In September, 2017, Hitachi launched its newest business, Hitachi Vantara, at its Las Vegas NEXT conference, capping a whirlwind buildup that started with the company’s inception just five months earlier. Driving anticipation throughout, Vantara, which harnessed existing capabilities to provide data-driven solutions, debuted with relative fanfare for a tech company, complete with robust press coverage and parties for Hitachi employees around the world. Communications, led by CCO Mary Ann Gallo, was at the heart at the initiative, playing an integral role at touch points from coining a brand of value and naming it accordingly to getting buy-in from individuals inside and outside century-old Hitachi. Gallo spoke with the Holmes Report about what went into making it a success.
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Tell us about the name, Hitachi Vantara.
Naming a company is not an easy proposition and it was something that we wanted to do differently. Within Hitachi we have a very straight forward descriptive naming. But with this new company we wanted to paint a very interesting future that would not be limited by who we are today, but have room for growth. We wanted to take a leap and take a new name that didn’t have any associated meaning to it, a name we would create over time.
We worked on a name with (the naming agency) Catchword. We also wanted people to know that while we were creating something new, our offerings…social innovation, data-driven solutions, virtualization technology…were going to come with us and be a key part of our strategy. Advantage was another element, that everything we do at Hitachi Vantara is rooted in customer value. Vantara is having a vantage point, having insights into data.
