The global firm Bayer has been in operation for over 150 years, with the growth of its business in that time driven by the development of 'new molecules for use in innovative products and solutions to improve the health of humans, animals and plants' (Bayer, 2016). Historically, the company's operations were built around healthcare, agriculture and high-tech polymer activities, these latter functioning for some years as a cash machine for the Bayer group. Its expertise in high-tech polymer activities enabled Bayer's material sciences division to offer products and material solutions to sectors as diverse as automotive, construction, electronics, medical, cosmetics and textiles. Sometimes the division's materials are visible, but, more often than not, they work 'behind the scenes', whether as insulation for houses or the refrigerators inside them, in mattresses, automobile headlights and stadium roofs, as protective coatings or extremely thin films.
While the material sciences division had been an important part of the group's activities, by 2014 Bayer had decided to realign its interests in order to concentrate on its core life science business. This was perhaps to be expected, given that by 2013, the life sciences represented 71 per cent of company revenue and 88 per cent of adjusted earnings. Added to this was the fact that Bayer could not fund expansion for both divisions and its fast-growing position in healthcare would require considerable capital as well as research and development investment to maintain that position. Announcing its move away from materials in 2013, Bayer's intention was to start a legally and financially independent materials science unit which could be floated on the stock market. Such a move would require the support of financial markets, customers and employees so that the new entity represented a credible business proposition as an investment, a solutions provider and an employer.
As one of the biggest corporate launches in 2015, the task of creating the corporate identity to support that credible business proposition fell to the agency Landnor (www.landnor.com), part of the global communications agency, WPP. According to Kirsten Foster, executive director of strategy at Landnor, while communication with clients and investors was important, most critical were employees. In a B2B space, employees are particularly involved in the delivery of the brand promise, which means that it is important that they remain engaged - the brand has to speak as much internally as externally. Internal engagement in Bayer's materials science division was challenging as employees had a particularly strong relationship with their employer. Working for Bayer was like a badge of honour so that when the materials division was separated from Bayer, members of staff lost the Bayer brand name and the associations with it, such as the name, its reputation and brand values of leadership, integrity, flexibility and efficiency.
Working with the company's employees, the Landnor team determined descriptors for the new company: courageous, curious and colourful (or diverse) - quite a statement for what is essentially a chemicals business. Important in this process was the identification and surfacing of values which were already present, rather than trying to impose new ones. While the values might have already existed, what did have to be created was the name and visual elements of the new corporate brand. Unveiled in 2015, the name Covestro is made from a combination of words that is intended to reflect the identity of the new company. For example, the letters C and O are meant to be associated with the word collaboration, while VEST is aimed at signalling that the company is well invested in state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities. And the final letters, STRO, were chosen to show that the company is strong in terms of innovation, market position and its workforce. Alongside the name, Covestro's identity is signalled visually through having its name in lower case surrounded by a multi-coloured open ring (perhaps echoing the Bayer logo?) on a black background.

 

Case Study Questions
With reference to the case study and Covestro's website (www.covestro.com): What do you consider to be Covestro's core competencies? 

Based on the information contained in the website, how do you think the company positions itself within the material sciences industry? 

In what way are the traits courageous, curious and colorful signaled via Covestro's brand identity?