Hanoi, Mumbai, Miami, Shanghai, Swindon… Blue-chip multi-nationals like BP have employees across the globe. A diverse workforce of nearly 100,000 employees can pose some serious problems – cultural differences and language can become barriers to even the most straightforward communication.

Working with BP on its Driving Safety Standards literature presented just such a challenge: get across 10 core safety principles to a global audience in a clear, bold way.

Our solution was strikingly simple. We developed a series of symbols corresponding to each of the BP guidelines – each one accompanied by short, simple copy which worked in 12 languages.

A hundred successful years in business is not something to ignore, especially if it involves fascinating stories of exploration, daring and discovery. We were approached by BP way back in 2006. The brief was simple – to develop an identity to mark their centenary, but the ultimate application of the identity was unknown. It would potentially need to be applied with a fanfare as well as with quiet dignity.

Three years on we created the first application of the identity, a flexible event system being used throughout BP globally for local centenary celebrations. We developed a graphic timeline highlighting milestones in the BP story, with the ‘Centenary Square’ underpinning a hundred years of corporate history.