■ Case 003
Global technology company · Research engineering
Treatment: Full rebrand
How clarity protected a $50M engineering org.
From “support cost” to the team that gets research moving.
- $1–3M
Per quarter in vendor spend brought back in‑house
- 22%
More inbound requests from researchers
- 38%
Growth in traffic and engagement on the team’s internal sites
■ Evidence
Same team. New front door.
Before, the team’s story lived in scattered sites, decks, and word of mouth. After, one front door told researchers what the team solves and why it’s worth bringing work in‑house.
No clear story, no point of view. Easy to file under overhead.
One story up front: this team removes barriers so research moves faster.
The same story went where researchers already look: their inbox and the screens in the building. Recreated with a stand-in to protect the client.
■ Testimony
“If a large chunk of budget showed up labeled as support or operations, it could trigger budget cuts. Eric helped us avoid that cut.”
Director of Research & Engineering, global technology company
■ The case file
00About the projectClient, team, scope
01SymptomsA $50M budget that looked like overhead
Fifty engineers. Forty-eight research projects a year. A $50M budget. And leadership didn’t really know what the team did.
The work wasn’t the problem. Nobody could explain it.
On paper, the budget read as “support” or “operations.” That’s exactly the kind of line that gets cut when money gets tight.
Researchers didn’t know what the team could do, either. So they sent $1–3M of work a quarter to outside vendors.
02DiagnosisA story in pieces
We looked at every place the team showed up: its sites, its decks, and what people said about it in the hallway.
The capability was there. The story was in pieces.
- No brand guidelines
- No consistent message for leadership or researchers
- No formal way to measure success
- Requests came in however people happened to ask
03TreatmentChampions of Yes
We moved the team out of the back office. The new story: problem-solvers who remove barriers so research moves faster. Naming workshops turned that into one storyline:
Champions of Yes.
Then we carried it everywhere: the intranet, a brand story and tagline, a visual identity, email templates, and the digital displays in the building.
04OutcomeBudget protected
Researchers started bringing work back in‑house: $1–3M a quarter that had been going to outside vendors.
Inbound requests rose 22%. Traffic and engagement on the team’s internal sites grew 38%.
And the budget cut never came.
05What they walked away with6 deliverables
- Naming exploration and workshops
- An internal messaging framework
- An intranet copy refresh
- A brand story and tagline
- A visual identity system
- Email templates and digital displays
■ Verdict
You already know something's off. Let's find out what.
45 minutes. Free. An honest conversation about whether Brand Autopsy is the right fit.
What happens on the call
- You tell me where deals are stalling.
- I tell you what I’d look at first, even if you never hire me.
- If we’re not a fit, I’ll say so.
