Carla Haag, Head of Marketing of GETEC, explains how a customer-centric approach and a unified marketing and communications ecosystem are advancing the GETEC sustainability mission.

The energy transition is more than a technical and operational challenge. It also depends on transparent communications that build trust among stakeholders. For GETEC, 2025 marked a decisive step in aligning how we communicate who we are, what we do and what we stand for. The development of a refreshed brand identity and the creation of an integrated marketing and communications ecosystem were part of our strategic investment in transparency, trust and long-term stakeholder value – and a direct expression of our ESG commitments.

Customer centricity means genuinely understanding and responding to customer needs. While it is often treated solely as a commercial value, at GETEC, we view it as a sustainability driver and a competitive advantage. When we listen closely to the challenges our customers face, we become better partners in helping them reduce emissions, comply with tightening energy regulations and meet their own sustainability priorities.

A brand built on accountability

Aligning our communications started with a brand refresh. It was grounded in the premise that sustainability must be visible, credible and consistent across every customer touchpoint and in all our internal and external communications. We built accountability into the brand architecture, under our corporate value of reliability. Central to this is a positioning that reflects the role of GETEC as a trusted partner in Europe.

As a leading specialist for energy and infrastructure, we are shaping the future of energy through innovation and customised solutions, showcasing our value of a pioneering spirit. Through our Managed Energy Infrastructure business model, we deliver energy and infrastructure as-a-service, sharing operational, financial and environmental risks with our customers. This innovative model is essentially a sustainability proposition: we invest in and own the energy infrastructure so that our customers can focus on their core business while benefiting from lower emissions, reliability and improved energy efficiency.

Our brand refresh explicitly connects this business model to measurable impact, another of our corporate values. Previously, we described our work only in technical terms. Now, we speak about outcomes and benefits. This shift was informed by stakeholder research that shows industrial, real estate and public sector customers want more than just energy services – they want a trusted partner to help them navigate the regulatory, financial and reputational challenges of the energy transition. This includes striking the right balance of co-existing technologies and fuels to enable customers to progress on their decarbonisation journeys.

An integrated marketing and communications ecosystem

Together with the brand refresh, we began the development of an integrated marketing and communications ecosystem designed to connect our brand promise with customer experience across the full lifecycle. This starts with talented and cross-functional teams working in unity, our fourth corporate value, to achieve common goals. Our first deliverable was a unified digital presence designed to support customers throughout their research and decision-making journey. By providing clear, consistent and easily accessible information, we help customers navigate the complexity of energy solutions and better understand the options available to achieve their energy, operational and sustainability goals.

Integral to this work was the development of a content strategy anchored in sector-specific expertise and knowledge. The energy challenges facing the chemical industry differ from those of commercial real estate portfolios or municipal utilities. Our marketing and communications reflect those differences. This strengthens our commercial relevance and reinforces the credibility of GETEC as a long-term and trusted partner capable of delivering sustainable energy and infrastructure solutions at scale and in context. Stakeholder confidence is built by demonstrating competence, reliability and consistency in delivering added value over time. Internally, the new ecosystem introduced shared tools and standards across markets, improving collaboration between country teams and ensuring that our sustainability messaging is accurate and consistent, whether a customer encounters us in Germany, Italy or elsewhere across Europe. Consistency of message is not just a brand imperative – in an ESG context, it is an essential part of governance supporting transparency and accountability.

Customer centricity as a sustainability driver

A brand identity communicates what the company does and reflects who the company is. At GETEC, the voices and perspectives we feature demonstrate our commitment to diversity and our dedication to our customers. When our content includes human diversity in the range of sectors, geographies and stakeholders we serve, it resonates more authentically.

Marketing and communications play a key role at many touchpoints along the customer’s journey. Customer centricity ensures relevance and transparency, as we present our solutions and set expectations honestly, communicate progress, and share customer outcomes. Our goal is not only to communicate to our customers, but to communicate with our customers. This distinction matters for building a relationship of trust and for the collaborative attitude the energy transition demands.

Importantly, our customer focus supports the social aspect of our ESG goals. Industrial customers, municipal operators and real estate managers are embedded in communities, meaning the energy security, affordability and resilience we help them achieve have a broader social impact. By making these connections visible in our communications, we help customers articulate and quantify their own ESG impact, creating a culture of commitment, long-term thinking and shared accountability.

The journey ahead

Our work to align brand, marketing, business and ESG ambition is ongoing. We will continue to develop our reporting capabilities to better quantify and communicate the sustainability impact delivered through customer partnerships. We will also expand our thought leadership presence at European policy forums, reinforcing the voice of GETEC on industrial decarbonisation, energy security and the future of energy provision.

Ultimately, a brand is a promise. A unified marketing and communications ecosystem is one of the ways a company delivers on that promise. For GETEC, our promise is clear. We are the partner that makes the energy transition achievable, manageable and sustainable for the industries, sectors and communities we serve – to deliver the solutions they need to operate successfully today and #ForGenerationsToCome.