Brand voice

Overview

Our brand voice is the tone and personality that we embody when we communicate as Kyndryl. Grounded in our brand strategy, our brand voice remains consistent across all audiences and formats, helping to create a distinctive and memorable impression of our brand in a crowded market.

The Kyndryl coach

At Kyndryl, our brand voice is the Kyndryl Coaching Voice. No matter the audience or format, our writing should always reflect the voice of the Kyndryl Coach: a coach who not only guides teams but takes action, working alongside our customers to make progress together.

Inspiration

A great coach shares your vision, challenges you to grow and progress, and helps you to stay focused along the way. They're right beside you, encouraging, motivating and inspiring you to be your best. Coache's speak with an authority and confidence born from experience: they know firsthand what it takes to set goals and navigate challenges effectively. Full of drive, they bring a sense of urgency, warmth and passion to the pursuit of excellence. Always positive and forward-thinking, they inspire progress at every step.

How to apply our brand voice

01

All attributes must be present.
All four attributes must be present in some form in any piece of writing that comes from Kyndryl.

02

You have freedom to dial certain attributes up or down.
Depending on your circumstances, you can emphasize different attributes — do what feels right for the content you are writing about.

03

Integrate voice from the start.
Brand voice should never be added on at the end of writing by incorporating a single headline. It's something you should consider from the beginning and pull through the entire piece.

Our brand voice attributes

The following four attributes are a key part of our Kyndryl Coaching Voice and should be present to some degree any time you write for Kyndryl.

Voice attributes in practice

Our brand voice attributes are the building blocks of our Kyndryl Coaching Voice. Together, they help ensure our writing feels clear, consistent and intentional. Click through the attributes below to dive deeper into what each one means and how it comes to life in practice.

Magnetic & Passionate
Invested in you
Expert & Curious
Savvy

We are authentically devoted to our customers' progress, with an enduring passion and a joy in our work that draws others in.

This means we want our customers to come away with the following impression from our writing:

We are devoted and authentic.  
Our passion is genuine. It isn’t over-the-top or filled with exclamation points.

We are inspired and respectful.  
We are excited to talk about our solutions, but not in an overbearing way.

We are active, always moving forward.  
We use active voice and avoid passive sentence construction.

Ask yourself:
Does it grab and hold your attention?
Does it invite a sense of wonder?
Is our writing active?
Are we being intentional and genuine?

We work to understand our customers’ needs, then encourage them to take action and hold them and ourselves accountable for their progress.

This means we want our customers to come away with the following impression from

our writing:

We are empathetic. And positive. We show that we understand customer concerns and then quickly move on to solutions. We never wallow in the negative or indulge in fear-mongering.

We are present with you. Never transactional. There is a feeling of working side by side all the way through, rather than just selling a service. Our goal is progress for all.

We are approachable. Not intimidating. Any question is welcome, and our conversational style demonstrates that we are engaged in a dialog with our customers.

Ask yourself: Does it show empathy and focus on the outcome (for people, planet, community)?

Do we listen and understand the customer’s challenge (while being eager to solve it)?

Are we demonstrating collaboration by using “we”?

Are we pushing too hard or using fear to deliver the message?

We are knowledgeable while remaining inquisitive. We eagerly apply our experience to create innovative solutions. We are curious to the core and that helps us solve problems for customers and drive innovation.

This means we want our readers to come away with the following impression from

our writing:

We are astute. Never condescending. We want to share our expertise and don’t use it to make others feel stupid.

We listen and learn. We’re not know-it-alls. Our expertise springs from a love of learning, so there’s always and openness to hearing about challenges and trying out new ideas. We speak with our customers, not at them.

We apply our proven expertise. This isn’t off the shelf. We’re about putting expertise to work for our customers and making new connections. Our goal is meaningful outcomes for their business.

Ask yourself: Do we establish authority and guide without sounding condescending?

Are you asking insightful questions tailored to your audience?

Are we connecting actions and meaningful outcomes?

We have a confident presence and reassuring command of the full context we work in. We know how to get to the point and get things done.

This means we want our readers to come away with the following impression from our

writing:

We are self-assured, and even a bit persistent. But we’re never arrogant. Our bold statements and informed point of view demonstrate confidence in what we can do. We naturally pursue what we think is right and may push our customers to aim higher. However, this should never come across as dismissing a client’s perspective.

We have a sophisticated, holistic view — but we meet customers where they are. We see the whole landscape and make connections across categories, but we also cheerfully focus our knowledge on any task, no matter how small.

We are easy to understand. Not simplistic. We avoid jargon and needless complexity. However, that doesn’t mean we dumb down complex ideas — we just discuss them in way that maximizes clarity.

Ask yourself: Is our language concise and straightforward? Is it void of unnecessary industry jargon?

Is it clever?

Does it set us apart from competitors?

Are we reading the room and making confident recommendations?

Modulating our tone

Just as people adapt their tone to different situations while continuing to retain their core personality, our brand voice can flex and adapt to fit different situations and content types. While all four attributes should be present to some degree when writing for Kyndryl, feel free to dial them up or down to suit the context.

Sometimes we emphasize our expertise and curiosity

• Prospective customer meeting

• Thought leadership

• Press release

At other times, we dial up our magnetic and passionate side

• Social media

• Advertising headlines

• Events

When we need to...

(For example, launching a new  service or sharing news of an award)

Modesty shouldn’t prevent us from writing a compelling announcement. Consider the following ways our coach can authentically speak with pride:

• We are invested in customer success, so it’s natural to point to what customers are saying and doing. Use a testimonial. Or celebrate what they’ve achieved with our help. 

• We have a sense of curiosity, so prompt audiences to consider what might be possible now that this achievement is in place. Show excitement for what we might be able to build next. 

• We’re savvy and understand our customers are in a competitive environment. Get them to wonder if they might be missing out. (For example, “What are 500+ customers learning about themselves through Kyndryl Bridge?”) 

• Show our passion for what is now possible. This does not mean using exclamation points or showing surprise in our success, but instead showing emotion for the customer outcome.

(For example, communicating about an outage with a customer)

Coaches know how to acknowledge problems andthen quickly
pivot to what’s possible next. Try one of these ideas:

• Lead with empathy that shows we understand and are invested,but never in a way that instills fear or dwells on the negative. Simply acknowledge the difficult situation and then move on to what can be done next.

• Acknowledge the reality of the situation simply and directly. Then position our expertise as part of the solution. (For example, “We see you have an outage. We know how to fix that — now let’s investigate your specific scenario.”)

• Show our devotion to progress by quickly connecting to what is possible next, or by identifying what we’re learning for next time.

(For example, discussing a new trend)

Be careful not to talk down to people. Instead,imagine yourself as a coach who has learned by doing and passionately wants to share that knowledge with
your team. For example:

• Show a personal investment in your topic. What’s at stake and why doyou care? 

• Even if it’s a complex subject, use everyday language and make it tangible for people in a real-world way. 

• Pose an interesting (or even provoking) question for the reader to consider. Draw them in before you explain every detail. 

• Pair the practical with the vision statements. We aren’t just dreamers; we are doers and plan to carry new ideas through to fruition. 

• Prove your point. Convince your audience with facts and a data based on real-world observations. 

• Use empathy make your piece relevant. How does it connect with the life and needs of the reader? Is there an opportunity to say we heard you and have developed a solution to fit your need?

(For example, limited space in a banner ad)

We can show how we think even in a small format by paying
careful attention to our word choices:

• Convey that we are working together with customers as one team. 

• Make a declarative statement that contains a point of view 

• Pose an intriguing question in a headline 

FOR EXAMPLE:

Co-creation is about listening.
Where will AI take your business? 

Our customers move the world.
No wonder we’re so devoted to their systems. 

Infrastructure choices are choices about the future of your business.
Let’s make them together.

Kyndryl voice test

The Kyndryl Voice test is an easy way to double-check that all four brand voice attributes are coming through in your writing. As you review your work, check to see if you are able to answer "yes" to at least one of the questions in each quadrant. If so, you are good to go! If not, it might be time for a rewrite.

Infographic for kyndryl coaching voice test

Writing examples

Below, you can download a PDF of writing samples that show the Kyndryl Coaching Voice in action. Each page includes a before-and-after example, along with a brief explanation of what changed, why it changed and how each piece reflects our four voice attributes.

Examples of our Coaching Voice in action

Want to see all of this information in one place? Download the full Kyndryl Coaching Voice Guidebook.

Kyndryl Coaching Voice Guidebook