“We started to implement the ecomagination strategy in 2004.

We increased our investments in R&D of ‘green’ technologies,

we focused on selling ecological products. …  It turns out that by fighting
against emission of greenhouse gases, we’ve achieved not only a
positive ecological effect, but we’ve also found a new money maker.” Jeff Immelt

Imagination leads the way

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“The key element of ecomagination is that it’s happening before it has to. It’s
leading by example.” – Catarina Gunnarsson-Tagmark

In the beginning there was light. GE-founder Thomas Edison changed the world
forever when he flipped the switch of the very first light bulb. His inventive legacy
holds imagination as a key driver to help solving the world’s biggest problems.
And, as much a businessman as an inventor, Edison would be proud of GE’s
continued no-nonsense commercial streak too. It proves that solving the world’s
big problems can be done, and it can be done profitably. Contrary to popular
belief, both aren’t mutually exclusive. The greatest inventor of the twentieth
century knew. And so does Catarina Gunnarsson-Tagmark, GE’s International
Brand Manager, who sheds some light on the subject herself.

Simplify
Around the turn of the twentieth century, GE arose from an electric buzz of
invention and change. And today, more than a hundred years later, nothing has
changed. GE’s pioneering objective remains the same: innovate, innovate, and
innovate some more. Never forgetting the bigger picture, it always keeps a keen,
critical eye on the ways of the world.

After a series of internal and external changes, GE re-evaluated itself in 2002. It had
to get itself together for the 21st century, an almost herculean task regarding the
fact that the brand juggled more than 350 different names in thirteen divisions.
With new CEO Jeff Immelt at the helm it reorganised and united all of its elements
under one brand that would be easier to understand from a customer’s point of
view: GE.
The GE equation
The way the brand communicated externally was next on the agenda. After ex­
haustive research, GE unveiled an equation applicable to different subsidiaries and
cultures and still voicing that all-important mission statement ‘What we imagine,
we can make happen’. Its new tagline fits like a glove too: imagination at work.
The GE equation
Imagination
Unceasing Curiosity + Relentless Drive + --------------------- X Sweat2
Risk
= Breakthrough Ideas that make people go ‘WOW’
Catarina: “Now this is a creative process à la GE: light-heartedly engineering
missions, messages and math until a foolproof formula emerges on the
blackboard.”
During this process the brand attributes were re-defined as well as a result of
the research, breaking down how the brand wants to be perceived by its target
audiences in the future.
GE Brand Attributes
Approachable
GE, although one of the world’s largest companies, is made up of over 300,000
personable, low-threshold individuals, all dedicated to listening to its customers
and helping them achieve their personal goals.
Dynamic
Reinvention is the key to success, internally as well as externally. GE has thrived
on this motto for more than a hundred years. GE has always looked towards the
future, created momentum by change and spurred growth in the process.
Innovative
GE employees keep asking: “What if?” The success of GE’s technologies lies in
constantly questioning the imaginable and translating groundbreaking results to
realisation on a global scale.
Leader
GE’s adamant commitment to quality never falters, something every customer
will readily admit. By tackling the world’s most difficult problems it sets a shining
example and drives global expansion to new heights.
The ‘GE Imagination at work’ was more than a tagline—it was a reason for being,
which needed to be instilled in all of its brand touch-points. While a full-blown
campaign hit the air, it started to live up to its value Dynamic by fleshing out a new
corporate identity simultaneously, almost from the ground up. It had a new font
developed, and introduced a palette of fourteen new colours for its 100+ years
old logo, ‘The Monogram’. Using open, active and fresh imagery and changing its
tone of voice to a more precise, optimistic and simple lilt immediately improved
brand perception.
The future is green, the future is ecomagination Ecomagination
People seem to think that profitability and sustainability go together like cats A fine example of GE’s ecomagination is the development of wind farms in China.
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and dogs. GE begs to differ, pointing at its tagline ‘GE imagination at work’. Since With its splendid geographical circumstances and a swiftly evolving economy to
GE’s ecomagination initiative was launched in 2005 it has been showing critics warrant the need for productive sources of energy, the clean ‘n’ green alternative
and naysayers all sorts of commercially viable ways to face the most pressing of wind power is right on the money here. The Chinese government thinks so,
environmental and operational challenges. GE has been showing the world that at least: It has set a target of ten giga watts of installed wind energy capacity by
“green is green”. 2010.
“The key element of ecomagination is that it’s happening before it has to,” Catarina
says.“It is leadership by example.” Anticipation of upcoming rules and regulations GE has stepped up to support the construction of nine sites across the country.
concerning the environment is therefore crucial. By taking the lead, in spite of the The Shangyi Manjing Wind Farm just outside of Beijing for example, will be the
initiative’s obligatory attributes, tomorrow’s must-do’s are already today’s have- largest in China. The 215 turbines in total are powered by a constant breeze from
done’s. This gives both eco measures and the companies that pre-emptively take Siberia and will produce enough juice to serve 600.000 Chinese homes annually.
Coolbrands: Maarten & Anouk in discussion with Catarina Gunnarson-Tagmark
them an acceptable and exemplary glow. Needless to say, GE always thinks ahead and started the project in 2006 by opening
up an assembly facility in Shenyang, instantly creating thousands of jobs. Again,
The descriptor of ecomagination is ‘a GE commitment’, which reinforces that GE is practicing what it preaches, and goes for ‘local produce’.
ecomagination is not just another marketing campaign. At the foundation of
ecomagination hard, tangible objectives have been set for the project.
GE commits to meeting these goals by 2010:
• Increase revenues from ecomagination products to 25 billion dollars
• Double investment in Research & Development to 1.5 billion dollars
• Reduce absolute greenhouse gas emissions by 1% and improve energy efficiency
of GE’s operations by 30%
• Reduce water use by 20% and improve water reuse at GE’s own sites
• Keep the public informed
The results
GE creates better alternatives for the environment, which is just as much about
the obvious merits of environmental sustainability, as opening the dialogue with
the customer. Currently it has more than 60 ecomagination-certified products
in its portfolio, spanning the entire range of GE’s businesses. For example, take
its greener, more fuel-efficient aircraft engines that lighten the customer’s
budget and boost GE’s sales because of their environmentally friendly label or its
‘ecomagination-certified’ American credit card, the GE Money product that uses a
certain amount of paid interest to finance green initiatives.
Up top
The mentality shift within GE is a reassuring inspiration for the future. GE constantly
benchmarks its bearings through several studies to guarantee constant forward
motion. Annual brand tracking across 29 countries compares GE’s perception to that
of other large, well-known companies, for example. Or take GE’s positions in two of
the leading brand listings in the business. Interbrand and Business Week put the
company at number four, racking up a brand value of 53 billion dollars, while the
Financial Times has GE coming in at number two with a value of 71.4 billion.
Credit where credit’s due.
CEO Jeff Immelt | Number of employees 330,000 | Company values (mission)
Leader, Innovative, Dynamic, Approachable | Brand promise What we imagine,
we can make happen