Board and TTF to Recommend New Name and Logo
for the Association

By Sherry Stolberg, MGPGP, PA-C
Chair, Communications Committee
APAP Transition Task Force

The APAP Board of Directors and the Transition Task Force (TTF) have proposed that the Association adopt a new name, logo, and tagline as part of a process of rebranding to coincide with the Association’s impending move to independent management. After considerable discussion of this issue, we believe that this move represents a unique opportunity to institute a name that better reflects the Association’s core activity of education, and at the same time, update our logo and establish a fresh graphic identity. The new name and identity package are under development and will be distributed to all member faculty and staff in mid-October.

As part of this process, the board and TTF sought direct feedback from our constituents about changing APAP’s name and logo by means of a survey that was developed and distributed online in August to the 1,400 faculty and staff on the rosters of our member programs. The results follow:

Response Rate

Two hundred and twenty-five respondents completed the survey, for a response rate of 16.07%. Of those responding, 67 (29.7%) identified their title as program director. There were multiple responses from many programs.

Survey Results

• About 17 percent (17.3%) of respondents answered that APAP’s name represented the Association’s mission “perfectly,” while 42.2% responded that it represented the mission “fairly well.” About one third (31.5%) of respondents answered that the name did not reflect the mission “very well” or “at all”; 8.8% had no opinion.

• The survey requested a selection of the term that best described our organization’s collective structure. A majority of the respondents (52%) chose “Association.” The second choice was “Academy,” with 14.6%. All other options received less than 10% of the responses.

• When provided an open text box to fill in a preferred name for the organization, 171 (71% of the 225 total respondents) provided a name. These were the most popular:
  1. Association of Physician Assistant Programs (36.84%)
  2. Academy of Physician Assistant Scholars or Educators, or variation (12%)
  3. Association of Physician Assistant Education/Educators (5.8%)

 

• Respondents were asked to list up to five words that best captured the character and mission of the Association and of PA programs. Five text boxes were provided and, of a total of 738 responses, the following words garnered 20 votes or more:

	“Educate/education” variations	116 votes
	“Excellence”	55 votes
	“PA/Physician Assistant” variations	40 votes
	“Diversity/diverse”	36 votes
	“Professional” variations	25 votes
	“Quality”	23 votes
	“Faculty/faculty development”	20 votes

• A single text box asked whether the respondent had any other suggestions or comments related to a new name, logo, tagline or “brand” for the Association. Ninety-three people (41% of total respondents) filled in this box. The results are categorized below.

Program directors were asked to identify any information that could be provided in advance of the annual APAP Education Forum that would help them decide how to vote about changing the Association’s name. An open text box was provided. Of the 67 respondents who identified themselves as program directors, 53 (79%) answered this question. Responses clustered around the following four suggestions:

1. Notice of the proposed new name and logo prior to the November meeting
2. Further explanation of the rationale behind the renaming/rebranding effort
3. Distribution of survey results to program directors
4. Information on the cost of the renaming/rebranding effort

Discussion

The majority of respondents indicated that APAP’s current name accurately reflected its mission and favored keeping the current name. However, the response rate of 16% represents only a small minority of APAP constituents.

The board and TTF carefully considered the survey responses and reviewed the pros and cons of a name change as part of the process of due diligence described by Past President Paul Lombardo in this issue of the APAP Update. Of particular interest to the board and TTF was that when asked to list five words that best capture the character and mission of the Association, by far the most frequently listed word — entered by 116 of the 225 respondents — was “education,” but this is not included in our current organizational name. Collectively, the group decided to continue with the process of recommending a change for the Association’s name and logo and also to create a tagline.

Members of the board and task force view the process of rebranding as an important piece of the transition to independent management. The Association’s office will be in a new location and will have new contact information. Since we will need to notify our internal and external stakeholders about these changes, it makes sense to take advantage of this opportunity to launch a new name and logo. A dynamic new name, logo, and tagline have the potential to revitalize the Association and help us consolidate our position as the voice of PA education.

After reviewing competitive bids, the board retained the services of Ion Design, a marketing and design company. Ion’s proposal was reasonably priced, the company responded to our goal of involving the membership, and it was located in the D.C. area, which allows APAP staff to work personally and collaboratively with the company’s staff, under the guidance of the TTF.

The company is now developing a new identity package — name, logo, and tagline — for APAP. As the next step, the task force and board will present the proposed package to the membership for consideration at least two weeks before the APAP Education Forum in Puerto Rico in November, in accordance with the board motion to that effect. This will allow our constituents time to consider the proposal. At the APAP Education Forum, each consortium will discuss the proposal; and at the business meeting, member programs will vote on the entire package. So check your e-mail in mid-October for a message from the TTF.

Personally, I am excited about the opportunities that lie ahead for our Association. APAP’s Finance Committee reports that we are in good shape. Our revised mission statement reflects our collective goals and values. As I have indicated in previous written comments to you, I was this group’s resident skeptic concerning a name change, but on reflection I have come to see the wisdom of it and now believe that the time is right for a complete rebranding package. (I was also unfamiliar with the concept of tagline, but I have been enlightened. A tagline is a statement that crystallizes the theme or intent of an organization. Nike’s tagline, “Just do it,” is an example of a short, compelling motto that has gained international recognition.)

I hope that the APAP membership will adopt the new name, logo, and tagline. But if, after careful consideration, the majority decide that keeping APAP’s current name is in the Association’s best interests, I will support their decision. This Association has a tradition of thoughtful, and often, lively discussion of issues, and I expect no less in Puerto Rico. I am looking forward to the tropical air, the smell of the ocean, to seeing good friends, to making new friends, and to what in the diplomatic world is called “a frank exchange of views.”

Cheers!