Brand New! Alex Liu discusses Kearney's rebrand; losing the A.T.; and how it all came together

Unless you've been under a rock so far in 2020, you probably know that what was once A.T. Kearney—with roots all the way back to 1926—is now simply Kearney. The new brand emphasizes the humanity that clients, colleagues, and alumni value most in the firm, according to Alex Liu, Managing Partner and Chairman of Kearney. The new Kearney brand was shaped primarily by client perspectives, he says, and what they find distinctive and valuable in Kearney people, the way its professionals work, and how the firm contributes to client success. As part of a comprehensive review of Kearney's existing brand and value proposition, select clients provided feedback that helped define the firm's approach. Firm partners, colleagues, and alumni contributed to shaping the new brand messaging, visual identity, and a personal storytelling approach to communications. Liu sat down with Consulting to discuss the thinking behind the new brand and the new Kearney.

Consulting: A.T. Kearney's been around 94 years and has a long history in management consulting. So, why the rebrand?

Liu: A brand is always an aspiration, an articulation of purpose. It's got to be grounded in your history and, as you know, we have a long history as one of the original firms of the industry. So the brand has to stand for something that's a bit timeless; it has to look to the future, yet it has to refer to the past. The most exciting aspect of our new brand, I think, is that it so accurately captures our voice. If you strip away all the jargon, all the greed, all the frameworks—all the things that we may call vices—the greatest has always been and still remains the clients and the people at the center. The firm is the vessel for those values. And the way we looked at our rebrand is to re-affirm the solidarity and the uniqueness of our clients and our people. We really wanted to make the clients and the people the star of this show, as opposed to the firm.