Adidas’ mission is to include and unite people through sport – something that can only be brought to life through its people. Its famous slogan ‘Impossible is Nothing’ was introduced in 2024, and its three-stripe consumer brand is instantly recognisable. However, while candidate attraction was high, the company needed to ensure it was getting the best possible applicants for its roles. Some of the challenges it faced included the talent experience being drowned out by products, a fragmented career progression offer, a slow recruitment process and candidates being lured away to other employers as the experience or location worked better for them.

Adidas needed an employer brand that would align uniquely to its spirit and purpose and become its ‘North Star’. To delve into the reality behind the brand, Havas embarked on months of insight including aspiration interviews, data analysis, project interviews and recruiter interviews. It wanted to show the company’s inspirational heritage while also being clear about what employees could expect. The research led adidas to three pillars of connection: leadership, betterment and performance, with the strapline of ‘We Power Possible’. Messaging began to focus on the people behind the products, how they work together and how they innovate. It demonstrated the connection between work life and a sports mindset, for example, ‘when your employer is also your coach’, or ‘when work turns into play’. Visuals included sketches of iconic products.

The new brand was launched globally at a HR summit event in May 2023, providing teams with branded materials and even the ‘world’s first employer brand basketball’, referred to as the ‘Possiball’. An external campaign was aimed at key audiences to dispel the myth that career promise was lacking at the company, including early talent, retail and digital roles. A web-based hub was packed full of tools to help employees with hiring opportunities, and Adidas dedicated an area of the website as a gateway for adidas Women in Tech, supporting its DE&I goals. All objectives were fulfilled and there has been an “astonishing” shift in awareness and engagement with adidas as an employer. Highlights include a jump in women in leadership roles and a stark increase in quality applications.