Aligning a global organization behind a unified Vision.
The power of shared Vision and Mission: Fusing multiple acquisitions into a united industry leader.
Services
- Vision
- Mission
- Culture
- Positioning
- Brand Strategy
- Corporate Narrative
- Messaging Platform
- Leadership Development
Western Digital, founded in the early 1970s as a chip and semiconductor maker, had evolved over several decades to become one of the technology industry’s largest makers of hard drives and storage technology. However, much of the company’s recent growth and market share had come through several record-breaking acquisitions, joining three industry leaders (SanDisk, Hitachi HGST, and Western Digital) into one. While the mergers were complete on paper, the Executive Leadership Team realized that to get the most value from the combined companies, they needed to be united behind a single Vision, Mission, Values, and Culture.
Over the course of a year-long month engagement, Emotive Brand worked side-by-side with the ELT to develop an overarching Vision and Mission that would support their business strategy. We then partnered with the HR team to identify the cultural attributes needed to deliver and support the Vision and Mission.
What We Learned Along the Way
Honest debate is essential.
Rule number one in Vision-setting is that leaders must commit to taking an honest look at who they are and where they are headed. Arriving at a Vision means leadership teams must take the time to dig deep, have tough debates, and get crystal clear on why the company matters.
Socialization reduces the likelihood of ‘transplant shock’.
When undertaking a transformation, it’s smart to build in socialization. At Western Digital, we shared early drafts of the Vision and Mission statements at a Senior Leadership Event to get reactions. Additionally, strategic executive blog posts laid the groundwork by introducing concepts from the Vision and Mission to the rest of the organization.
Understand the implications and changes required.
Visions and Missions without action plans are worse than none at all. A crucial step in getting a Vision to stick is actively involving senior leaders to identify how the business must change to deliver. How will the business need to function differently? What type of talent will they need? What kind of culture and values does the company need to build to deliver?
Tracy Lloyd, Co-Founder & Chief Strategy Officer, Emotive BrandFrom day one, the Western Digital Executive Leadership Team was fully engaged in this project. They welcomed our team into conversations that went far beyond brand and messaging, giving us insights into the business and culture that enabled us to enact real change.”
First, Align Leaders Around a Shared Vision
Western Digital’s Executive Leaders individually understood their particular division or part of the business. What was lacking was a collective view of the whole: how those divisions fit together to add up to something bigger. A series of working sessions helped them arrive at a shared future vision.
Don’t Underestimate the Power of a Manifesto
To become real and actionable, Vision and Mission statements need some meat behind them. A good story that explains to everyone inside the company what the Vision and Mission mean, why they fit our strength and history as an organization, and why they are credible and achievable.
To create a shared emotional connection, top 150 senior leaders participated in an immersive experience that engaged their hearts and minds.
Get Executives Fired Up About the Future
Western Digital, SanDisk, and HGST each had their own unique culture and way of working. To make the transformation a success, we needed to merge three cultures into one and unite them into a singular ‘One Western Digital’ culture. To create a shared emotional connection, top 150 senior leaders participated in an immersive experience that engaged their hearts and minds.
Experience That Works
Transformation happens in the C-suite.
Everyone wants to transform, but few know how to do it successfully. Marketing cannot lead a global transformation project alone. It must be led by the CEO and the ELT. Without executive-level sponsorship and involvement, it’s only a marketing campaign.
Show them the way.
Transforming a global company isn’t easy. We developed a year-long strategy for using internal and external communications to connect the dots. From Investor Day and earnings to Town Halls and employee comms—everything was orchestrated under a single strategy.
In technology, details matter.
Helping a nearly 50-year old technology company land a Vision and Mission for the future wasn’t a ‘surface-level’ assignment. The Emotive Brand team went deep to develop a thorough understanding of Western Digital’s most advanced technology offerings.
When creating a Culture, it’s rarely a blank slate.
It’s rare to start a ‘Culture Project’ from scratch. All organizations have existing cultural attributes. With Western Digital, we identified what aspects of the culture were core to the company’s DNA, and how that would support the Vision and Mission.
Recent Work
Bringing a people-centered brand into a digital-first, product-led future.
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