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March 24, 2007

About the project: Scope of work and deliverables

Many terms can be applied to this project -- brand identity system, brand essence, visual identity system, personality, experience, visual and verbal vocabulary, how we talk about and present the College to the world, etc. -- but one way to explain the project is through the scope of work outlined in the RFP.

What follows are two highlights from the RFP: why and what we have asked Little & Co. to do, that College staff will carry forward; and the full excerpt from the RFP on background, scope of work/project summary, and evaluation criteria.

Continue reading "About the project: Scope of work and deliverables" »

March 13, 2007

Honoring ALL of our roots

In one of the replies to Rebecca's initial post, "Creating a brand identity--background," references were made to both General College and the College of Human Ecology. This made me realize that I want to make it very explicit that we are creating a visual identity NOT for the old College of Education and Human Development, but for the NEW College.

We know that pain and mistrust have lingered in the wake of last year's reorganization. This process is in no way meant to disrespect that, just the opposite! It is a real part of what this new College is right now and should be acknowledged to our partners at Little & Co. during this research phase.

Do we want to stay stuck in regret and feelings of loss? I don't think so and I hope no one else does either--that's also part of what this process is about: Honoring our still-unhealed feelings yet also looking forward with great hope and excitement to everything this College can become.

Probably few people took the time to look through the RFP for this project (the link is on the blog's home page) but we very intentionally wrote that one of our criteria for the company winning this contract would be a commitment to honor ALL of our pasts and to help make this research portion of the project an opportunity to build community in all ways possible. The folks at L&Co. are with us on this goal which is one reason they were chosen to help us.

So please feel free to enter your thoughts here, no matter what your "college of origin" is. And if you feel your thoughts are too private to share in a public forum, please do e-mail any of us on the communications team directly--all of our e-mails are on the front page of the site. We will share those thoughts with Little & Co. without your name attached.

March 7, 2007

Creating a brand identity - background

On Jan. 30, 2007, the College of Education and Human Development issued a request for proposals (RFP) for a design firm to develop a comprehensive brand identity system for the new College of Education and Human Development. You may recall this was the topic of Dean Bailey’s January message in our internal newsletter, This Week.

This is a very exciting project for the new College. It will give us a way to talk about the College—our brand essence and personality—and will create a comprehensive visual identity system, unifying our materials to raise awareness and visibility for the College while highlighting the individual strengths that make us great. To read more about what the project specifically entails, please read the full description of what we requested in the RFP.

Brand identity system - RFP description [Word]

We received 16 responses to the RFP, brought in four finalist firms for presentations, and selected a firm to do the work: Little & Company. They had a very strong proposal and presentation, and had the right match of creative ability, experience with complex organizations and nonprofits, and ability to manage the research portion of this process as well as the creative. They are a woman-owned, 47-person, nationally recognized company based in Minneapolis. They have been in business since 1979. We are very excited to have them as our creative partner for this project.

This project is still in early stages but it is on an aggressive timeline to launch fall 2007. The communications office, in collaboration with Little & Company, will be pulling in students, faculty, staff, alumni, and other stakeholders for focus groups and interviews during the research phase of the project. We will be updating and involving the entire college community on this project through this blog and through updates in This Week. We appreciate your participation by checking in on and commenting on this blog throughout the process.

Be a part of shaping the new College!