Mark Kingsley’s position as Executive Strategy Director at Collins was where his particular approach to the practice was affirmed at the highest level.
Over the last 60+ years, there has been a great deal of thinking directed towards the formulation and practice of strategy on a business and organizational level — with significant contributions from George A. Steiner, Henry Mintzberg, Michael Porter, Michael Treacy, Fred Wiersema, and others.
But current advances in algorithms, social media and communication technology are having a fundamental effect on brands and branding. What was once a centralized activity — directed by businesses and organizations themselves — has become a free flowing, multivalent discussion where the audience has a greater effect on a brand’s development than ever before. The audience determines what brands mean and how they are spoken about.
So, if brands are such a socio-linguistic phenomenon, then a strategist needs an expanded toolbox of analytical models and generative approaches. This is where Mark’s background in critical/cultural theory, semiotics, and design comes into play.