Country Base: USA
Industry/Sector/Keywords: Engineering Services, Design, Construction, Architecture
Below: Before and After Images in Slide Show, Video, Summary, Credits
It is provided for your convenience if the embedded frame is not visible on this page
CH2M – www.rebrand.com/ch2m-images
Industry Setting
In two decades, CH2M HILL had undergone massive growth, going from a small regional, engineering firm to one with 26,000 employees in 50 countries with annual revenues of nearly $6 billion.
Simultaneously, a ‘sea of sameness’ marred the industry. Everyone offered the same thing, without distinction or differentiation, so clients often chose by price.
Challenge
One of CH2M HILL’s greatest assets had always been its strong culture. But by 2014, after a period of acquisitions and growth, the culture was fragmented by questions like “who are we?” and “how are we different?”
CH2M HILL needed a new brand to highlight its distinguishing value and unique approach to the industry—unifying employees and deepening relationships with clients.
Strategy
Immediately, it was clear what makes CH2M HILL so special: its people and their values. So when we suggested a name change, we recommended going back to the original “CH2M” – to simplify without losing sight of these foundational values.
We then pivoted the brand’s focus to humanize its impact: from engineers building things to teams “laying the foundation for human progress by turning challenge into opportunity.” A refreshed tone of voice supports this purpose by highlighting CH2M’s unique ability to “tackle complexity with a smile.”
The visual system brings to life these core ideas. The new logo exemplifies humanity and expressiveness. And from a carefully curated color palette to a proprietary illustration style, every piece was selected to be functional while inspiring an emotional response.
Result
Employees bought in right away. Over 900 volunteered to participate in a hugely successful internal grassroots campaign to roll out the brand.
Since launch, clients have echoed that the new design system stands out from the homogeneous crowd. This new compelling distinction has increased interest in CH2M: in just the first two weeks after launch, 414,684 users visited ch2m.com, three times more than in the previous two weeks.
Client: CH2M- www.ch2m.com
Brand Strategists/Designers: FutureBrand – www.futurebrand.com
Client Services:
Account Director: Ana Gannod
Brand Strategy:
Strategy Director: Patricia Deneroff
Senior Strategist: Camilla Crane
Design:
Executive Creative Director: Mark Thwaites
Design Director: Scott Williams
Design Director: Ju Hyun Lee
Senior Designer: Grace Chou
Design:
Digital Strategy Director: Stephen Barber
Digital Creative Director: William Bloor
Digital Designer: Sarah Dunleavy
UX Lead: Stuart Eggleston
Writing:
Writing Director: Patrick Attenasio
External Project Partners:
Writing: Eamon Hickey
