Understand the model
Five questions every organization must answer for its people.
Open model · Created in Chile, 2014
People who believe in what they do.
Brand Imprinting® is an open model for building virtuous organizational cultures: it takes every employee from knowing their organization to advocating for it, connecting what they know with what they feel.
The drop in engagement cost the global economy about $10 trillion in productivity in 2025 (Gallup). Almost always what is missing is meaning, not information.
The idea
People commit to what they understand and what matters to them.
Brand Imprinting proposes that the brand, understood as the symbol of an organization’s aspirations and purpose, be the meeting point between business strategy and people’s commitment.
The model
Five levels, from knowing to advocating.
Each level answers a question that every organization must answer for its people.
Hover, tap or use the keyboard to see what each level means.
Emotional
I believeAmbassador
The employee says: “I advocate”
Dimension: Pride of belonging
The inclination to speak well of the organization, to recommend it, to bring work into family and social conversations, to have friends at work and to feel proud of its achievements.
Warning sign. Pride that rests only on the brand’s external prestige and not on the internal experience.
Emotional
Involve
How do I contribute?
The employee says: “I take part”
Dimension: Shared responsibility
Each person knows how their work affects other people’s work and the results, who depends on them and whom they depend on, and feels that their opinion is heard.
Warning sign. High individual commitment but a low sense of being listened to by superiors.
Emotional
Inspire / Give meaning
Why?
The employee says: “I want”
Dimension: Purpose and style
The deep reason the organization exists. Making money is not the answer: it is a result. Purpose must inspire, project the organization into the future and define a style of its own. Leaders must embody it.
Warning sign. Values known by heart that nobody connects with everyday decisions.
Functional
Align
How do we do it?
The employee says: “I understand”
Dimension: Processes
The tools, processes, value chain, the role of each area, how decisions are made, and the consistency between what is done and what is promised to the public.
Warning sign. Working in silos. Everyone understands their own part but not anyone else’s.
Functional
Inform
What do we do?
The employee says: “I know”
Dimension: Business knowledge
What people know about what the organization does: products and services, customers, competitors, its environment, how it wants to be perceived, its overall objectives, and their own role, duties and benefits.
Warning sign. People who know their own task but not what sets their organization apart.
Three ways to use it
Measure
A free tool for teams of up to 50 people.
Apply it
Open content under a Creative Commons license for consultancies and people teams.
Articles
Ideas for virtuous cultures.
The model
A company is not a brand: why commitment needs a symbol
October 22, 2026
The model
Love without understanding does not turn into contribution
October 22, 2026
Leadership
The leader as narrative: the 70% that cannot be delegated
October 22, 2026
Open by design
A good idea works better when it circulates.
That is why the model, its guides and its diagrams are free to use, with attribution. You can use them in your consultancy, your company or your classes, even for commercial purposes.
CC BY-SA 4.0
Suggested attribution.
Brand Imprinting® — model by Gonel, Yoshimura, Jottar and Paredes (2014). brandimprinting.org. CC BY-SA 4.0.