I was contracted by Delta Airlines Global Services (DGS) to run discovery and strategy for their upcoming brand overhaul. We spend ten hours over two days at their Atlanta headquarters, leading the DGS executives and other key personnel through an exhaustive discovery routine. My colleague Nathan Colby, myself, and over 50 participants across the two days analyzed and detailed the company goals, built three user profiles, defined the brand attributes, brand look and feel, brand voice, and then walked them through a goal prioritization and budgeting exercise.
Client
- Delta Airlines Global Services
CEO
Alvin Hegner
Year
2017
Role
- Brand Discovery
- Brand Strategy
Findings
While DGS is a wholly owned subsidiary of Delta Airlines, they have grown to over 20,000 employees strong, making them one of the largest staffing companies in the aerospace industry. They provide staffing services not only to Delta but other major aerospace companies including NASA.
Despite these accomplishments, their continued success was being stifled by antiquated tech and by a scattered and diluted brand. The lack of a clear brand turned any sort of marketing efforts into a herculean task and their fractured web presence and outdated tech made talent acquisition messy and slow for both staffers and applicants.
Problems
- Outdated IT systems are wreaking havoc on efficiency and inflicting staggering losses when accounting for lost time, errors, poor communication, reporting and usability of data, and simply broken or dysfunctional systems
- Fragmented and disconnected web presence and complete lack of social media presence make finding DGS online very challenging
- Lack of a clearly defined brand makes it impossible to differentiate DGS from Delta and gimps their ability to compete against other companies in their vertical
- Under-developed and confusing internal branding and culture combined with dysfunctional technology make on-boarding slower and damage employee retention
Solutions
- Overhaul their IT infrastructure with updated systems designed for the 21st century. Install the latest finance and HR tools (Workday), sharing and communication tools (Box, MS Office, SharePoint), and data analytics tools. Give employees the tools they need to succeed.
- Design a singular website that clearly represents the brand, serves as a hub for job listings and the application process.
- Design a brand for DGS that unites the company vision and enables them to step boldly into marketing strategies to grow the company. Ensure the brand permeates all facets of the company, helping to foster a company culture where the employees are cared for, accelerating the on-boarding process and increasing retention.
- Leverage useful social media channels in DGS’s brand, marketing, and talent acquisition strategies, primarily Linkedin, Facebook, and Twitter.
Research
Starting the research phase, I began collecting relevant source material to show DGS and verify the brand direction. The research included applicable identity systems, graphics, patterns, materials, print collateral, wayfinding, photography, navigation, printing/finishing techniques, interface design, informational graphics, exhibit design, interior/exterior design, apparel, and type systems.
Stylescapes
I used my research and knowledge from the discovery session to put together three stylescapes. These stylescapes represented three distinct but viable visual directions for the brand. The final one shown is the one they chose.
