The Corporate Brand Identity Matrix guide executive teams through a structured set of questions that examine aspects of identity related to the organization’s mission, culture, competences, values and other defining characteristics
“What Does Your Corporate Brand Stand for?” Harvard Business Review, January-February 2019 by Stephen A Greyser and Mats Urde. https://www.hbr.org/2019/01/what-does-your-corporate-brand-stand-for
There are nine elements in total arrayed in three layers; internally oriented elements on the bottom; externally focused elements on the top; and those that are both internal and external in the middle.
When a corporate identity is coherent, each of the other elements will inform and echo the brand core, resonating with the company’s values and what the brand stands for. The core, in turn, will shape the other eight elements.
Companies in a range of industries have used the matrix to address a range of identity issues, such as clarifying “mother and daughter” brand relationships, retooling the corporate brand to support new businesses, and improving the company’s overall image.
The following exercise is used to assess the coherence of your answers to the questions to the questions in the matrix. As you fill in the blanks , you’ll create a narrative about your strategy and your corporate brand.
Our mission is…
Our vision is…
What we promise is…
Our core values are…
Our intended position is the market is…
Do your mission and vision engage and inspire people in your own organization and, ideally, beyond it? Do they translate into a promise that the organization will fulfill? Is that promise manifest in the company’s positioning? Finally, does the logic also flow in the other direction: Does your positioning resonate with your promise and values, which align with the corporate mission and vision?
Our competences are…
What we promise is…
Our core values are…
Our value proposition…
Do the items in the list above fit well together? Do your current competences allow you to keep your promise and provide a solid basis for competitive and appealing value propositions?
Our culture is…
What we promise is…
Our core values are…
The kinds of relationships we strive for are…
This section reveals how well your organizational values and culture resonate with and engage people inside and outside your company. Employees are your most important resource for ensuring the authenticity of the corporate brand. If they don’t embrace these elements of your corporate identity, then your outside relationships, whether with customers, partners, or other stakeholders, will suffer.
Our corporate personality traits are…
What we promise is…
Our core values are…
Our communication style is…
The corporate personality or character underpins the company’s brand core and is expressed in myriad ways, from product design and the architecture of the headquarters to the corporate logo and marketing taglines. Assess how well that personality comes through in all communications, both internally and externally.
This worksheet is from “What Does Your Corporate Brand Stand for?” Harvard Business Review, January-February 2019 by Stephen A Greyser and Mats Urde.
