How to create an identity for your Business Unit

Why restructuring should spark connection, not confusion

You’ve just stepped into a leadership role in a newly restructured Business Unit. The org chart is fresh. The vision is sharp. You’re ready to move.

But your team might not be. To them, this could feel like déjà vu: another reorg, another name, another leader with bold ideas.

Restructuring happens far more often than mergers or acquisitions. It’s the most common form of organisational change. While it may feel like a beginning to you, your people have walked this path before.

If you want it to feel different this time, you need to make it different. Most reorganisations focus on structure and process, yet what unites people is shared meaning, not the shape of a chart. That meaning takes form through identity – the shared understanding of who you are and why it matters.

If you don’t shape identity, it shapes itself

People don’t wait to be told what something means. They make sense of it themselves.

If you don’t define the identity of your unit, they will – through side conversations, old assumptions, and cues from leadership. That can quickly cause confusion or disengagement.

Real identity answers the unspoken questions:

• What are we here to do?
• What makes this Business Unit and team different?
• How do we work together, and what do we expect from each other?

Get this right, and you’ll create clarity and momentum. Get it wrong (or skip it entirely), no strategy, however brilliant, will stick.

Don’t announce identity, co-create it

Identity isn’t a poster or a leadership memo. It’s not a tagline on the intranet. It’s what people feel, say, and believe when no one’s watching.

That’s why the best identity work is collaborative. Rather than telling people who they are, it builds a shared answer to that question together.

In my work, I use a Collaborative Design approach that brings people together from the start – so ownership grows alongside ideas. This approach leverages the collective intelligence of the organisation, builds true commitment, and sets change in motion from day one.

The shift is simple but profound: from branding to belonging, from messaging to meaning, from rollout to co-creation. And it begins by bringing the right people into the room.

A framework to build shared identity

We use a four-layer model that brings strategy, culture, and brand together:

1. The Management Team – Align and commit

Start by building true alignment in the leadership team. Not just agreement on paper, but trust in action. Because if your leaders aren’t united in purpose and behaviour, the rest of the organisation will feel that disconnect instantly.

You may need to build this team as you go – and that’s okay. Tools like Working Genius, facilitated leadership conferences, or intentional trust-building moments can help accelerate alignment. One question worth asking early is, “How much do we trust each other?” It sounds simple, but it opens the door to honesty.

At a leadership event I attended, a senior team was asked that exact question on stage. The answers came slowly and with hesitation, but they opened the door to a more honest conversation. That moment laid the groundwork for something better – a year later, trust had visibly deepened.

Real alignment grows through shared experience – not through slides or plans, but through conversations that make trust tangible.

And when leaders lead with that kind of openness, others follow.

2. The Project Team – Direct and integrate

Next, form a core project team from strategy, people, product, and comms. This group turns ambition into action – guiding the process and anchoring it in the day-to-day.

Pick people who are respected and close to the work. Avoid political appointments. You want thinkers and doers who can connect the dots and bring others with them.

This group bridges strategic intent and cultural reality. Their role is to keep the process connected – making sure every decision reflects both direction and experience.

3. The Working Group – Create content

Now expand the circle. A diverse group of 15–20 employees comes together to define what this new unit stands for – across functions, levels, and geographies.

They work through structured sessions, often using tools like the Business Compass – a framework that brings together strategy, culture, and brand – to define:

• A clear purpose and vision to guide direction
• Strategic priorities to turn vision into reality
• Values and principles to shape daily behaviours
• A compelling promise and story to express what sets the unit apart
• Value propositions for key stakeholders to make it relevant and resonant

Because this group is drawn from the business, the output feels authentic. It’s something people recognise – built from their own experience. That’s why it lasts.

4. The Jam Sessions – Wisdom from the edges

Alongside the core process, short, creative sessions open to anyone – often called Jams – can spark ideas, build ownership, and bring unlikely people together.

In one Jam, an engineer wrote a short poem that later inspired the brand promise. Because it came from within, people believed in it. These moments can’t be planned, but they often define the spirit of the change.

The more people contribute, the more they feel responsible – and the stronger the identity becomes.

Lead like an explorer, not a planner

Many change efforts treat identity as a project to complete: define the new positioning, tick the box, move on. But real change moves differently – it loops, stalls, and shifts direction.

That’s why I often describe it as an expedition – an unpredictable journey that calls for curiosity and courage.

Explorers need:

• A shared goal to navigate by
• Preparation and base camps to rest and regroup
• Resilience for rough terrain
• Flexibility to adjust when the path changes

Exploration demands curiosity over control. Leaders who can stay open in uncertainty give others permission to do the same.

The Change Journey Map is a tool I use to help teams understand where they are in a transformation – what’s clear, what’s uncertain, and what underlying currents are shaping the work. It goes beyond tasks and timelines to map the psychological, political and cultural landscape that often stays unspoken.

Instead of asking, “What are you afraid of?” it asks, “What might we find in the Forest of Fear?” The shift invites honesty. It gives people a way to name real blockers without assigning blame.

Leading like an explorer means expecting detours, reading the terrain, and building confidence as you move. Progress follows attention – wherever leaders focus, energy gathers.

If you’d like to explore the Change Journey Map, you can download it here: https://gwco.uk/download

Make identity real, and make it last

Once you’ve shaped a new identity, you need to help people live it.

Here’s how:

1. Go beyond leadership. Bring people in early and often.
2. Communicate as you go. Share reflections and progress along the way – it builds trust.
3. Make it tangible. Give people something physical or visual to connect with – a small token, artefact, or reminder that symbolises what you stand for.
4. Connect the dots. Link the new identity to wider cultural or operational initiatives so it feels integrated.
5. Let leadership model it visibly. When words and actions align, credibility grows.
6. Create moments people can share. Those visible, memorable experiences spark pride and spread meaning faster than any campaign.

Identity grows through consistency – not repetition, but reinforcement in the small, everyday actions that bring the story to life.

Making it last

For lasting traction, allow six to twelve months. Anything shorter risks staying at the surface.
Identity sits at the intersection of strategy, culture, and brand – it needs time and attention to grow.

As a new leader, you have a rare opportunity to go beyond strategy execution – to shape how belonging feels. You’re not starting from zero. You’re stepping into a living business filled with people who’ve seen change before. They know the motions. They’ve heard the promises.

If you want this to feel different, make it different. Invite people in. Create shared meaning. Build identity through the lived experience of your team.

When identity is shaped with care and shared ownership, it turns strategy into culture – something people believe in and carry forward. That’s where trust grows, energy gathers, and culture begins to shift.