Advent Blog

MORE THAN DECORATING YOUR OFFICE:

Internal branding promotes a positive work environment.

I recently finished reading Tony Dungy’s book Quiet Strength which chronicles his path to becoming head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaners.  One of his first and most important tasks he had was to change the players’ attitudes.  Tampa Bay had not been successful in several years and the players’ attitudes were horrible.  Dungy felt that if he could change their attitudes, they could start winning more games.  To start the change, Dungy only let the players talk positively in interviews.  He tried to get them to focus on the things they did well and not dwell on the mistakes.  Slowly, Dungy saw the team’s attitude getting better; the players were having more fun and they began winning games.

This change in attitude correlates to a project I recently completed.  A health care client built a new building and branding the internal space for their employees was a guiding factor in their interior design philosophy (check out a gallery of our branded spaces).  This company focuses on disease management and wellness. Since they help their clients with those things, they wanted their employees to have the same attitudes and behaviors in their lives.  To do this they used large, high-impact images of people of all demographics being active and used a motivational quote across from the image to inspire their employees to lead healthier lives.  Throughout the new building there are several inspirational quotes and images that represent and encourage wellness.  The company believes that if it can change the attitudes of its employees, it will lead to healthier, happier lives for them.  In turn, that leads to more productivity….isn’t that what every company wants?

Although Tony Dungy may not have used internal branding to start a shift in attitude, branding is a great way to express values and culture to your employees. Who knows you might just get an attitude adjustment out of it!!!!