Commandments 7-9

    In this final overview of the commandments, we look at how to ‘Evolve, Be Agile’ as a brand and what ‘Be Brave, Do You’ means in terms of being an Original, as well as the all-important bookmark to the commandments of ‘Making a Commitment’. Short, sweet, and to the point, it’s the rallying cry of the commandments.

    Commandments 7-9 Overview:

    • This idea of 'Evolve, Be Agile’ is threaded throughout the work, it is a rallying cry to do things differently and to change our processes and procedures, but also our idea of permission.

    • The Originals in-house at adidas are inspirational, we have to lean into them as an extension of the Originals of Culture too.

    • Finding ways to implement faster, without politics and drawn-out processes, is key. The ideas and inventions exist at adidas, we just have to let them flourish. In many ways, this is again about representation.

    • Again, it’s about letting Nike be big so we can be responsive and agile.

    • ‘Be Brave, Do You’ is about taking ownership of our heritage and deciding to be an Original in all that we do.

    • Being an Original is about being brave, about being experimental, about being Legendary.

    • Legends know who they are, they have a clear narrative and a highly tuned form of focus – we have to execute this same understanding at the brand.

    • This is about cultivating a culture of confidence at adidas, a sense of pride around everything we do and have done.

    • It’s about running with the key attributes of the brand: being bold, being audacious, being inventive and inspiring overall.

    • Finally, when it comes to ‘Making A Commitment’, this is simply the book-end of the total commandments, reiterating what we need to do and where we need to invest.

    • Committing is key.

    7. EVOLVE, BE AGILE

    “The past is a foreign country, they do things differently there…” [or so read the immortal first lines of L.P Hartley’s The Go Between] a line we could easily swap for ‘the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results [apparently not something Einstein said after all, but hey]. This idea of ‘Evolve, Be Agile’ is threaded throughout the work, it is a rallying cry to do things differently and to change our processes and procedures, but also our idea of permission.

    Truthfully, having worked with the majority of competitors within the industry [Nike, Converse, Under Armour, etc.,], the teams at adidas are undoubtedly the most maverick, the most talented and the most inventive. We have to make a decision to encourage Originality in our own house, responding to the true Originals we have and leaning into them as our own Originals of Culture too. Finding ways to implement faster, without politics and drawn-out processes, is key. The ideas and inventions exist at adidas, we just have to let them flourish. We have people in-house who want to protect the brand, who know what we need to do, who cherish our heritage, heart and soul. Finding ways to be more permissive, culturally as a brand, is necessary - this is about ceding control to the right people who can cultivate our growth. In many ways, it lends itself to the idea of representation too - Are we listening? Are people being heard? Do people feel they can speak out? If not, our very culture is not inclusive.

    2020 was a catalyst for change, in myriad ways, we still don’t know all of the repercussions around that, nor indeed have we seen the end of change, but rather only the beginning. Leaning into this moment in time, to use it to re-correct our path, to plan our future and to cherish our past, is important. It gives us space to breathe, to reconnect, to refresh and reconfigure - looking at outdated modes of thinking, working, doing, and permitting, is needed.

    ACTION POINT: PERMIT

    We need to take time to look at the business and figure out the ways in which we can finesse, encouraging speed and originality at the brand, through being brave, through being spirited, through being experimental. Mistakes matter - we’re allowed to make them - indeed, they’re a critical part of Originality and problem-solving. However, they only matter if we learn from them. They only matter if we embrace the glitch, run with it, and move on.

    Over and over again we have said, ‘Let Nike be Big so we can be small’ - small is brave, small is audacious, small is spirited, small is agile. Finding those ways to be more agile in-house will affect everything we do outside of it. If we create a culture of permission at adidas, that’s seen from the outside too then everyone feels included. In terms of creating a culture, this kind of culture is key.

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    8. BE BRAVE, DO YOU

    The audience, the Originals of Culture, the agencies, the partners, the people within the brand - they’re all rooting for adidas to win. Now is the time to do that [and not least because Nike has fatigued the Originals of Culture who don’t want to work with them anymore!]. This is about taking ownership of our heritage [soul] at adidas and deciding to be an Original in all that we do. Being an Original is about being brave, it is about being experimental, it is about being Legendary. And we are Legendary; running with that is key.

    Legends know who they are, they have a clear narrative and a highly tuned form of focus - they know where they’re going and what they’re going to do. They’re neither flippant nor superficial, they are timeless [and timely] rather than transient and trendy. In short: Legends are remarkable. We need to be remarkable too.

    Naturally sitting under the umbrella of ‘Evolve, Be Agile’. This is about creating a culture of confidence at adidas, a sense of pride around who we are, what we did, what we’re going to do. It’s about ensuring everyone is in the conversation, everyone knows where we’re going and everyone knows why. This is about claiming our heritage, talking about our heritage and cherishing our heritage. It’s about story-telling, building upon our icons and running with the key attributes of the brand: fearlessness, being audacious and being inventive and inspiring.

    This is not only about being the place where the most inventive, maverick, brave people want to work, but also the brand that the most inventive, maverick, brave people want to partner with and align themselves with. It is about being the brand that inspires a generation, while aligning with their values, growing their Originality and using our power to make a difference. If we do this, this is where our rocket fuel comes from.

    ACTION POINT: CULTIVATE

    We have to cultivate this culture at adidas, educating and encouraging the teams across all departments, all categories, all areas. Knowing that we’re heading towards the idea of One Brand [which is how the audience sees us anyway] this is about embedding these attributes and ‘ways of doing and thinking’ into the culture at adidas. Naturally strengthened by the other insights within the work, it is the commandment that connect. We cannot tell people to evolve without allowing them to be brave, we cannot use our power to make a difference if we haven’t got the guts to do that. If we want to be useful, we have to know who we are. Onboarding the brand, as a whole, around behaviour, is a must.

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    9. MAKE A COMMITMENT

    Whatever we’re talking about with the audience, they want to know it’s going to be a commitment from us; whether a commitment to the culture, to sustainability, to being representative or to the communities. Greenwashing and brand-wagonism will not be tolerated, ever.

    ACTION POINT: INVEST

    To make a change, to do things differently, to catch up on the points we’re behind, it’s got to be about investing and making a commitment to:

    … Use our power to make a difference to create possibilities for people & planet.

    … Activate a network of Originals of Culture.

    … Reflect Gen Z’s mindset in all that we do in ways that involve, uplift & inspire.

    … Talk with not ‘at’ our audience, engaging them in great storytelling.

    … Make sustainability accessible, easy and seamless through being inventive.

    … Be representative and real both inherently, in-house and in all that we do.

    … Change outdated processes and procedures to create a culture of permission.

    … Be an Original in all that we do; brave, bold, audacious.

    [by investing, deciding, agreeing and acting upon the audience advice].

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