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Branding a new university: The development of Atlantic Technological University's brand identity
Journal of Education Advancement & Marketing,
9
(1),
25-38
(2024)
Abstract
This paper analyses how Atlantic Technological University (ATU) successfully created a unique brand identity for this newly established university located in the west and north-west of Ireland. The opportunities and challenges presented by such a large task are reviewed. Developing a new higher education brand uniting three education institutes, each with over 50 years of history, required a team effort and considerable communication and engagement skills to ensure that all stakeholders supported the project. A strategic partnership between three Institutes of Technology, the Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology, Institute of Technology Sligo and Letterkenny Institute of Technology, was formed in 2012 and was known as the Connacht-Ulster Alliance (CUA). The goal of the CUA was to establish a university of size, scale and impact for its region, which would make a substantial contribution to higher education nationally and internationally. Developing a brand for the new university involved dedicated and motivated internal teams supported by an external branding consultancy company. This case study outlines the work of the team responsible for developing the brand identity, along with the lessons learned which ultimately resulted in a successful launch of a brand for a new university — ATU. The approaches and considerations for branding a new institution may also apply to rebranding an existing entity.
Keywords: branding; identity; university; Ireland; rebranding
The full article is available to subscribers to the journal.
Author's Biography
Seán Duffy is the Vice President for ATU Integration at Atlantic Technological University (ATU), Ireland. Prior to this role, he held the position of Executive Project Lead with the Connacht-Ulster Alliance (CUA), an alliance of Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology, Letterkenny Institute of Technology (LYIT) and Institute of Technology Sligo. The CUA received ministerial approval (October 2021) to be designated as ATU in April 2022. As Executive Project Lead, he provided strategic and executive leadership to ensure the achievement of the CUA's ambition to be designated as a Technological University. From 2018, Seán was the LYIT Project Manager for the CUA and was the lead on a €2.8m project to build staff and student digital capabilities in higher education (iNOTE). Previously, he held the role of Head of School of Tourism at LYIT for 11 years, during which time the Tourism College Killybegs (TCK) was amalgamated with LYIT. In 2000, Seán was appointed Head of Department at TCK. Prior to that, he spent six years in Switzerland lecturing and as Director of the International Hotel and Tourism Management Institute in Lucerne. Seán holds a BA (Hons) in hotel and catering management, from RTC Galway, an MSc in management from Ulster University and a PhD from the University of Limerick. In 2005–6, Seán was the first recipient of the Fáilte Ireland Tourism Research Fellowship. In 2009, he was elected a Fellow of the Irish Hospitality Institute. He has been engaged in higher education for over 25 years.
