees Federal Credit Union (SEFCU) and the Capital Communications Federal Credit Union (CAP COM) merged in 2022, they created the New York capital region’s largest financial institution at more than $8 billion in assets and hundreds of thousands of members.
There was strong synergy between SEFCU and CAP COM: both were mission-driven organizations with similar cultures and strengths. It was clear from the outset, however, that neither of the existing brands would serve the new organization. The names—both legacies of their original scopes—no longer fully described their membership: SEFCU’s members include employees of businesses, students and employees of educational institutions and hundreds of other organizations in addition to the state employees that gave the organization its name. CAP COM had undergone similar growth.
HOW WE HELPED
Tenet’s brand strategy team used internal and external interviews, competitive market research, AI tools to uncover what would become the foundation of the new institution’s brand platform: its shared values and strategic direction.
The team uncovered a strong emphasis on customer success and fair play in keeping with the traditional values of credit unions. These institutions are unique: as organizations created to benefit their members and communities directly rather than serve shareholders, credit unions have different motivations and competitive advantages compared to ordinary banks. For SEFCU and CAP COM, this ethos of putting members’ interests ahead of their own was on display at every level, from service to interest rates.
The organization’s leadership recognized the need to look ahead—especially when it comes to technology—and made this a key part of its business strategy. Younger members in particular are tech-savvy and value the convenience of digital banking, while others prefer the human contact and relationships that come from visiting branches in person.
This combination of mission-driven culture, fairness, giving, future-focused high-touch service and anticipating what’s to come came together in a new brand promise: “Meeting people where they are and where they’re going.” The promise captures the credit union’s value proposition: its dedication to understanding the needs of its members and helping them achieve financial success, its community involvement and an optimistic focus on the future.
These same themes also resonated strongly with the new Broadview name that had been created by Lexicon. Broadview reflects the credit union’s approach and focus—a far-reaching and inclusive view of how it can better serve its employees, members and communities. The visual identity built on that, symbolizing the multiple layers of an individual’s or business’ financial life, with Broadview at the center of it. The visual system balanced humanity with refreshing simplicity and engaging storytelling devices to create a new level of modernity and engagement.
External and employee messaging was developed around the ideas of banking for the future, a dedication to serving people, impact for the good of all, and shared strength. These ideas are reflected in the human-centric visual brand, which makes extensive use of people. They also are at the heart of employee engagement, helping to ensure that the essence of what makes Broadview unique is carried forward.
As a high-profile consumer brand with hundreds of thousands of members watching, execution of the brand rollout was critical. Tenet worked hand-in-hand with the Broadview team and external vendors to ensure that all went smoothly, from branch signage to adaptation of web copy to major public-facing branding opportunities such as the arena that is home to the University of Albany sports teams.
OUTCOME
Thanks to smart business decisions and the foresight to make the most of the merger that created it through strategic brand transformation, Broadview has set the stage for long-term growth and is now positioned to become a major force in the New York capital region financial services market.
Atlanticus fills an important niche in financial services by serving people who have been held back by their credit scores, and who find that most of the solutions they can obtain don’t serve their needs. The company was seeking to grow by introducing the Imagine® Visa® targeted at a new, younger demographic and needed a brand that would stand out and draw attention.
CHALLENGE
Atlanticus needed to appeal to a young, tech-savvy audience by clearly distinguishing the Imagine® Visa® brand from competitors with similar offerings. In a marketplace where it can be very difficult to differentiate based on product features, this was a significant challenge.
The brand also had to complement Atlanticus’ existing offerings while being flexible and adaptable, to enable Atlanticus to offer other Imagine® financial services in the future.
HOW WE HELPED
The client highlighted the importance of Tenet’s ability to get up to speed quickly. “The team’s attention to detail and industry knowledge were valuable to us. We didn’t have to educate them on how the market works and what we do – they already had an appreciation for how our niche worked within the financial services space.”
Tenet’s research uncovered opportunities to set Imagine® apart by expressing forward-looking optimism and empowerment, with a strong, youthful identity that connects with the life journeys of those looking to make a fresh start and build for the future.
Crucially, the team recognized that the brand must rely heavily on personality and visuals. While Atlanticus had important advantages including a strong technology platform, an extended financial services ecosystem and the ability to encourage credit-building behavior through incentives, these were not enough on their own.
The brand personality and positioning were based on attributes rooted in humanity and the aspirations of Imagine® cardholders: responsible, caring, confident and fresh. Imagine® is positioned as an empowering stepping stone to financial wellness that is more than access to affordable credit.
The visual expression employs a wide, panoramic viewpoint that suggests a connection to the customer’s whole life, using kaleidoscopic shapes, a full color spectrum and photography that is more expansive and vibrant than competitors. The instantly recognizable angled, interleaved graphic shapes provide flexibility and scalability while creating a strong link to the brand.
OUTCOME
Imagine® Visa® launched in early 2023 with a direct marketing campaign, a website – imaginecredit.com – and the Imagine Financial Center app. The strength and uniqueness of the visual identity is immediately apparent when users see it – something truly different in the financial services industry.
Bringing clarity to a household name in innovative materials science
From the seeming miracle of outdoor fabrics that are waterproof yet breathable to advanced materials that have transformed electronics, aerospace, telecommunications and medicine, the innovations of Gore have touched many millions of lives. In the years since it was founded in 1959, Gore has built a legacy not only as an innovator, but as an organization that innovates with purpose—solving complex challenges through the application of advanced materials.
Gore is an enterprise unlike any other. Those who work at Gore are Associates who collaborate within a non-hierarchical “lattice” organizational structure and distinctive culture that values the creativity, inventiveness and freedom of the individual. Everything they do is underpinned by strong sustained beliefs and values established by the Gore family.
Perhaps the best-known of Gore’s products is GORE-TEX Fabric, the breakthrough performance fabric found in everything from shoes to outdoor shelters. It’s well-known around the world, but awareness of all that Gore does and what it stands for were not as widespread.
With a milestone 60th anniversary approaching, Gore saw an opportunity to build on its heritage to shape its future legacy. The anniversary would celebrate a renewed commitment to operating as a purpose-driven organization, crystallizing what Gore stands for in the minds of Associates and customers around the world. A fresh, clear approach to the brand, from its underlying framework to its visual and verbal identity, would be one of the key elements.
Finding what unifies Gore and empowers people
Gore has always been seen as a market leader and innovator. However, over time interactions with customers tended to focus on products and transactions. This, along with the relative independence of the organization’s three divisions—Fabrics, Medical, and Performance Solutions—had diluted awareness of Gore’s original purpose-driven intention.
It was time to step back and identify what was true to the Enterprise, meaningful to its customers and distinctive from competitors. This was a new look at the “hidden secret” of how Gore contributes to society every day, through its products and its people. Ultimately, this reassessment led to a natural brand promise—“Together, improving life”—that unifies Gore’s purpose, products and customers.
Building an identity that clarifies and unifies the master brand
Qualitative and quantitative research to understand brand perceptions and associations had revealed a deep hunger, both internally and externally, for a cohesive master brand. Gore called on Tenet Partners to build on the revised brand framework and help unify the enterprise under “One Gore” through robust visual and verbal identity systems.
Recognizing the equity and heritage in the existing GORE Logo that Bill and Vieve Gore had a hand in developing, Tenet used its angular “alar” shape and red-and-black palette as the launch pad for a redesign of the corporate visual identity system. Incorporating the logo’s signature triangle and angled shapes was a way to reflect the innovation so vital to Gore while also making the identity more modern and forward-looking. The bold palette with Gore’s red at its core, communicates the company’s passion and serves as a metaphor for improving life.
Tenet also developed new nomenclature, a messaging framework and brand voice firmly grounded in the brand framework to communicate the One Gore concept and revised brand attributes. In support of the new branding program, Tenet designed a new brand center and strategic communications to Gore Associates, partners and customers.
It all comes together in a unified Gore master brand
Thanks to the strength of Gore’s brand framework, the input of dozens of Gore Associates across all divisions and regions as well as more than 1,200 external stakeholders, and a close-knit, collaborative working relationship, Tenet delivered what Gore needed: a unified master brand with new focus that’s empowering and inspiring Gore Associates around the world, every day.
The interest surrounding digital security in the payments industry is intense. Hardly a day goes by without another story about identity theft. The rising threat has brought a vigorous response, leading to a complex and crowded security marketplace with overlapping security protocols and competing payment platforms. Rising above the noise and gaining differentiation poses a real challenge, even for the most innovative of new offerings.
In December of 2019, Mastercard embarked on tests of a groundbreaking digital service that has the potential to verify a person’s identity immediately, safely and securely in both the digital and the physical world. Mastercard’s unique model embodies privacy-by-design and does not aggregate identity data. It enables digital interactions to occur with minimal data exchanged and only when needed, and safeguards data and the use of data effectively such that the users are in control.
Standing apart while fitting in with the Mastercard family To create a powerful brand and identity for the project, Mastercard turned to Tenet Partners. Working with the product development team, Tenet first needed to fully understand the capabilities of the product, how it differed from related offerings in the market and what role it would play in Mastercard’s global portfolio.
We discovered that the brand needed to balance a certain amount of autonomy with the right amount of Mastercard connection. The new brand had to stand out and deliver an instant connection to digital security, specifically identity protection. It also had to complement the Mastercard brand, providing a subtle link to the parent while simultaneously remaining entirely separate.
Respecting the masterbrand while pushing the envelope The Tenet team grounded its work in the Mastercard design system while also exploring its limits. The name was straightforward and simple: “ID.” To reflect the unique nature of the product, the logo, visual system and UX components evoked the safety and privacy of the offering, visually representing the “mosaic” of data points that make up an individuals’ identity and the ability to only supply the necessary data required per interaction. Working with the Mastercard UX team, we co-developed user flows and guidelines regarding the vital relationships with trust providers and relying partners.
Industrial pipe fittings, valves, hangers and supports are all part of the infrastructure that allows the modern world to function. Supplying these critical components had been the domain of two leaders in the space, Anvil International and Smith-Cooper International. Their products are used everywhere from oil fields and powerplants to industrial facilities, stadiums and commercial buildings.
CHALLENGE
The companies operated in the same markets but were largely complementary rather than being direct competitors across the board. This created an important opportunity and in 2019, the two joined forces.
While the merger created a single company on paper, legacy operations remained largely discrete. The organization had different technology systems and disconnected facilities. It was using the legacy corporate logos and names side-by-side and the workforce still identified with the company they had been working for prior to the merger. There was a clear need to bring the organization together under one brand that would signal the arrival of a new industry leader.
HOW WE HELPED
Tenet Partners was called in to help build a new masterbrand that would help to increase the value of the company. The brand had to unify the organization while encompassing its full portfolio of legacy product brands. There was strong equity in those brands, so a key consideration was finding a way to embrace their distinctiveness while also integrating them with the new corporate identity.
With the project gaining momentum just as the global COVID-19 pandemic hit, it became necessary to rethink the traditional brand development and implementation approach, which relied on face-to-face collaboration and engagement. The Tenet and client teams both rose to the occasion and established highly effective ways to collaborate virtually.
Uncovering shared strengths
The Tenet strategy team conducted extensive research, interviewing and surveying executives, employees and customers. Smith-Cooper was known for its internationally sourced products, global supply chain and high-touch service, while Anvil International offered leading U.S.-produced brands and deep knowledge driven by experience, along with distribution locations close to key markets. These characteristics complemented one another, pointing to a compelling combined value proposition.
The companies also shared a devotion to quality and service excellence. This common ground proved to be an important unifying brand attribute. It demonstrated that the new brand was the best of Anvil and Smith-Cooper, coming together.
Positioning as a solutions provider
Another central theme of the new brand was an emphasis on solutions. For the company’s leaders, the word “solution” had a specific meaning: a solution is the answer to a customer challenge, whatever that may be. It’s not something that the customer buys. Rather, it’s the sum total of how the company serves the customer, from quality products to support, expertise and service. This idea was deemed so important that it became part of the new name.
Unifying the companies, visually and verbally
Ensuring that neither company was seen as dominant was essential. The name ASC Engineered Solutions achieved this by bringing forward the equity of both legacy names. The Engineered Solutions identifier also elevated the brand to its desired status as a solutions provider that emphasizes engineering excellence. The tagline, “Building connections that last,” also carries multiple meanings. It refers to the company’s quality products as well as the strong, long-lasting relationships it creates, both inside the company and with customers.
The crisp, contemporary logo and design system reinforced those messages, with a graphic depiction of both precision and connectedness: a clear departure from the past and a visual presence that stands out among competitors. The flexible design system also lent itself to visual refreshes of ASC’s extensive product brand portfolio while maintaining the equity generated over many years.
Building up to the brand
An extensive employee engagement campaign prepared the workforce for the upcoming brand launch. This included an internal countdown microsite with weekly updates about the importance of brands, what to expect and answers to common questions. Tenet also put together a comprehensive “train the trainer” program to prepare selected ASC brand ambassadors to go on and train employees throughout the organization.
This broad range of internal launch-related communications helped prime employees for the arrival of the new brand, which was carefully planned to expose key parts of the brand platform including positioning, messaging and visual expression without fully revealing the brand itself. This helped draw attention while saving the high-impact reveal of the logo and name for launch day.
A carefully coordinated launch
With operations spread across a wide geographical footprint and many employees working remotely due the pandemic, coordinating the brand launch was going to be difficult. Since there was no way to make all employees available for a live launch event, a multipronged approach was taken. Tenet provided a scripted town hall presentation for brand launch, along with associated employee communications. The town hall was prerecorded and made available online, as well as being delivered live for those employees who could attend. This ensured that every ASC employee was exposed to the new brand on launch day.
For customers, an updated website encapsulated the new brand and featured specific details about the company – what had changed, why and what could be expected moving forward. Additional external communications included a digital and print advertising campaign, media outreach, a new corporate brochure and customer emails beginning on launch day and continuing well beyond.
OUTCOME
The arrival of the ASC Engineered Solutions brand helped to reinforce the organization’s industry-leading position. No single competitor was able to match ASC in every category, giving the company a unique standing in the marketplace.
Going forward, the company is continuing to integrate its portfolio and technology capabilities to make it simpler and easier to do business. As one organization under a single banner, ASC stands ready to achieve its ambitious goals for growth.
Today society faces two undeniable realities: the digital infrastructure we rely on is under constant attack from rogue states and cyber criminals, and college graduates face high levels of student debt. While the two issues seem unrelated on the surface, a breakthrough collaborative aims to address both at once. Tenet Partners was called upon to play a strategic role in making it a success.
First, some background. There’s a critical shortage of qualified cybersecurity talent, particularly for public-sector roles. Top computer science graduates often set their sights on high-paying, high-visibility positions with leading technology companies like Apple, Google and Facebook. What are government agencies and others in the private sector to do? Create a smarter recruitment solution.
A first-of-its-kind cross-sector opportunity
Tenet Partners was invited by our long-time client, Mastercard, to brand an innovative cybersecurity workforce program. Mastercard was leading a public-private consortium of corporate sponsors that also included Microsoft and Workday, as well as government agencies like the CIA, FBI, EPA, Department of Defense and Department of Energy.
While we had collaborated with Mastercard for two decades, this nonpartisan, nonprofit initiative called for an entirely new solution with its own name, brand architecture, logo and visual identity system. Our work would be responsible for luring the best and brightest away from the Googles of the world with an opportunity to impact national security.
Decoding a mission-worthy program name
The right name would be evaluated on several criteria: it had to telegraph cybersecurity, be industry agnostic and show graduates that this was much more than a job — it was a mission. The name also had to project a platform which government sponsors and corporate partners could see themselves as part of. It had to be bold, inclusive and intriguing, yet transparent.
Our editorial team began by surveying the competitive landscape. While there were no direct competitors, there were existing government fellowships like the Cyber Corps and Cyber Command — both good, strong names to use as benchmarks. We set about creating something that would capture the same sense of duty, but position itself as a point of entry and not a long-term enlistment. Ultimately, we developed and presented the Cybersecurity Talent Initiative.
We built into the name a positioning that announces a program, rather than just a job. The word “talent” conveyed an invitation to apply and nods at applicants’ aptitude, while “initiative” creates a sense of paycheck-with-a-purpose. Together the three words demonstrate the program’s strategy, mission and opportunity for students to help our country while launching a promising career.
Visual identity unifies program partners
Thinking through the challenge to represent this group of program stakeholders, our design team created a visual mark that pulls from both the public and private sectors. More than a logo, the design carries the gravitas of a badge, or a seal — an insignia that would look as appropriate on a uniform sleeve as it would printed on a business card. The three points of the logo can be seen to represent the student, the government agencies and the corporate sponsors together in a subtle patriotic palette.
Mission accomplished? We’re on our way
With a mission to bolster our nation’s cybersecurity ranks, the Cybersecurity Talent Initiative has big boots to fill. The program launched in April of 2019 with a goal of fielding its first class of 50 recruits in 2020. After graduation, students will work for one of the government agencies, developing industry credibility and critical workplace skills. The program offers leadership training, pairing graduates with senior-level mentors. After their two-year government assignment, participants armed with new talents are encouraged to apply for positions with private-sector members. Once hired by a group member, participants receive student loan assistance.
The Cybersecurity Talent Initiative gives students the opportunity to make a significant impact, both for their country and their professional lives. That makes us proud to have contributed to the project.
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