With a new, cryptic logo, lots of bass in the soundtrack, a bit of Bond: Germany's foreign intelligence agency is stepping out of the shadows with a fresh, modern image to attract new talent.
The trademark of Germany's foreign intelligence agency, the BND, has been one of secrecy for decades. However, the BND recently launched a campaign to revamp its public image.
This move is part of a strategy to compete with other employers and security agencies for skilled workers.
"From mystery to brand" is a catchphrase at the agency which reveals the mission's aim.
The spies have been secretly fine-tuning their new image for about a year and a half.
Skills shortage and demographic problems
"We have more retirees than we can find young people," says Bruno Kahl, president of the BND, explaining the agency's sudden openness.
"Our job is not like any other." There are lengthy and tough security checks, and mobile phones are banned in the workplace, as is working from home as a rule - not to mention that you can earn more on the open market.
Despite pride in their work, BND spies cannot discuss their jobs with family or friends.
A central element of the BND's transformation is a new logo optimized for digital use. Departing from traditional government design guidelines, the BND's new emblem features an eagle next to the abbreviation "BND," using new colours and modern aesthetics.
This departure from the federal eagle and black-red-gold stripe symbolizes the agency's autonomy and contemporary outlook.
Once a "fat hen," now a crypto-eagle
More conciseness, more uniqueness, more attention - that is the formula which should, in the end, yield more employees.
The federal eagle was affectionately known as the "fat hen" in the former Bonn Bundestag when the Berlin Wall was still standing.
At the BND, the heraldic animal has been transformed into the "eagle with BND typology," as the logo is known internally.
The eagle is recognizable, however, according to those who designed it, its depiction is intended to draw some modern and digital connections to the mission and work of the secret service.
Globe - radio waves - fingerprint
The round eagle shape suggests a globe - symbolizing an international outlook and openness to the world. It can also be seen as a radio wave symbol, representing networking and information gathering, or a fingerprint, symbolizing secrecy.
With the design of the BND eagle in open and concentric circles, its creators want to remind us of the seating arrangement in the Bundestag - and the democratic legitimacy of the agency's work.
The logo is intended to "on the one hand represent our state, and on the other hand our engagement," explains BND chief Kahl, showcasing the exhibition stand at the intelligence service headquarters in Berlin. This stand is used to attract young talent at computer and job fairs, as well as universities.
The BND also uses bright colours - purple, turquoise, yellow - and bass-heavy rhythms in the style of espionage thrillers to attract more attention.
They want to be "attractive and evoke associations that also represent the positive sides of our profession," says spy chief Kahl. "Of course, we have to go where the young people are. And we also have to speak the language that young people speak," he explains.
BND advertising with an ambiguous slogan
The BND's top management organized workshops and conducted market research with an external agency. The new brand appearance has cost a six-figure sum, with the slogan "Get behind it" (Komm dahinter) aiming to attract talents curious to look behind the scenes.
According to Kahl, the BND is targeting people aged between 15 and 35, from high school dropouts to university graduates. "You can learn to become a spy with us," says the BND president.
With over 450 professions, there are entry opportunities for all educational categories - from tradespeople to academics.
Mixed response among parliamentarians
Konstantin von Notz, chairman of the Parliamentary Committee for Checks on the Secret Services and a Green Party lawmaker, tells dpa that the BND is trying to protect freedom, democracy and the rule of law in an increasingly difficult world.
"The new employer brand can be a building block for finding and retaining young and committed employees for these important tasks."
His deputy, foreign affairs expert Roderich Kiesewetter of the conservative CDU opposition, on the other hand, criticized the campaign and symbolism as not being effective.
"Neither the new logo nor the messages make it clear what the current threat situation is all about and why the BND is so important."
"Imagine YOU are wanted by the BND"
Ambiguity and espionage motifs: BND President Kahl particularly likes one of the new poster motifs with which his service hopes to attract more attention.
"Imagine YOU are wanted by the BND" is written large on it. And small underneath: "As part of the team."
This is his favourite poster, "firstly because it gets to the heart of the matter very well and secondly because it naturally plays with a certain cliché about the BND."
Yet another motif is also likely to cause a stir: "We are looking for terrorists (m/f/d) Find them with us," reads the text.
And then there's the poster that plays on the eternal Bond cliché that reads: "No shaking, no stirring. Just apply."
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