ABOUT

The challenge:
How do you switch unease for excitement on day one of acquisition? When ServiceMaster (US) acquired Mitie Pest Control (UK), they wanted to show the UK team that this was not a cultural takeover, but rather a shared process that championed the best of both worlds.

The shift:
Our approach was to embrace rather than conceal cultural differences. Through a playful use of language, we helped the incoming US team poke a little self-deprecating fun at themselves with creative use of their US drawl and turns of phrase. The message was clear, while the words may sound different, the ethos was the same with both businesses sharing great passion for customer care and service delivery. This paved the way for some humour (or should that be humor) and allowed us to humanise the launch messages, welcome packs and throughout a globally streamed live launch event.

Evolving the ServiceMaster brand pledge, ‘We serve, we care, we deliver’, to become, ‘You serve, you care, you deliver’ presented a more personal commitment that signaled admiration and respect for the UK team, forging a strong unified tone from day one.