Represent shared membership and local roots
A shared identity can recognise membership of the wider business without removing the local roots employees value. First Names Group combined both through employee names and photography of its distinct locations.
Following a management buyout, the trust and corporate services business needed a unifying vision across global offices and siloed teams. Interviews with employees and stakeholders identified the business as defined by its people and the confidence and trust they instilled. The new visual language featured the actual first names of every employee, while commissioned location photography reflected the business's heritage, local pride and commitment to communities.
The introduction also gave employees a shared moment: coordinated activity meant employees discovered the brand at the same time, through a film starring employees screened in local cinemas. Branding then appeared on business cards, launch packs and offices.
For a dispersed organisation, the practical approach is to find what employees share, give that connection a visible expression, and retain recognisable local details. A 2025 study by the Institute of Internal Communication, with Ipsos Karian and Box, found that 64% of UK employees say their job is an important part of their identity.
Sources: First Names Group: total rebrand, The inside story: why your people shouldn't be just passengers on your brand journey