Branding & Visual Identity
Digital Marketing
UI/UX Design
Web Design
The Institute of Public Administration is New Zealand’s industry body for public service professionals. For more than 90 years, they’ve worked to support a stronger public service and the great work that our public servants do. But, despite a membership of over 120 corporate organisations, (including many government agencies) many public servants didn’t know who they were or that they were a member. Our work sought to change this.
To increase engagement with their existing members, and invite new ones into the fray, IPANZ invited Ambitious Aotearoa to rename their organisation and evolve their visual identity into something memorable, modern and more reflective of their wider purpose.
As proud Wellingtonians, our office is a stone’s throw from the heart of New Zealand’s public service. We immersed ourselves in the hearts and minds of Wellington’s best and brightest, and invited public servants for a korero. After several lunches, evenings and many, many snacks, we had a solid idea of what they wanted from their membership body: more public support, more diversity and a more welcoming brand.
Now it was time to tackle their visual identity. We used soft, light colours and humanistic photography (of real members) to keep things feeling fresh and modern. Our much-debated core colour, a dark green, helped to ground the brand and represents trust, precision and their legacy of expertise. A sophisticated new logo evokes the idea of wind moving over mountains – of uplifting ideas and people. Patterns incorporate the weaving of harakeke to further symbolise the idea of strength in both diversity and connection. The visual identity successfully brings members to the forefront while firmly cementing the organisation as an authority in their space.
For Hāpai Public to truly bring members together, they needed an online platform that seamlessly blended content with connection. Built using Craft CMS and MemberConnex, we created an online space that empowers members on their learning journey through access to industry insights, exclusive events and an incredible number of resources. By simplifying and amplifying the Hāpai Public message, we made it easier for public servants to understand their member status, activate their membership and become engaged. Put simply, the website fully supports their core mission of helping public servants explore what it means to ‘do’ public service.