Markengeflüster: the brand in B2B – engine for transformation and growth
From cost factor to growth driver: the role of the brand in B2B transformation
Sarah Bartl
Project Manager
On the evening of 10 March 2026, another edition of our exclusive „Markengeflüster“ event took place at the Presseclub on Munich’s Marienplatz. Under a brilliant blue sky, a group of brand leaders from well-known companies and leading mid-sized businesses came together to explore the significance of brands in the B2B environment and their role as a starting point for company-wide transformation and growth.
With its personal atmosphere, the evening invited open exchange and offered compelling impulses drawn from the speakers’ inspiring best practices, complemented by concrete examples and concerns from the guests’ own corporate worlds. It became clear that in B2B there are major differences in how companies make use of their brand. At the same time, everyone agreed on the great potential that lies (unused) dormant in the brands of many B2B players.
The conclusion of the evening: the brand is not a cost factor but a strategic lever for the future.
Panel discussion with the brand leaders of Airbus, Covestro and Siemens
In a panel discussion, Jean-Marc König (Managing Director at VIM Group) spoke with Khanh Huynh-Kürzinger about her experience as a brand leader at Siemens, with Isabel Victoria, Head of Corporate Brand at Covestro, and with Holger Schubert, Head of Brand Management at Airbus. The three presented the transformation of their respective brands and impressively traced the path each brand has taken towards becoming a modern, successfully managed instrument of strategic corporate leadership.
Using the example of Siemens, Khan Huynh-Kürzinger showed how a rebranding can succeed in which branding itself is rethought and, within a very short time, a new brand emerges that retains its strong tradition while also meeting the challenges of the future.
Isabel Victoria presented the transformation of the Covestro brand. In doing so, she showed what a marathon task brand transformation is and put the importance of a comprehensive strategic foundation centre stage. She emphasised the value of artificial intelligence, but also that it cannot replace concepts made by people – it can only strengthen them through good interplay. Because the support of people, and in particular of key stakeholders such as the board, remains essential. She also noted that in the current discussion about AI in the brand field, the focus is on the output. Yet it should be much more on the input, so that brand-compliant output is guaranteed.
Holger Schubert outlined the challenges and solutions involved in rebranding Airbus as a strong umbrella brand. He highlighted the need, in highly technical organisations, to adapt to the mindset and communication style of engineers and technicians and to anchor the brand in existing processes. That can be the decisive success factor in driving brand work forward effectively and lastingly.
All three agreed that in B2B companies in particular the brand must not overshoot the mark and must be able at all times to give tangible answers to the questions that are relevant to the business.
“Marketing invites you to dance, but you say yes because of the brand.” - Isabel Victoria
Key insights of the evening
A wide range of aspects around leading and transforming brands in B2B were discussed. The most important insights can be summarised as follows:
The brand has to be tangible, simple and clear – for the customer, for boards and for the employee on the assembly line.
The narrative is the starting point and the strategic foundation that is ultimately implemented at every brand touchpoint.
The brand has to serve the business and is not an end in itself. The same applies to corporate design: it does not stand on its own but visually expresses a company-wide strategy and the underlying narrative.
Good concepts and good implementation only work with the support of the people who make up the brand.
Even well-known B2B brands have to make sure people know what exactly they stand for.
In a B2B context, the importance of employer branding is enormous.
For a rebranding to succeed, a sense of freedom within a defined framework is an advantage.
In technically driven companies it is crucial to speak the language of the engineers and to adapt brand work to their ways of thinking and their processes.
External partners such as VIM Group are decisive in anchoring transformation successfully and making it effective internally.
Brand value as a quantifiable figure gets you heard.
Discussion & conclusion
Many relevant aspects around the brand came up in the discussion. It became clear that in B2B, too, there are impressive examples of how the brand can be used skilfully for corporate purposes and contribute to growth.
At the same time, however, the brand still leads a shadowy existence in many companies. But a brand is not a luxury for good times, it is an absolute must-have. In the B2B environment in particular, professional brand management is a central growth driver, a starting point for company-wide transformation processes and an anchor for differentiation. A strong brand and good communication, internally and externally, have a positive effect on almost all areas of the business. The three cases presented by the speakers demonstrated this impressively.
The shared dinner also gave rise to many interesting conversations and opportunities for deeper personal exchange. Once again, the evening showed how important contact on equal terms with other brand leaders is.
We would like to thank all participants for a compelling evening and are already looking forward to the next Markengeflüster! It is expected to take place on 24 June in Berlin. If you are interested, please do get in touch!
